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I have been reading some of the responses to my original post and others.
I see NH doesn't have trash pick up by the cities, a lot of places don't have cable, good cell phone service, or hi-speed internet??? really??? Is auto insurance mandatory? Are there at least some 'non smoking' places to go eat? I have to say that when I have visited there I loved it but I realize actually living somewhere is a different story.
Here are the main things important to me and anyone who can give a true picture of living in NH I will appreciate your input: I want: a nice, QUIET place to live, (preferably with some space between residents), friendly neighbors...(who are quiet)...gas or elec./central heat...(no oil), affordable living where I live within a close enough distance to work where the pay is good, a fair amount of fast food places and/or resturants, not too far from shopping, close enough to hospitals and a good veterinarian. Is there anywhere that fits at least most of what I am looking for?
Regarding trash pick up, cable, good cell phone service, hi speed internet, it depends on where you live. Yes some towns offer none, some cities and towns offer all and most towns offer at least one. I live in Laconia which by NH standards is a city. I have all of the above. I have propane gas for our heating source but our condo is new-a lot of older homes in the state do have oil. It is quiet here in the winter and spring but it gets crazy in the summer.
While auto insurance is not "mandatory" per see, we do have financial responsibility laws and I would never recomend going without auto insurance.
I think you need to be less broad. What type of work do you do and what defines "good pay"? Good pay means different things to diffferent people. What areas of NH have you visited? Where would you most like to live? Near the seacost? In the mountains? Near the lake? Near the Mass, Maine or Vermont borders?
I think your job will dictate or narrow the regions that you may live in and that may help us to narrow in more on areas in that region.
I have been reading some of the responses to my original post and others.
I see NH doesn't have trash pick up by the cities, a lot of places don't have cable, good cell phone service, or hi-speed internet??? really??? Is auto insurance mandatory? Are there at least some 'non smoking' places to go eat? I have to say that when I have visited there I loved it but I realize actually living somewhere is a different story.
Here are the main things important to me and anyone who can give a true picture of living in NH I will appreciate your input: I want: a nice, QUIET place to live, (preferably with some space between residents), friendly neighbors...(who are quiet)...gas or elec./central heat...(no oil), affordable living where I live within a close enough distance to work where the pay is good, a fair amount of fast food places and/or resturants, not too far from shopping, close enough to hospitals and a good veterinarian. Is there anywhere that fits at least most of what I am looking for?
Hello ab1222 - I can only speak for Littleton, so here goes:
1. Our town does not pick up the trash, however there is a transfer station where you can bring your trash and there is a local company who will pick it up - I think it's something like $13/month for 2 bags, but I'm not sure.
2. We have Time-Warner cable up here - it provides cablevision, internet access and phone service if you want all 3.
3. "Full" auto insurance is not mandatory in NH, but I can't remember which part of it is - we still carry full insurance on our cars.
4. Most places, if not all are non-smoking up here. It used to be you could smoke in the bar area of a restaurant, but I *think* that has changed.
5. I find the town very quiet (when compared to a more urban environment). Once you get out of the town proper, there are many areas where neighbors are spread out. Where we live in town, we aren't on top of each other - I would guess maybe each house has +/- 0.5 acres? Our neighbors are friendly and quite.
6. I think up here it's oil or wood for heating/fuel. I don't believe we have the natural gas option and don't think there are any with electric heat, but don't know for sure.
7. Depending on where you work, it can be close. Depending on what you do, the pay can be decent. It all depends.
8. Off the top of my head, there is a McD's, Wendys, Subway, Dunkin' Donuts, Pizza Hut just off Main Street for fast food - out that way there is also an Applebee's and a 99 restaurant and various and sundry other stores....no malls, though. There is a TJ Maxx, Staples, WalMart and Shaw's supermarket. Main Street has many locally owned stores and restaurants, including Mexican restaurant, Chinese, and Italian.
9. There are 2 veterinarians in town. 1 Kennel if you need to board your animials.
10. There is a small hospital here (25 beds, I believe) but they have a lot of advanced equipment for such a small hospital. There are 2 other hospitals in the area, but I'm not familiar with them - one is in Lancaster and the other in Woodsville? Maybe? The hospital in Littleton is one of the town's major employers.
11. Cell phone service - Up here, it pretty much depends on who you have your service with, whether it's good or not.
Since there is no such place as Utopia, NH., there are a few places that come close to what you want. Certain things on your list will have to come through homework (quiet neighbors who are friendly, heating choice, close to work, good vet), so you have your work cut out for you. Some towns have trash pick-up; I went through Goffstown last Wed and it must have been "trash day" as all the recyce containers and the trash bins were out by the road. Most bigger towns have cell phone, internet and cable. When you get furthur out, it's spotty. Since I don't know what you do for work, I have no idea where to suggest for jobs. Auto insurance is always smart and I believe that there is a no smoking ban in place for restaurants now.
Try Bedford, Londonderry, Goffstown, Merrimack, Milford, Derry, Amherst to start with. They are all near Manchester and Nashua. Hope you can find that perfect spot. I'm still looking.....
I have been reading some of the responses to my original post and others.
