Why NH vs. MA ??? (Manchester, Nashua: house prices, find a job, neighborhoods)

[buck naked]

Originally Posted by DMickey28

buck naked - That doesn't come into account if I make nothing though right? I don't work!!

of course if you have no income, you can't be taxed on it....but give them time!

[maestramommy]

Originally Posted by DMickey28

Now, can you give me real life suggestions on what towns to look at in NH? I heard that Derry HS has a horrible drug problem, any truth to that? I know my kids won't be in HS anytime soon but the trickle down effect, the babysitters etc would play into that. Do you think up Rt. 3 would be too far from the office in Woburn? It is literally just off 93 north of 128/95. My DH doesn't mind driving upwards of 45 minutes but he would prefer to drive that and not sit in traffic for the 45 minutes. He has a friend in Bedford that commutes past his exit in Woburn and says that the traffic starts right there so DH should be ok.

You might want to check out Londonderry. Compared to Hollis and Amherst the commute seems to be shorter, possibly because it's more direct. Londonderry is right off the 93, and if you end up in south Londonderry, that will buy you a few more miles. We looked at it for a while because it has great schools from pre-k on through HS. We ended up in Bedford, which we really like, but I think it's a little far for Woburn. I've driven to Winchester (MA) which is next door to Woburn, several times, and it always takes 45-60 minutes depending on traffic.

[Brave Stranger]

I would check out Londonderry. It seems to offer what you guys are looking for.

[Valerie C]

DMickey, you sound more than a little like my husband and I about a decade ago... We also were lifelong Massachusetts residents, then moved away for approximately 5 years. Moving from Mass. to the suburbs of St. Louis MO was culture shock, but we really enjoyed our time there. However, flying home for holidays and vacation was expensive and stressful, and going back to MO (even though we made our own life out there) I would just feel out of sorts for weeks... Although the cost of living was WAY LESS than here in New England, we just couldn't stay away any longer and made the decision to come home for good. When we made our move, we found that living in Mass wasn't right for us anymore. I don't know if we changed, or if the state changed, maybe a little of both. In any case, we just didn't fit anymore...

After a year of renting in MA and trying to become re-acclimated to the life in Massachusetts, we realized that what we were looking for was over the border. I can't even imagine living in Massachusetts anymore, and that is more true every day. Sometimes you have to get away from it to see it more clearly, at least that was our experience...

My husband also does the NH to Woburn commute, and it's admittedly the worst part of his day. If he leaves the house by 6:45, it's about 40 minutes. Fridays are the worst day, and he tries to leave early because you have the vacationers/weekenders in addition to the NH residents who are just trying to get home.

Derry taxes are a nightmare, but there are other towns that might work for you. Hampstead and Chester are quiet towns, and both use Pinkerton as their HS. Of course there are drugs there, as well as in my own town of Londonderry. I dare anyone to find a 'clean' high school where there are NO drugs. It's scary, but reality... The best defense against drugs is as it has always been: strong family values, plenty of things to do ie: sports, music, pets or whatever the interest is... Keep 'em busy!!

Here in Londonderry, our HS band and color guard is the pride of the town with 350+ members. We KNOW that our band kids are busy every Friday night at football games, at practice for much of the summer, travel extensively during the school year and making appearances in parades all over New England. They have no time to get involved with drugs

[Valerie C]

Towns to consider on the 93 side might be Londonderry (own HS), Windham (soon own HS), Hampstead (Pinkerton) Atkinson/Plaistow (Timberlane). Taxes in Plaistow & Derry are very high.

I agree w/ seamus' idea of Hollis/Amherst/Bedford. Sort of the 'triple crown towns' of southern NH. Keep in mind that if Bedford, the tolls on Rte 3, 2x daily will add approx $10 per week to commute costs (slightly less if you have a transponder). Finding property in the target price/tax range may be an issue in these towns, as property values and tax rates are significantly higher than most others.

Originally Posted by seamusnh

Your choice is to buy near 93 (Salem area) or near 3 (Nashua area). I know the Nashua side better and the upper end towns are Hollis, Amherst, and Bedford. On the Salem side, I have heard Atkinson is nice. This is mostly based on the schools...

[seamusnh]

I have heard a lot of good things about Windham. The town value will go up if they get their own high school (as happened in Bedford). The Windham to Woburn commute would be fairly easy...

Nice stats on Windham: Windham, New Hampshire

[Valerie C]

Not if, but when. The Windham HS is under construction at this moment, and should be open for September 2009:
Welcome to the Windham, New Hampshire High School

It is going to be a very VERY nice school, with an auditorium, gorgeous 2-story atrium, LOTS of great amenities for the students--truly a state of the art school. They weren't allowing cars to the construction site, so we took bikes a few weeks ago. I'll bring the camera next time, so I can post pictures

Originally Posted by seamusnh

I have heard a lot of good things about Windham. The town value will go up if they get their own high school (as happened in Bedford). The Windham to Woburn commute would be fairly easy...

Nice stats on Windham: Windham, New Hampshire

[BF66389]

It also depends where the job is in Woburn. Some points may be easier to get to from 3, whereas others from 93 (and account for traffic, not just google maps). In my experience route 3 tends to have a lot less accidents/delays than 93 which is why we decided to live where our commute would be down route 3. That said- if you then have to drive all the way through Woburn to the other side; so much for my reasoning.

We also preferred the majority of towns around route 3 to the majority of towns along 93 because of personal preference; Nashua just seemed a heck of a lot more pleasant/better cared for than Salem in our opinion.

[DMickey28]

Thanks for the responses. I think we are leaning towards Londonderry or Windham (if we can find a house we can afford!). Dh's office is just off 93 two exits north of 128/95.

He is looking for a new job though, eventually, so he knows he has to be willing to drive further if necessary. We want to buy a house before he finds a new job because getting the mortage with a new job will be more difficult. It's a real catch 22 right now.

[Valerie C]

It would be great if he can get another job closer to home after you settle in. Our experience was reversed: we bought in Londonderry, DH worked in Hudson NH and had a sweet 15 minute commute. Then last year, the company decided to consolidate all operations at their headquarters in Woburn... (sigh) So now he spends more time in traffic, pays more in gas AND pays MA income tax... Since I'm a "glass half full" kind of person, the positives on this are that 1) we love Londonderry and 2) he has a job