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I've been looking to move and I think New Hampshire is the place for me. I love the "Live free or die" slogan. I currently live in Pennsylvania, in the suburbs outside of Philadelphia. I'm a young, single girl with no experience in moving and I want to make sure I don't jump into moving unprepared. I'm looking at Nashua, Salem, Concord and surrounding towns.
I currently live with my parents while I go to school and work. I had an apartment in Philly for about a year, a tiny roach infested hell hole in a nasty, dangerous part of the city.
I love the mountains, hate big cities, hate the heat(hot humid summers), enjoy fall and winter. I like snow and am getting tired of the cold, gray, snowless winters in PA. I might regret wishing for snow once I move up north and get snow all the time but I'll take the snow if it means I can get some comfortable summers. I consider myself a libertarian which is another reason why I'm drawn to NH. I originally considered Vermont but I was turned off by the high taxes and very liberal mindset.
I would be looking for an apartment and a job in the field of Computer and Information Systems. I'm very shy and anticipate problems meeting new people no matter where I move. The people around here are very rude and cold. I guess I'm looking for a town in NH that would fit my needs. I don't have a lot of money so I want to avoid looking at the high end towns. I've read that Nashua is big into tech so its top on my list. But I also want to get some feedback on other towns that I might be overlooking. What's the best place for a single girl to make a start in.
I've been looking to move and I think New Hampshire is the place for me. I love the "Live free or die" slogan. I currently live in Pennsylvania, in the suburbs outside of Philadelphia. I'm a young, single girl with no experience in moving and I want to make sure I don't jump into moving unprepared. I'm looking at Nashua, Salem, Concord and surrounding towns.
I currently live with my parents while I go to school and work. I had an apartment in Philly for about a year, a tiny roach infested hell hole in a nasty, dangerous part of the city.
I love the mountains, hate big cities, hate the heat(hot humid summers), enjoy fall and winter. I like snow and am getting tired of the cold, gray, snowless winters in PA. I might regret wishing for snow once I move up north and get snow all the time but I'll take the snow if it means I can get some comfortable summers. I consider myself a libertarian which is another reason why I'm drawn to NH. I originally considered Vermont but I was turned off by the high taxes and very liberal mindset.
I would be looking for an apartment and a job in the field of Computer and Information Systems. I'm very shy and anticipate problems meeting new people no matter where I move. The people around here are very rude and cold. I guess I'm looking for a town in NH that would fit my needs. I don't have a lot of money so I want to avoid looking at the high end towns. I've read that Nashua is big into tech so its top on my list. But I also want to get some feedback on other towns that I might be overlooking. What's the best place for a single girl to make a start in.
I would suggest you look in Concord. It's a mid-sized city, about 40,000 people. It's the state capitol, so there are government jobs in computers, and a decent amount of private industry. Just outside the city is very rural. 30 minutes north are the mountains and lakes. There's a law school there, so you might find some night life. Good luck
I've been looking to move and I think New Hampshire is the place for me. I love the "Live free or die" slogan. I currently live in Pennsylvania, in the suburbs outside of Philadelphia. I'm a young, single girl with no experience in moving and I want to make sure I don't jump into moving unprepared. I'm looking at Nashua, Salem, Concord and surrounding towns.
I currently live with my parents while I go to school and work. I had an apartment in Philly for about a year, a tiny roach infested hell hole in a nasty, dangerous part of the city.
I love the mountains, hate big cities, hate the heat(hot humid summers), enjoy fall and winter. I like snow and am getting tired of the cold, gray, snowless winters in PA. I might regret wishing for snow once I move up north and get snow all the time but I'll take the snow if it means I can get some comfortable summers. I consider myself a libertarian which is another reason why I'm drawn to NH. I originally considered Vermont but I was turned off by the high taxes and very liberal mindset.
I would be looking for an apartment and a job in the field of Computer and Information Systems. I'm very shy and anticipate problems meeting new people no matter where I move. The people around here are very rude and cold. I guess I'm looking for a town in NH that would fit my needs. I don't have a lot of money so I want to avoid looking at the high end towns. I've read that Nashua is big into tech so its top on my list. But I also want to get some feedback on other towns that I might be overlooking. What's the best place for a single girl to make a start in.
If you're very shy and not too social, then you might find it easier to assimilate into a smaller community IMHO. Portsmouth? Concord (as Brave Stranger suggested)? Plymouth? Dover? Durham?
I also agree with djbridgeland that the Free State Project's website may be a good starting point for you. There are many other liberty-related websites, including nhliberty.org.