I see NH doesn't have trash pick up by the cities, a lot of places don't have cable, good cell phone service, or hi-speed internet??? really??? Is auto insurance mandatory? Are there at least some 'non smoking' places to go eat? I have to say that when I have visited there I loved it but I realize actually living somewhere is a different story.
Here are the main things important to me and anyone who can give a true picture of living in NH I will appreciate your input: I want: a nice, QUIET place to live, (preferably with some space between residents), friendly neighbors...(who are quiet)...gas or elec./central heat...(no oil), affordable living where I live within a close enough distance to work where the pay is good, a fair amount of fast food places and/or resturants, not too far from shopping, close enough to hospitals and a good veterinarian. Is there anywhere that fits at least most of what I am looking for?
Some thoughts:
1: Trash pickup. In my experience, most towns either have trash pickup or a local transfer station. I live in a very small town and we have both pickup for trash and recycling
2: Cable. Again cable covers most of the state. Anyone without cable must really be in a northern rural location
3: Internet. NH has the highest per capita % Internet usage.
4: Cell phones. Depends on your carrier and location. A company like Verizon has most of the state covered, plus major highways. I will agree though- cell coverage off the beaten track is spotty.
5: Auto Insurance. Not mandatory, until you get in an accident. Definately advisable though.
6: No smoking in NH any more.
7: In terms of the types of areas you are talking about, most of southern/central NH fits the bill, except the downtown areas of the major cities - Manchester, Nashua. In general southern NH is suburban, quiet, decent size lots. Neighbors are tough to judge until you meet them.
8: As far as fuel. Some of the populated southern areas have access to gas. Otherwise it's oil or propane. Not sure what your issue with oil is, but New England is probably the main user of heating oil in the country.
9: Food and supermarkets depend on where you live. Unless you live in a city (relative term) you'll probably end up being 10-20 minutes from all those amenities - up north even farther away.
10: Vets are all over the place.
11: Hospitals are local and regional and shouldn't be too far unless you're really out in the woods somewhere
12: Summary: look anywhere in southern NH (ie south of Concord)
Also no seat belt law and no helmet law. that's why the moto is LIVE FREE OR DIE. You will find nh a nice place to live. the south eastern side is very nice. that's where i'm from.
I'm lucky in that I live in the country of the lakes region, but I'm 5 minutes away from supermarkets and every other store you can think of.
We don't have trash pu unless we pay for the service, but the dump is just down the road a piece. We pay $1.00 per bag. We sort the trash by glass, recyclable plastic and newspaper and then regular garbage.
We have cable service with high speed internet and cell phone service - both appear to be excellent.
Auto insurance is not required, but liability is recommended. If, per chance, you get into an accident and there is personal injury, you will be required to carry insurance thereafter. There are some exceptions, a convicted DUI will also require insurance coverage.
All of our restaurants and bars are now no smoking and we have a bazillion to choose from. The only exceptions are private clubs.
As far as heating goes, there is everything..... Most people do not have electric heat because it's very costly. Propane is also available but is currently running higher than oil costs. Oil seems to be the most common choice.
As someone stated earlier - look south of Concord and include the seacoast in your search.
Regarding trash pick up, cable, good cell phone service, hi speed internet, it depends on where you live. Yes some towns offer none, some cities and towns offer all and most towns offer at least one. I live in Laconia which by NH standards is a city. I have all of the above. I have propane gas for our heating source but our condo is new-a lot of older homes in the state do have oil. It is quiet here in the winter and spring but it gets crazy in the summer.
While auto insurance is not "mandatory" per see, we do have financial responsibility laws and I would never recomend going without auto insurance.
I think you need to be less broad. What type of work do you do and what defines "good pay"? Good pay means different things to diffferent people. What areas of NH have you visited? Where would you most like to live? Near the seacost? In the mountains? Near the lake? Near the Mass, Maine or Vermont borders?
I think your job will dictate or narrow the regions that you may live in and that may help us to narrow in more on areas in that region.
Nicolem
Hi, Well, I have visited the southern parts of NH. Loved camping in Bear Brook State Park. As for what I do for a living, I do accounting/payroll. I would like to live near more of a lake/forrest area. I'd rather see nature around me than a bunch of condo's or businesses. Do many people live in NH and commute into Mass for work????
We don't have trash pick up.. drives me nut!! The dump is like 15 mins out of town, in winter forget it like 30 mins.. I have to go, weigh my car, dump my stuff, come back be weighed again, then pay... But they dont' take cash.. Only checks... so I stood there like yeah dont have checks cause no one carries those anymore and had to give them all my info... Forget it, when there one time and one time only. We have internet, cable and home phone.. I can't go out of the city range or I dont' get any cellphone reception well into Mass or then in Manchester *hour away* I don't get any cell service up until Concord either *hour away* which worked out great when I broke down mid way and the road is one way, no one would stop, and there's no houses cause its BFE the whole way. The surrounding towns don't have cable or internet, but can have satillite *sp?* cable or dial up. I'm not sure if the phone company offers highspeed through their lines. To me, these are all things that most other states offer and I have a hard time living without some of these, and don't feel I should be paying extra (trash) to get them. I'm just not for country living I suppose. Anything smaller than Manchester, Concord, or Portsmouth is a town.. They say "city" but city in NH is anything bigger than like 1000 people.
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nice place to live
