job market-entry leve mechanical engineers (Manchester, Concord: houses, good schools, income)

[carlitasway]

Hello. My husband is in school right now for a BS in Mechanical Engineering. He likes NH for the live free or die attitude. We have 2 children who are 3 and 5. We currently live in San Antonio, TX. What is a good family town to move to and what is the job market like for entry level Mechanical Engineers?

[carlitasway]

I guess I should add, I'm a Hispanic married to a White man. Will this be an issue? Some comments in other threads have me a little nervous. I'm not "illegal." Hell, I barely know Spanish. I don't want to be treated badly by people thinking I am illegal, though.

[nhyrnut]

Your fine don't worry about 1 or 2 rouge ppl. Entry level For the field is low like under 30K low. Manchester has the most Firms for this, but they are all over the state I would stay Around Concord area when looking to move.

[mal7014]

I'd say it's more around the 45k range. Manchester, Concord, Salem and Laconia are your best bets. You could always commute down to mass for more $$$$.

[carlitasway]

Originally Posted by mal7014

I'd say it's more around the 45k range. Manchester, Concord, Salem and Laconia are your best bets. You could always commute down to mass for more $$$$.

I thought about that but I keep reading the best parts of NH are north. That south is full of mean Mass people. I don't want to be near that. I'm used to southern hospitality attitudes. I'm afraid we wouldn't be able to get a house starting at 45k or would we? Don't they allow 3 times your income for getting a house? That would only be 135k. All the houses I've seen on Realtor in the towns I researched are close to 200k at least. Are there cheaper areas with good schools?

[mal7014]

Usually you can afford about 4x your gross salary. Good schools+cheap housing = very rare.

[carlitasway]

Originally Posted by mal7014

Good schools+cheap housing = very rare.

Ok, thanks for the info.

[mal7014]

You have to be careful in NH when it comes to schools. Most towns can't handle the growth and just pull up another double wide trailer next to the school to accomodate more kids.

[Yankeehombre]

I concurr, near the 50's range for a BS, if he knows CAD. Pro E is quite popular here with O.E.M. manufacturing companies. 30's, maybe working for a job shop, but reputable manufacturers pay more. Hell, you can't live on 30 here!

[Yankeehombre]

No houses at $45, unless you get a seasonal 'camp' in the stix, but there are no job opportunities there.nothing is cheap here!