Retired & Moving (Berlin, Rye, Moultonborough: income, property tax, living)

[MtDreamer]

I agree with that MtnFlyer.

[MtDreamer]

We had an ice storm here and I was without power for over 2 days and trees down all over my property and broken limbs. The winters here stay close to 32 so chance of lots of damaging ice storms and very little sun. Going to take me a month to clean this mess up. You can ski in snow. Can't do much in ice. I'll take snow any day.

[MtnFlyer]

Originally Posted by MtDreamer

Can't do much in ice. I'll take snow any day.

Boy I heard that! What's worse than dealing with the ice stoms when you get into the 32 degree areas is dealing with the people who don't know how to drive on it. Many areas that stay around the 32 degree mark don't get a frequency of ice, and no snow. So when they do get frozen, it's like driving in a demolition derby.

[MtDreamer]

That's for sure. Would you believe they are now closing the schools here not just because of 1" of snow but because it is to cold for the kids to go to school even on the bus. Temp is maybe in the teens or 20's! That's crazy. Soon these kids won't be able to deal with anything. Heaven forbid if they were up in NH. We had a whole 1.5 inches of snow here two weeks ago and my dogs and I were the only ones outside playing in it. No kids out. I guess they were all inside playing on the computer, etc. They probably thought I was nuts being outside in all that white stuff.

[MtDreamer]

On several different posts there is mention of the black fly and tick problems during certain times of the year. Some of the homes I am going to look at are near or next to lakes or streams. Are these areas worse or is it just a general problem for most of NH weather you are by water or not? Say if a home had a deck by the water would it be unusable during some months?

[jthibodeau]

The water may funnel a few more uninvited guest in your direction but, over all, if your in the country you should be able to enjoy the deck on that lake til the mosquitoes dinner bell rings which is usually about 7:30 and after the heat of the day has pasted.

Think screen porch..............

[Scribbilyr]

Mtn Dreamer,

The state of New Hampshire is very forthcoming about its tax rates. The state website has a page that lists total tax per thousand of valuation per town; it's in a PDF file and I found it right away on my first trip to the NH.GOV (or something like that) site. I printed it out and it made my work very easy when it came to choosing a place to live. It's under the Dept of Revenue Administration. Some of the very lowest are Bartlett ($6.60); Bridgewater ($7.44); New Castle ($4.49 but houses are very expensive there and there are very few of them); Newington ($9.07); Rye ($8.66, on the coast, less expensive/exclusive than New Castle but still hard to get into); Sandwich ($9.48--our favorite, in the Lakes Region); Moultonborough ($6.71--our second favorite, also in the Lakes area); and Freedom ($9.90). Some of them have likely gone up--this is from the 2006 tax table, which I printed out when I started my search. Still, it will give you a good idea of how vastly different the rates can be. Berlin's, for instance, is $29.24/$1,000. Of course maybe they drastically reduced their's last year so be sure to check!

The government is also very open about ticks. The health dept website has cases of Lyme Disease listed by incidence according to each town so you can get a good idea of where they bite most often. The CDC has a good site too, but of course NH's is the most detailed.

We are coming from New York where we have lived the past four years, +/-. Our property tax in Washington state, where we lived before NY, was $12/$1000 of valuation. Like NH, WA has no personal income tax. Our taxes here are about $25/$27 per $1,000 and the state has an 8 percent income tax on top of that. It seems that in NY every agency levies its own tax and they just keep climbing. Our tax "burden" as I see it called on tax websites, went from $100/month to more than $1,000! Per month! "Cost of Living" never meant a single thing to me until we moved here and I found out how painful it can really be.

We love New Hampshire and can't sell this house fast enough to get there. I've never been to Kentucky but in my opinion New Hampshire has more going for it than most states in the USA. Not too many people, not too many taxes, Dartmouth College, lakes, mountains and a lovely 12-mile strip of ocean.

[MtnFlyer]

Here is a link to the tax rate tables Scribbilyr referenced:

NH Department of Revenue Administration - Divisions - Municipal Services

[MtDreamer]

Thanks for all the info everyone. I am thinking my best bet is somewhere mid way from the White Mountain area to the bigger cities as I would like to pick up a part-time job. If I get to rural I would have to travel to far and it just would not be worth it for what I would make part-time. There are a few interesting houses in Weare and New Boston and the surrounding area. Anyone have any info on this area? Anything close to there to do like hike or cross country ski?

[GraniteStater]

Originally Posted by MtDreamer

Thanks for all the info everyone. I am thinking my best bet is somewhere mid way from the White Mountain area to the bigger cities as I would like to pick up a part-time job. If I get to rural I would have to travel to far and it just would not be worth it for what I would make part-time. There are a few interesting houses in Weare and New Boston and the surrounding area. Anyone have any info on this area? Anything close to there to do like hike or cross country ski?

Yes, those towns are not too far removed from both the Manchester and Concord area. Skiing- Ragged Mountain, Pat's Peak, Mount Sunapee are places not too removed from that area.