Need Help Convincing My Wife to Move to New Hampshire (Nashua: sales, houses)

[Filomena1]

Hi:

I've lived in NH for 9+ years, I absolutely love it here. I have two kids who love it here. I myself cannot stand the cold, absolutely hate it. But my kids and I love everything else here so much that I stay here. I've contemplated about moving and always end up staying. I love sitting by the fire after sledding with the family. The snow is beautiful when it first falls. This year and last year we had quite a bit of snow but the two years before were pretty mild. Good luck.

[maestramommy]

We just moved here from SoCal, and yeah it's pretty cold. But when you go outside you wear layers of warm clothing, and indoors you have the heat on. Our kids are still a little young to take on all those snow sports, but luckily I'm rather a bookworm, so I don't mind curling up on the couch with a good book, when I get a chance One of my kids is like me, but the other one loves to go outdoors totally bundled up. I mainly like to get out of the house even if it's to run errands, so whether it's cold or hot outside doesn't matter.

I really agree with pp about the attached garage. That has been the single best thing about our move (we didn't have a house before). Getting a good snowblower had been a plus as well. We're hoping to save money in the long run plowing our own driveway and walk. If you really don't get into winter sports, I would suggest getting a home that you absolutely love and making it cozy, because you'll be spending a lot of time in it. Nothing wrong with that either!

[GregW]

Try the seacoast. The ocean exerts a thermal flywheel effect that moderates the climate. It tends to stay warm into December and rarely gets all that hot in the summer. I think Dover is still within the shore zone.

[DareToDream]

Originally Posted by touretteboy65

Help!!! We're less than two years from leaving Orlando, FL (thank God!!), and I need all of you to help me convince my wife to move to New Hampshire. The biggest hurdle: the weather. It's no secret that your winters are cold and brutal. I have lived in Florida for over thirty years since moving from the Northeast, but I'm ready to go back. My wife was born and raised here, so, although she's used to the weather down here, she absolutely hates the heat and the hurricane season. She's all with me when it comes to leaving Florida, but where to go is the issue. We currently have land in Virginia that's up for sale. Initially, we planned to move there, but over the years, my heart and mind tells me New Hampshire would be the better place to raise our family (we have two young girls). I've been to NH a few times and reallly loved the place. Both of us want to move to an area to experience the four seasons, and, while Virginia offers that, it doesn't have the winters you all have (namely, the incredible amount of snow). Plus, Virginia seems to have too many poor areas and their taxes (overall) are too high. I've tried to explain to my wife that there are other reasons to move to NH (quality of life, natural beauty, low crime, quality education, etc.) but, it's always back to the cold, cold, cold. I plan to work after I retire from my job here, so she probably won't have to (unless she wants to). Without me sounding redundant and talking in circles, my question to all of you is: Is life in New Hampshire worth the months of cold and snow? Are there any of you living there now that were in my exact same position years ago and regret moving to New Hampshire? Is your spouse, initially opposed to moving to the cold, happy they made the move? Obviously, I realize that all of us are different and what applies to one may not apply to the other, but, I'm counting on your experiences to help guide us through this decision making process. Thanks for your input.

touretteboy65 - Which area of NH are you thinking of? I think it may make a difference when trying to "convince" your wife to move. We're in northern NH which gets colder than other areas (obviously)....for example, our HIGH this coming Friday is supposed to be 0 degrees!

Although we are cold up here, we still like it. I'd rather have it cold and be able to layer clothes to stay warm, than have it be hot where you can only take off so much and then you're still hot

There was a family visiting this area from California these last 2 weeks. We spent quite a bit of time with them and they loved it up here, even with the cold and snow - They did some snowmobiling, some skiing, driving around, even shoveled some snow and pretty much said they would love to move to the area now, but they have to wait a few years. They'll be back in NH again in the spring and summer - they want to experience all the seasons a few times before deciding on their actual relocation area, which makes sense.

If you're able to come up a few times and see the different areas and experience the weather, it may be the best way for your wife to see the "lifestyle" of various areas and experience the weather as well.

I'm not "big" on outside activities in the winter, but I still enjoy it up here. The quality of life is, for me and my husband at least, definitely worth putting up with the cold and the snow. Our summers don't get as hot as farther south, which makes it nice, IMO - I don't like heat and/or humdity at all.

Again, I think the best way to convince your wife would be to visit a few times - after that, when you first relocate - rent first, so if it doesn't work out, you can always leave once your lease is up.

[touretteboy65]

Originally Posted by DareToDream

touretteboy65 - Which area of NH are you thinking of? I think it may make a difference when trying to "convince" your wife to move. We're in northern NH which gets colder than other areas (obviously)....for example, our HIGH this coming Friday is supposed to be 0 degrees!

Although we are cold up here, we still like it. I'd rather have it cold and be able to layer clothes to stay warm, than have it be hot where you can only take off so much and then you're still hot

There was a family visiting this area from California these last 2 weeks. We spent quite a bit of time with them and they loved it up here, even with the cold and snow - They did some snowmobiling, some skiing, driving around, even shoveled some snow and pretty much said they would love to move to the area now, but they have to wait a few years. They'll be back in NH again in the spring and summer - they want to experience all the seasons a few times before deciding on their actual relocation area, which makes sense.

