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I did post a similar thread in the VT forum, as I don't understand why when I look on Zillow, the houses in NH are much cheaper than in VT. I've found a couple of nice older houses in NH around 250K that would cost easily 500K in VT. Does anybody could tell me what justifies such a difference in price?
Thanks
Phil
Also look at the difference in property taxes. All other things being equal, a property with high property taxes will sell for less than a property with low property taxes--the market has a way of accommodating what people are able to afford on a monthly basis.
A lot of VT towns are overrun but CT and NY residents who buy second homes there and are considered resort towns, this drives up the prices in the desirable areas.
Are the towns comparable? Perhaps you're looking at a house in a desirable town in VT and comparing it to a house in an undesirable town in NH? 2x is quite a difference.
For what it's worth, according to this resource using data from Zillow, the statewide comparison is:
VT:
Median listing price: $259,000
Median listing price per square foot: $149
NH:
Median listing price: $299,000
Median listing price per square foot: $166
Yes, where are these VT houses located, in resort areas, or Burlington? There are plenty of inexpensive houses in VT, and plenty of expensive houses in NH. There are houses in southern NH within commuting distance of Boston, as well as on the Seacoast, which will go for $500K, $600K... and similar houses would cost much less in areas of VT (as well as in other areas of NH.)
I look at real estate on NEREN (the Northern New England Real Estate Network... local MLS) and when I first go to the site, before searching for a specific location, the latest listings appear. Sometimes they are in VT and there have definitely been times I have thought, "wow, that house is so cheap!"
I just googled median home price VT and found a recent article from the Burlington Free Press which says that VT housing is 18th most expensive in the country, but that "every state bordering the Pacific Ocean has more expensive housing than Vermont, as does every Atlantic Coast state from Virginia to New Hampshire." Taking the ratio of house price to median household income into account, NH is more "affordable" but in your post, you're talking actual house prices, not "affordability."
At the low end, property taxes make a big difference. In NH, everybody in the town pays the same property tax rate. In Vermont, the Act 68 state school property tax is means tested. Everybody pays the same muni tax rate for roads, plowing, police/fire. If you're lower income, you don't pay much of the school tax and that's the dominant cost in most towns. When you're doing mortgage/taxes/insurance, or you're retiring paying cash for a house but lower income, you can afford a more expensive house in Vermont at median income or below so that pushes prices up. For example, Claremont NH has a very high property tax rate so the houses are cheap. Across the river, Springfield VT has similar demographics but home prices are higher because most people aren't paying the school tax, they're in the 3.55% state income tax bracket so they're not paying much income tax, and they do all their shopping across the river to avoid sales tax. On the Vermont side of the Connecticut River Valley, there's pretty much no retail.
The cachet of a Vermont address. That's the only reason that I can think of.
Depends on your zip code. I don't think there's any particular difference in cachet of Burlington vs Portsmouth. I've lived in both places. Stowe vs Wolfeboro. Woodstock VT vs Hanover. I'd put Rutland VT head-to-head against the most struggling place in New Hampshire.
Are the towns comparable? Perhaps you're looking at a house in a desirable town in VT and comparing it to a house in an undesirable town in NH? 2x is quite a difference.
For what it's worth, according to this resource using data from Zillow, the statewide comparison is:
VT:
Median listing price: $259,000
Median listing price per square foot: $149
NH:
Median listing price: $299,000
Median listing price per square foot: $166
THIS /\/\/\
You can pick and choose all you want but the median is the median. Fact is, home prices vary massively from town to town, region to region.
We bought our house in Windsor VT 20 years ago (an admittedly downtrodden town but an up and coming bedroom community to Hanover/Lebanon NH) because it was cheaper than renting a 2 bedroom apartment in Lebanon NH. Here where the Upper Valley straddles the state line/Ct. River, houses on the VT side are decidedly cheaper than the NH side especially if you take the 3 highest priced towns out of it (Norwich & Woodstock VT, Hanover NH).
Also taxes make a huge difference on your overall cost burden. No one gets off for free. I had a long time NH friend lamenting the other day how NH Property taxes were killing him and that he continues to roll his eyes every time he hears the phrase "tax free NH."
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