Moving from New York, advice on area towns? (Manchester, Nashua: sales, homes)

[dee3472]

I am moving from busy Staten Island NY to NH within 2yrs. I am looking for an area with a great school system - middle and high school. Looking to spend about 4-500k with reasonable taxes on the home. But still need a bit of the city life, grocery story not far away, mall close by. I want public water, trash pick up, etc. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. If you need more info, please let me know. Thanks, Dee

[RockinghamNative]

Dee--

Your post didn't specify which part of New Hampshire you were relocating to, but I will venture a guess that you will be moving to the Merrimack Valley region of south-central N.H. A second major job area is the Seacoast, that part of the N.H. along the short Atlantic coast surrounding Portsmouth.

In my opinion, the two towns that offer what you are looking for would be Windham and Londonderry. Of the two, Windham is more expensive-- it has the highest per capita income in the state. It is off of Exit 3 along I-93, and a 45-minute drive to Boston if the traffic cooperates (as much as 2 hours in heavy traffic). It is also 45 minutes from the Atlantic shore. Windham property taxes are high, and heading higher-- because the town is building its own brand-new high school, after many years of being in a regional district with its neighbor Salem (a more blue-collar town bordering Windham on the east). For a town of 12,000 +- to build its own high school in this day and age, as you might imagine, is a big expense, and this is a matter of some controversy in the town. However, plans are moving forward, and though Windham has excellent elementary and middle schools, the tax problem will only continue to grow. Another issue with Windham is traffic, related to the fact that all roads lead to NH-111, a major east-west highway between Nashua and the Seacoast. There is "mini-rush hour" along 111 every morning and afternoon now. That said, Windham is a quiet, safe, green, and desirable community.

For better value, you may want to look into Londonderry, off of I-93 Exits 4 and 5, just to the north of Windham. It has very good schools, including a very-well-respected high school of its own, with excellent sports teams. It is also centrally located, with more shopping amenities than Windham (along NH-102), apple orchards, and plenty of open spaces. Also, Londonderry has more industry than Windham (mostly small machine shops and the like), so property taxes will be somewhat less of a long-term problem there.

One more thing-- very few central NH communities, aside from the big cities/towns like Nashua, Merrimack, or Manchester-- have city water or sewer. Londonderry has town trash pick up, Windham does not.

The Seacoast is its own area altogether, but if you are moving there, I would recommend towns like Exeter (which does have town water in most areas), or Hampton Falls.

[dee3472]

I am looking into Merrimack County or the Seacoast, but not too close to the ocean. I know that is the more expensive of the two areas. Thanks for the tips...

[GregW]

Try Durham or Exeter.

[nhfinehomes]

If you're considering Merrimack county, Concord, the State's capital, is worth a look. I grew lived in Loudon, just on the north east border of Concord, and found Concord to have all the stores and services one would need as well being very accessible to the rest of the State. It's a nice, clean, safe city with lots of amenities.

[jthibodeau]

The north end of Manchester has some fine older homes, should you wish to consider turn of the century Victorian styles. There are other styles also. This area will have city water and a public sewer system available, with homes in your price range.

[NH2008]

Are you really set on public sewer and water? That will really limit you around here. You may have to decide whether you'd rather have the great school system or the public sewer and water, as the best schools are often in the smaller towns (Bedford, Bow, Hollis) rather than the cities they abut.

[seamusnh]

Try Amherst, Hollis, Bedford. Best schools in the Nashua area. You'll have to pay for trash pickup. Town water is rare other than in Nashua, Manchester etc. You may find it in housing developments near a golf course and in some older town centers...

[niv4lac]

I highly recommend Concord. I grew up in northfield, about twenty minutes north of Concord, but that is pretty thick woods country if you ask me. I prefer city life.

Concord has everything. There is a good mall, plenty of grocery stores, public water, trash pickup, everything you asked for. Concord has a great school system, and if you arent impressed with the public schools, there are plenty of affordable options as far as private schools go. I actually attended St. Johns in Concord for kindergarten through 8th grade and I was miles ahead of my friends when i attended public high school in my hometown.

Concord has all of the amenitites of a small city, but if you ever wanted to go to boston, its only about 1 1/2 hours away, and about twenty minutes from manchester, which has a sizeable airport with lots of money saving southwest flights around the nation.

[Annabelle]

Exeter would definitely be an area that you would want to look into. Good schools, family friendly, 15 min. to the beach, 15 min to the Fox Run Mall, 3 grocery stores in Exeter/Stratham, one hour (drive or train)from all that Boston has to offer. Close proximity to Portsmouth and Newburyport for historic/quaint/coastal shopping excursions. I found 30 homes listed for $350-500K. Some new, some old, Some with some land, others on small lots. "Reasonable taxes"...that's a stretch as property taxes are high but of course no sales or income. Since you have some time before you are thinking of moving, you should visit at least once in the dead of winter and again in the summer/fall. You can skip spring.