If you're able to come up a few times and see the different areas and experience the weather, it may be the best way for your wife to see the "lifestyle" of various areas and experience the weather as well.

I'm not "big" on outside activities in the winter, but I still enjoy it up here. The quality of life is, for me and my husband at least, definitely worth putting up with the cold and the snow. Our summers don't get as hot as farther south, which makes it nice, IMO - I don't like heat and/or humdity at all.

Again, I think the best way to convince your wife would be to visit a few times - after that, when you first relocate - rent first, so if it doesn't work out, you can always leave once your lease is up.

Hi! Thanks for the advice. We're looking at areas within the Belknap & Carroll counties. I'm concentrating in those areas because they're not too far north (cold) & not too far south (congestion & price). Any suggestions? Thanks again.

[seamusnh]

Snow is what you make of it. When my girls were younger, they'd be out in the snow making snowmen, sledding, making a snow fort, etc. We love to ski as well. Started the girls off young. We have a family pass to a mountain in Bennington NH that is a half hour away. Night skiiing is a big thing with the teenagers. One of my daughters is on the high school ski team. We also go snowshoeing. There is a great sledding hill in my town (owned by the town) and that was fun when they were littler as well....

NH is a great place to raise a family. My wife and I are from MA and moving up here is the best move we could have made. My sister is a teacher in Fairfax county, VA and she tells me that our schools are ahead of where she is in VA....

[NH2008]

Originally Posted by touretteboy65

Hi! Thanks for the advice. We're looking at areas within the Belknap & Carroll counties. I'm concentrating in those areas because they're not too far north (cold) & not too far south (congestion & price). Any suggestions? Thanks again.

My family is in Carroll County. To be honest, it does get very cold there. (-12 this week according to the report my dad read!) We're down south and they get significantly lower temps than we do because they're in the mountains. But it's a beautiful area. I'd consider some of the smaller towns around North Conway so you have access to the stores, movies, etc without the congestion. Try Madison, Freedom, Eaton, Jackson, Bartlett...

Maybe try a winter rental for a few weeks to see what you like before committing to it. If you convince your wife to do it against her better judgment and she doesn't like it, neither one of you will be happy. Ideally, she will discover she loves it!

Good luck!

[nicolem]

I have to agree. I don't know that living in Carroll or Belknap county will really have you escaping the cold much better than far north in NH. Also don't assume that you will get much less snow than farther north places either. It depends what town you live in.

I live in Belknap county and we have had more snow than a lot of towns north of us and are usually in line with temps or somewhat warmer than up north-bit not normally huge differences. I mean there is a difference but I don't think that much that there will be a marked difference. I mean is there really a difference if my low is going to be -8 and a town up north of me is going to be -20 at night? My body really cannot distinguish the two at this point- I dress the same and I react the same to both of those temps. All of NH can be cold and snowy to some extent and some winters are very long-you will not be able to avoid that.

The mildest part of the state would be the seacoast but you would still not be immune to the cold and snow. That part is also heavily populated.

In your initial post you asked if people regret moving here over the cold. We have lived here 10 years and I am more or less used to the cold. However, I am getting sick of the non-stop precipitation since 2005. We have had 3 major floods, one semi-major flood, last year was the snowiest winter on record for my town. 2008 was the wettest on record in NH. While I am a person who loves the 4 seasons and the outdoors, the crazy and deadily precipitation that we have had-well I am ready for a break from it-especially the rain.

[dognh]

"The mildest part of the state would be the seacoast but you would still not be immune to the cold and snow."

This is true.

While it may be a bit milder than the valley's in northern NH, it's still cold -- winters can easily get into the teens/single digits.

Also, as far as snow. The only place on the seacoast that gets less snow is the immediate coast, Anyplace west of Route 95 gets hit hard and unless it's a northern NH storm, frequently has some of the highest snow totals. Three 12" plus storms already this year

[fishnfool]

While it is a bit "warmer" on the coast...that term is very relative. We get the same storms as they do inland....it's just when they get 12'' of snow, we get 8-10''. When it's 10 degrees there, we have 15-20 degree temps here. Also, you get to have fun with the winter nor'easters which can be a lot of "fun" on the coast.

It's a slight bit better than inland NH but nothing that's really "lifestyle changing". I don't drive home from the mountains and think "wow, what a huge difference in temperature, I think I'll take off my winter coat and drink a pina colada on my porch". We've been covered in feet of snow for the last few months just like the rest of the state, and Ive spent many a morning digging my car out to try and get to work.


Like someone else said and I've said a few times on this forum, winter and snow are what you make of it. If your wife simply refuses to want to go outside and enjoy the activities that snow offers than she will be miserable for 5 months out of the year. If people keep an open mind and try new things, there is no reason winter can't be as enjoyable as the other seasons. If you're going to live in a cold cimate, there are faaaaaar worse places to live than NH. It just affords so many winter activites.