Tax burden in NH vs. MA (Manchester, Nashua: low income, real estate, to rent)

[thebig0]

You might want to check out Exeter NH. It is a town of about 15,000 on rte 101 near the seacoast. The downtown is very vibrant and the town is served by the downeaster, with many daily trains into north station.

The property taxes are high but you can find the property you are looking for within walking distance to downtown and a few minutes from the train station.

Also there was a new high school built in the last few years and it is highly regarded.

Let me know if you want any more information.

[jaynek]

My husband and I are in a quandry right now with being employed in MA and owning a home in NH. We pay Massachusetts income tax and NH property tax which are absolutely ridiculous since NH does not have an income tax they make it up in some of the highest real estate taxes in the country. It makes absolutely no sense whatsoever to work in MA and own a home in NH especially in light of the current real estate market - there are many options in your price range in MA.

[seamusnh]

There are many people who are based in NH but travel for work all over New England. They pay no state income tax. There are many sales reps and pilots in southern NH for that very reason. I have a job at a company based in MA and live in NH. I file as a non-resident of MA and prorate my days to account for the workdays out of MA and the workdays in MA.

I used to live in MA and work in NH and MA taxed me as if I worked in MA. The state of MA gets you coming and going...

As for commuting, if you are actually going into the the city of Boston rather than the suburbs, the Salem area is probably best. Drive to Woburn and take the train. I live near Nashua and some people drive to lowell and take the train. There has been some discussion of extending the commuter rail north past Lowell and into NH, but it is just talk so far.

As for real estate taxes, check out how much you'd actually pay for a similar house between MA and NH. My town's tax rate is higher ($19, 100% valuation) than a similar town in MA, but the assessed value is a lot higher in MA. The actual dollars I pay out in RE taxes are lower in NH for a similar house. NH has no capital gains taxes, no sales tax. And, car insurance is much lower....

[vegas*baby]

The seacoast in NH is a great place to live. And the commuter train is right in Newburyport, MA just over the border.

[riffgo]

I'd look in Massachusetts. The average property tax in Massachusetts is about a third of what it is in New Hampshire. Also if you look on the South Shore, you'll find that you will use less heating fuel. There are better schools and better shopping in Massachusetts, and the commuter options are a lot better.

[riffgo]

Also, let me add that if you take the time to look up the cost of living index for individual towns in Massachusetts, they are lower than in the towns in New Hampshire that would be within commuting distance of Boston.

[Brave Stranger]

Originally Posted by riffgo

I'd look in Massachusetts. The average property tax in Massachusetts is about a third of what it is in New Hampshire. Also if you look on the South Shore, you'll find that you will use less heating fuel. There are better schools and better shopping in Massachusetts, and the commuter options are a lot better.

Where did you get this figure on property taxes being a third of the cost in MA? A source please. You will ue less heating fuel, really ? How's that work ? Better shopping in MA than NH when NH has NO sales tax ? Beter schools in all of MA than all of NH, really, got a source that would make any sense ?

[cali2east]

Thanks for reviving this post! I'm the original poster and I'm happy to say we're now situated here in New Hampshire and we love it! We looked at over 50 houses between New Hampshire and Massachusetts, put in 4 offers, 2 were rejected and we pulled 2 and are now renting in the beautiful town of Windham. I have to say there was a big difference in property tax between the two states, but you could get more house and land in NH and the absence of state and sales tax is a nice plus. In Mass, we were looking in the Marlborough, Milford, Bellingham, Hopkinton areas. In NH, we looked at houses in Pelham, Salem, Hudson, and Windham. We decided that we would really like to settle in Windham or Londonderry but we're going to spend the next year or so renting and checking out other areas and just generally exploring to see if there're any other towns we'd be happy in. I've found that the drive to Logan from Windham is not too painful and when I'm able to find a good flight, it's nice to be able to fly out of Manchester. All in all, we're extremely happy with our decision to come to New Hampshire!!

[BF66389]

My wife and I moved to the area a little over a year ago and spent a good deal of time calculating the "costs" of each state (MA & NH).

Since we work in MA (not where we get paid from, where we physically work is what matters) we knew we would get stuck paying the 5.3% MA income tax; but since NH has no income tax...

Here was our comparison:

Income Tax:
MA: 5.3%
NH: 0%

Property Taxes (in the areas we were looking at, on average):
MA: $5k
NH: $7k

Car Insurance (3 cars):
MA: $3k
NH: $1.6k

Sales Tax:
MA: 5%?, but not on food/clothing
NH: 0%, except on restaurant food

Gasoline:
Generally cheaper in NH

Labor rates for workers:
Generally cheaper in NH

Homes:
Generally got more property & slightly more house in NH for the same price

Overall our conclusion was that the only "higher" cost in NH was Property Taxes...
...If you look at all of the other expenses- they easily offset this difference.

However if you work in NH...the offset is even greater since you have that extra 5.4% of your income to keep!

[seamusnh]

The property tax rate depends on the house. I had a friend over my house who lives in Westford, MA, a comparable town to my NH town. His house is worth 50% more than mine due to the location and his tax rate is lower but he pays more than I do due to the higher valuation.