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We currently live in Northern Vermont and will soon be relocating to Southern NH following a job change. We just sold our home and are looking to buy another. We've been considering Nashua, since we've heard a lot of good things about it. Are there any particular areas within Nashua that we should stay away from? I've read that it has its bad neighborhoods like any city.
We'd actually prefer to live in the country, but since we have a baby daughter, we're thinking of a location more suitable for children to grow up in. We also have a very limited budget, so we probably wouldn't be able to afford to live in the "best" areas. We've found some properties near downtown Nashua that are in our price range; hopefully, that's not one of the areas to stay away from!
Any input you can provide would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!!
Most of the areas around the schools are nice as well as near the parks. Streets around Greeley Park / Concord Street and most of the places on manchester Street and some areas of East Dunstable Road are nice.
Stay away from the area in and around Canal Street, Lock Street, Tolles Street, Chandler Street.
As well as West Hollis st, East Hollis st, Kinsley st, Palm, Ash, Chestnut, Vine, Wallnut, Beech, Pine, & Elm Streets and the areas around them. Also out of the main part of the city(nice to hang out in but not the best to live in).
I live off of concord street behind Holman Stadium next to a school. Its not bad around there and we are only a couple streets away from the main part of the city. We get to watch the fire works from the back yard after the Nashua Pride games. But Nashua is funny like that cause you can go down one street and there are nice well kept homes and neighborhoods. But then half way down the same street its ghetto with crappy homes and trash all over the place. Go with the areas that I suggested above as a start.
Hi Julie and welcome to the NH forum You'll find lots of answers here to so many of the questions you'll no doubt have about the area.
Nashua has an abundance of neighborhoods to fit the needs of a wide variety of people. Some of the streets immediately adjacent to the downtown area, and the Rte-111 area closer to Hudson are predominantly rental areas, with multi-family (4-6 unit) rather than duplex, and can have more of an inner-city feeling. "The Tree Streets" as a general rule of thumb need to be looked at with particular caution. Some of my favorite neighborhoods in Nashua are the streets that intersect the DW Highway (Concord Street) as it goes past the downtown area and heads for Merrimack; and also the neighborhood inside of 101a, Rte 3 and Concord Street. These are older and established neighborhoods with sidewalks, trees, etc. where you can routinely see people walking to get to stores, friends' houses, etc. I would suggest going to Google Maps and doing a "street view".
Also, would you be looking for a single family house, or possibly a townhouse-stle condo? Kessler Farms out along 101A is nice, beautiful landscaping, amenities for families like pool, tennis, etc.
Nashua is really "sprawley" and there are a ton of neighborhoods that change within a house or two from very nice to rather disturbing... I would suggest spending a day or two just touring around the city. I know that's tough with gas being the price it is, but well worth your time and effort.
Stay away from the area in and around Canal Street, Lock Street, Tolles Street, Chandler Street.
As well as West Hollis st, East Hollis st, Kinsley st, Palm, Ash, Chestnut, Vine, Wallnut, Beech, Pine, & Elm Streets and the areas around them. Also out of the main part of the city(nice to hang out in but not the best to live in).
Great, thanks for the tip. Figures, the properties that are in our price range are all located in that area. :-P One is on Kinsley, one is on Pierce and one is on Howard Street. Funny, the areas don't look that bad when I look on Google Maps. Doesn't exactly look pretty but doesn't look trashy either. Just how bad are those areas?
Great, thanks for the tip. Figures, the properties that are in our price range are all located in that area. :-P One is on Kinsley, one is on Pierce and one is on Howard Street. Funny, the areas don't look that bad when I look on Google Maps. Doesn't exactly look pretty but doesn't look trashy either. Just how bad are those areas?
Some of the houses them selves are not bad and areas are appealing to look at. Its the crime and drugs in that area that are a main concern and why we didnt move to that area. Dont get me wrong, crime and drugs are all over I'm sertainly not deluded lol. But there was no need to have it so close and easily availabe. Price was great for us at the time. My concern was for my child. Plus there were like 12 sex offenders living in that area at the time we were looking. That also was a factor we took into consideration as well.
I hate to make Nashua sound bad cause over all this is a really nice city and area of NH to live in.
And there is plenty to do here!
Thank you so much for all your input. We're also looking at townhouses/condos at this point, because of the cost of "standalone" homes. What are your thoughts on Paxton Terrace? It looks like it's located in a more desirable location and I see some affordable homes there.
The Paxton properties that I think you are referring to are condexes which explains the price. Usually condexes are priced higher (because of no condo fee) than something equivalent in a townhouse with a condo fee. The Paxton condexes are more rare because usually townhouses don't come in a 3 bedroom upstairs configuration and instead have 2 bedrooms upstairs. When I looked into the ones on Paxton for that are currently on the market for another buyer I found out that both sides are currently vacant so the owner is footing the bill each month with no rental income to offset the expense. If you can, take a drive by them if you are down in the area and get a feel for what the neighborhood is like.
Thanks, we definitely will. We also saw a property listed on Peach Drive, which is located south of Nashua near a reserve. Looks like a nice area. It's on the higher end of our budget and apparently needs a lot of cosmetic work, but we'd rather that than pay less for a property in a trashy neighborhood. :-)
A definite site you should check is National Sex Offender Registry if just to see what is around in the various neighborhoods, not only in Nashua, but anywhere that you may chose to settle. Try just typing in Nashua, then once the graphic loads, you can zoom into particular areas that you may be interested in, and click on the various colored squares to get information. Very informative site....
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You'll find lots of answers here to so many of the questions you'll no doubt have about the area. 
Nashua/Paxton
