some info. & where to start (for sale, car registration, insurance)

[MySkreenName01]

hello everyone

going to relocate soon and trying to find the right state

what im looking for is a small rural town

what is the weather like there?
in the winters, do you get alot of snow? (does it stick around for awhile or melts fast)
are the summers humid?
how are the taxes? ( where im from you get taxed to breathe )
hows the job market? (im a builder)
what would be a good area to start looking?


thank you for any help.

[rmcewan]

[quote=MySkreenName01;4510539in the winters, do you get alot of snow? (does it stick around for awhile or melts fast)
[/QUOTE]

What do you say folks, did we get a lot of snow this year?

Skreen: yes, we can get lots of snow. and yes it can stick around due to the low temperatures in winter. lots and lots and lots of snow. and ice. did I mention snow?

[WannaComeHome]

Hi Skreen (think I'll copy rmcewan!),

actually, if you pic some towns around the state and look at the City-Data pages there will be charts for all sorts of weather stuff. I don't think the summers are nearly as humid as the mid-atlantic, at least not for nearly as long. As for the taxes, well it's different for each town. If you go to 2007 and click on "2007 Property Tax Rates " you can download a pdf file showing the tax rates for every town in the state. I suggest taking a highlighter and marking the ones that look interesting.

But aside from that, the taxes aren't bad (and the property taxes aren't as bad as many other states although many people who haven't lived away feel they are). there are, though a few 'fees' that crop up to get you! Like car registration: you have to get it inspected every year (doesn't cost too much) and then registered (which can, depending on the value of your vehicle). There are a number of threads about car registration, you can always search on that to find them and browse through.

[nhrocky]

snow, yeah, snow, lots of it in 07/08 and it stuck around way too long

here's one of the smaller snowstorms this past winter, this is my front terrace. it got so I didn't even bother to shovel off my back deck otherwise I was out there every other day it seemed

yes, it can get very humid, last 2 days have been brutal, but the weather finally broke tonight with a thunderstorm, TG. I hate the humidity , makes me really crabby, lol.
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[Valerie C]

New Hampshire has lots of small rural towns to chose from and yes, we do get snow. Last year it just seemed to snow and snow and snow, with not much melting going on in between. See below:






Summer days can be humid--we're in the midst of a few days of hazy, hot and humid days, with chances of strong thunderstorms in the afternoons. Today we even had a brief tornado warning (rare for this area). The nice thing about New Hampshire weather is that it's never boring I've got family visiting from SoCal, and already they are thrilled to see CLOUDS and WEATHER (she is a teacher, and it's hard to teach weather to children who never seem to have any...) Anyway, I digress...

We have higher than average property taxes, and also on unearned income. Income tax if you work out of state (Maine or Massachusetts) and no tax on purchases, except for an excise tax on vehicles.

Job market for a builder, well as you know, there's a huge slowdown. However, the new homes division at my company is actually looking for sales agents, and that area is moving faster than resale, so go figure...

Looking for an area to start looking? Rather than geographical, think about the type of town you'd be most happy with. What type of amenities to you want to live near, if not in town, then what nearby? Shopping? Restaurants? Schools? Give us some more to go on for more detailed responses and have a nice day

[ymilost]

Originally Posted by MySkreenName01

going to relocate soon and trying to find the right state
what im looking for is a small rural town
what is the weather like there?
in the winters, do you get alot of snow? (does it stick around for awhile or melts fast)
are the summers humid?
hows the job market? (im a builder)

I've been in NH for almost two years, having moved from Cali. The first winter was great... it snowed but nothing that was overwhelming. This last winter.. OMG! I thought that it was never going to end!! We would just get the ends of the driveway clear and the friendly Mr. Snow Plow Driver would come along and we would be out there for another hour.

(if you can see.. on the right of the pic below is my car... safe to say it stayed there all winter)



The upside, Spring is goregeous, with flowers blooming and Summers are hot and humid, but I have never minded the heat. The trees show off their beauty in the fall with an array of colors that make you feel lucky to see such a sight. I have lived in South Dakota, Texas, Cali, and now New Hampshire... and out of them, I would choose NH!!



My ex boyfriend also moved here from Cali, so that we could make things easier for sharing custody of our daughter. He also does construction and altho the biz has been very slow, I helped him to find a job without too much hunting, but that was two years ago...

