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Thank you all for your advice & recommendations. I will report back to you ( after my trip next week) my impressions. My plan is to explore Exeter, Dover, & Portsmouth ( in this order) … and I just added Nottingham to my list. I was thinking about Rye too. I don’t think I can afford it though. The idea is to rent first year & buy year after.
I called a few apartments and I think Dover is the best price / quality of the buildings ( I am too old for 1969 construction).
We don't know how much sq. ft. you need? For a condo or a house? Parts of Exeter are nice; lots of shopping there too. As far as: "The idea is to rent first year & buy year after." I know a lot of people on C-D forums preach that; but prices could be up another 15% in a year.
And as much as I hate it here sometimes (in Winter, & these increasingly bizarre heat waves in Summer), there are a lot of advantages to living in Seacoast NH. I could suggest buying, as interest rates are so low. But nice or decent houses here are selling really fast. I would suggest the NEMoves site if you want to explore properties FS.
You didn't say what part of FL? you're moving from, but you may like it here a lot better. (Until Jan. & Feb. roll around.....)
Thank you all for your advice & recommendations. I will report back to you ( after my trip next week) my impressions. My plan is to explore Exeter, Dover, & Portsmouth ( in this order) … and I just added Nottingham to my list. I was thinking about Rye too. I don’t think I can afford it though. The idea is to rent first year & buy year after.
I called a few apartments and I think Dover is the best price / quality of the buildings ( I am too old for 1969 construction).
Also be aware that depending on the town, high speed internet and/or cell service are not guaranteed. The best way to know if a property you're considering can get them is that it already has them. Don't rely on coverage maps. Most of the towns in the Portsmouth area should be fine but you don't want a rude awakening after closing.
thank you. High speed internet is a real deal breaker. My husband is a computer programmer and need high speed. I'm still trying to convince him to move from the PNW.
NH is my first choice no income tax and no sales tax. I understand property tax is high but if we bought a house part of the monthly payment would be property tax so I don't think we would notice as we would not buy a house we couldn't afford. We currently cannot afford to buy here and maybe there would be a few but I will NOT ever live in a house where i can open the window and touch my neighbors house and I do not want any BS HOA fee.
My dream house is 3-4 bedrooms with a decent yard, maybe up to 1/4 acre. A two car garage, prefer gas stove and gas heat. Do most houses have basements?
Here is a related question. I have noticed looking at houses on Realtor.com that older houses have the fireplaces rendered unusable. Is there a specific reason and if they are unusable can they be reversed? I'm just curious to know why.
Thank you.
PS I have visited this forum quite a bit and enjoy it. I think NH is one of the best states. I have visited but it was many years ago.
thank you. High speed internet is a real deal breaker. My husband is a computer programmer and need high speed. I'm still trying to convince him to move from the PNW.
NH is my first choice no income tax and no sales tax. I understand property tax is high but if we bought a house part of the monthly payment would be property tax so I don't think we would notice as we would not buy a house we couldn't afford. We currently cannot afford to buy here and maybe there would be a few but I will NOT ever live in a house where i can open the window and touch my neighbors house and I do not want any BS HOA fee.
My dream house is 3-4 bedrooms with a decent yard, maybe up to 1/4 acre. A two car garage, prefer gas stove and gas heat. Do most houses have basements?
Here is a related question. I have noticed looking at houses on Realtor.com that older houses have the fireplaces rendered unusable. Is there a specific reason and if they are unusable can they be reversed? I'm just curious to know why.
Thank you.
PS I have visited this forum quite a bit and enjoy it. I think NH is one of the best states. I have visited but it was many years ago.
Older houses will often have unlined brick chimneys and the mortar joints fail over the years. This is unsafe - carbon monoxide is one potential hazard, but also tar-like creosote will deposit on the chimney flue over time, and if there's a bunch of creosote and you're burning a hot fire, it can ignite and cause a chimney fire - that's never good, but if you have gaps between the chimney bricks, flames will shoot out and into the adjacent walls and the house will burn down. The remedy for this depends on the size of the chimney flue, whether bricks have begun collapsing inside and your budget. If there's a good amount of room and the chimney is structurally intact, you may be able to line it or insert a metal flue pipe. If it's small and/or in rough shape in there, you're talking rebuilding the chimney, which will be very expensive. There are cameras that can be used to survey the condition of the inside of the chimney.
NH has the 4th lowest tax burden per capita in the country and, as a result, the 4th most residents born out of state. Stratham and Greenland are probably your best bets to commute to Portsmouth........a little price relief from Rye, Newcastle, North Hampton and Portsmouth but nice with good schools (Greenland goes to Portsmouth HS, Stratham to Exeter HS) and just as appealing in my view in terms of space and neighborhoods. Nearby Newington has the lowest property taxes in NH, is also desirable, especially with Pease AFB only having a few commercial/government flights each day, but small population and very limited inventory most of the time no matter the market.
NH has the 4th lowest tax burden per capita in the country and, as a result, the 4th most residents born out of state. Stratham and Greenland are probably your best bets to commute to Portsmouth........a little price relief from Rye, Newcastle, North Hampton and Portsmouth but nice with good schools (Greenland goes to Portsmouth HS, Stratham to Exeter HS) and just as appealing in my view in terms of space and neighborhoods. Nearby Newington has the lowest property taxes in NH, is also desirable, especially with Pease AFB only having a few commercial/government flights each day, but small population and very limited inventory most of the time no matter the market.
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It was very easy decision. After visiting NH I decided not to move to NH. Extremely high property taxes & RE prices, lack of quality rentals below 3k, depressing weather even in summer months, and people are not happy either, drivers are much worse than in FL. Even with decent income it is a rats race there. Only crime situation is slightly better than in FL. In general, I found NH very boring. Even proximity to the ocean does not make it fun.
One thing I did not get as to how on earth people decide to retire in NH. Not my cup of tea for sure. You get 5x quality of life in FL vs NH.
It was very easy decision. After visiting NH I decided not to move to NH. Extremely high property taxes & RE prices, lack of quality rentals below 3k, depressing weather even in summer months, and people are not happy either, drivers are much worse than in FL. Even with decent income it is a rats race there. Only crime situation is slightly better than in FL. In general, I found NH very boring. Even proximity to the ocean does not make it fun.
One thing I did not get as to how on earth people decide to retire in NH. Not my cup of tea for sure. You get 5x quality of life in FL vs NH.
Happy you found out before moving here. We call the weather in NH population control. Some people cant cut it. It really gets tired around February/March. Typically summers are glorious but this past July was a complete wash out. very depressing.
Personally I would find Florida very boring. to each their own.
Personally I would find Florida very boring. to each their own.
Come on, you don't find a state whose highest point is 345' and only 2 miles from Alabama to be exciting? What's wrong with you. /s
While I find southeastern NH soulless, overcrowded, and boring, you couldn't pay me to live in "God's Waiting Room".
As you said, to each their own. Some folks move south, I'm moving further north.
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Portsmouth commuter towns