[MySkreenName01]

thanks for the great pic everyone . how long would you say winter is? 4 months? (dec-march)
here in nj along the water the winter air goes right through you inland is a bit warmer (not much)
i would like to find somewhere small and quiet. i would like to be in the woods with the critters, but not to far from stores
thanks for all the help

[nicolem]

Originally Posted by MySkreenName01

thanks for the great pic everyone . how long would you say winter is? 4 months? (dec-march)
here in nj along the water the winter air goes right through you inland is a bit warmer (not much)
i would like to find somewhere small and quiet. i would like to be in the woods with the critters, but not to far from stores
thanks for all the help

4 months? No more like 6-November until April. We have had first snowfall as early as October and as late as January. Of course every year is different. I recall one May getting snow a few weeks before Memorial day. Of course-by then most of the snow was off the ground and the snow was gone in a day or so. Of course that is not the norm. Last year we had significant snowfall in November right around Thanksgiving and it did not stop until April. We broke an all time record in my city with over 140 inches.

You will find winters and actually seasons much different up here than at the Jersey shore. You will also find something different every winter. One winter there wasn't much snow but the entire month of January we never got into double digits for a high. I remember days with a high of 2 or 3 degrees. I remember many mornings going to work and the temp was 20 below. Other winters are mild. Others are snowy. Some are long and some are short. It really can be anything. Since moving here in 1999- I have experienced a real "mixed bag" of winters.

Nicole

[newhampshiregirl]

Like Nicolem said, winters really vary here in NH. I live in the southern part of the White Mountains and we tend to get more snowfall because we're in a snowbelt. The thing with snow is that you just have to be prepared - mentally AND physically!! Granted I'm a NH native so I'm certainly used to winter, but planning ahead just make it easier.

If you have to do much driving (and can't just park the car in the driveway during/post snowstorm), have good SNOW TIRES on your car - not all season radials. I drive a sedan that is typically rated poorly in snow. I put on 4 Nokian snow tires and my car's like a tank. I love to go grocery shopping during a blizzard. Me in my Nissan and a few folks in SUVs at Hannafords!

Have a good shovel (yes, some shovels are better than others!).

Have a good snow plower that is willing to accommodate your schedule (need to get the kids to school?...he'll plow you a quick strip so you can get out of your driveway).

We keep a small can with a lid near our front door filled with sand. You step out the door and it's slippery...grab a handful of sand and spread it in front of you as you walk.

Keep your roof and decks shoveled to avoid the misery of ice dams and too much weight. Even then, disasters can happen! We have a HUGE back deck and a metal roof. A few years ago we had a huge blizzard, which was followed by some rain, then some warm weather. The snow/ice came sliding off the roof and ripped the entire deck right off the house. Sounded and felt like a California-style earthquake. $6,000 later (insurance didn't cover it all), we've got a deck again.

Have your car winterized: Winter wiper blades, antifreeze checked, etc. Have extra windshield wash fluid IN your car. Trust me...you'll go through gallons during the winter. Have an appropriate snow/ice scraper in your car (not one of those little woosie ones that doesn't scrape the ice!). We keep an emergency kit in the car: dry gas, blankets, snacks, lock de-icer, a small shovel (like an Army shovel).

Make sure your cell phone is always charged. When there's a power outage your cordless phones won't work. And believe me, you'll want to call the power company and not assume someone else has. One time our power went out and we just assumed someone would call. Twelve hours later we called Public Service NH to check on the status. They had NO IDEA we were without power. Turned out it was a transformer that had blown near our home.

Have appropriate clothing. For some reason people nowadays don't like to dress for the weather (me included!). I hate to wear boots to work, but I always have a pair of boots in my car -- just in case. And I've needed them. Also, I hate wearing a hat because it flattens my hair (vanity!), but I always keep a wool hat and fleece mittens in my car. My husband, who's always cold, keeps an entire winter wardrobe in his car, so he's prepared for anything!

Phew...this turned into an epistle. Sorry!

[newhampshiregirl]

I forgot to say that you should be well prepared for heat. If possible, have a wood or pellet stove (although pellet stoves need electricity to run unless you modify them) for backup heat in the event of a power outage or just to get you extra toasty on a particularly cold night. We ONLY heat with wood, but we do have an oil furnace and a full tank of oil in the event we may need it someday.

And stock up on firewood. A woman down the street from us moved into a log cabin without central heat. She ran out of firewood just a couple of months into winter. Luckily, we had plenty to share. We try and stay one year ahead on firewood. Of course, our yard looks like a wood lot rather than a nicely manicured suburban McMansion, but we wouldn't trade it for anything!!

Like I said, a little advance planning will make your NH winter so much easier and give you lots more time to get out and have fun in the snow!.