Siiice you're already living in a "hell-hole" it would be hard to make a bad move to here!there's almost no crime compared to Philly. Most people here don't even lock their doors or cars. I wouldn't suggest you don't lock things here, but its really nothing to worry about if you forget.It could be quite a drive to work, so you would wise to secure employment before picking a place.
i feel the same way you do. im in the armpit capital of the country. im moving up there too very soon. i think i'll rent a van and look for a piece of land to retire on. concord looks good on google earth. Burt43
I've lived in Nashua for 25 years and have a 26 yr old daughter who recently moved back after 5 years in California. She stayed in town for 3 nights before moving to Boston. Assuming you are around her age, I'll tell you what she said when she moved. The main activity around here is to go to one of the bars downtown at night. There are about 7 or 8 that are busy. But there is minimal live music at them and people tend to stick to their friends they have known for years. So it would be hard for new people to get involved. The only way people her age seem to make friends are at work. There are some special interest groups but she says the attendees tend to be older - and alot of them have known each other for years.
There are lots of great places to kayak, hike, bike and golf, if you are interested in those activities. But you'd want to have some friends to do those things with. So you are back with the problem of how to meet people your age in this town.
It is fairly safe here - although I wouldn't walk around downtown Nashua after 11PM. There is some gang activity in limited areas. But you could get a nice 2 bedroom townhouse condo in a great, safe neighborhood for around $170K.
As for computer related jobs, I've been in that field too for over 20 years. There are some jobs in the Nashua area but not like there were a few years ago. A lot of people commute down to the Boston area for work - that's what I've been doing for many years.
I'd look for a job first, then find a smallish town within a 20 minute drive. Hope that helps.
I will absolutely take a look at those smaller towns that were recommended. Maybe a smaller community will help me get to know other people. I'm introverted as is so if it doesn't happen I won't be crushed.
I'm planning on making the drive up to NH to take a look around, get a look at the different towns, look at some apartments, see what is available, if it looks like what I imagine in my mind, take some pictures. I'll have to take some time off work for the sightseeing trip though. Its a 300 mile, 5 1/2 hour commute just to get to the most southern towns. I only wish I could drag someone along with me. My mom doesn't seem real interested and all my siblings are living in other parts of the country. Might be able to talk my baby sister into coming for the trip but she has 6 month old and I'm not sure she would want to travel with the baby. My other sister is stationed in Iraq and my brother is stationed in Alaska.
I've spent quite some time looking at NH on google earth/google maps. Looking at the terrain, the density of the houses, the distances between other towns, the bodies of water. Everything looks pretty good from satellite. heh.
I also did some apartment searchs to get an idea how much it will cost me to rent a place. I'm not thrilled with the prices I saw, or maybe it was the lack of diversity in the prices and # of apartments. Around here you have the option of getting some run down piece of crap for cheap or getting a nice high end place with all the bells and whistles for a lot of money. I pass like 7 apartment complexes on my short commute from Morrisville, PA into Trenton, NJ where I work. There are more apartment buildings in a 2 mile distance. I was finding only 2 or 3 apartments per town in NH. I guess that makes picking an apartment easy. The listings I saw all had the same bottom price tag around $800-$900 which is exactly the same as what apartments around here start at. I guess the big difference will be the lack of income tax which should help.
I also browsed through the job listings in NH to see what sort of Computer jobs are offered. The listings were more hopeful than when I initially searched for jobs in Vermont but since I'm not actively looking it doesn't mean much right now.
I wish I could just pack up and move right now but I'd really like to finish my degree before I go off on my own. Plus I can save up while I'm living at home.
I've lived in Nashua for 25 years and have a 26 yr old daughter who recently moved back after 5 years in California. She stayed in town for 3 nights before moving to Boston. Assuming you are around her age, I'll tell you what she said when she moved. The main activity around here is to go to one of the bars downtown at night. There are about 7 or 8 that are busy. But there is minimal live music at them and people tend to stick to their friends they have known for years. So it would be hard for new people to get involved. The only way people her age seem to make friends are at work. There are some special interest groups but she says the attendees tend to be older - and alot of them have known each other for years.
There are lots of great places to kayak, hike, bike and golf, if you are interested in those activities. But you'd want to have some friends to do those things with. So you are back with the problem of how to meet people your age in this town.
It is fairly safe here - although I wouldn't walk around downtown Nashua after 11PM. There is some gang activity in limited areas. But you could get a nice 2 bedroom townhouse condo in a great, safe neighborhood for around $170K.
As for computer related jobs, I've been in that field too for over 20 years. There are some jobs in the Nashua area but not like there were a few years ago. A lot of people commute down to the Boston area for work - that's what I've been doing for many years.
I'd look for a job first, then find a smallish town within a 20 minute drive. Hope that helps.
I'd agree with your opinion about social life in Nashua--imagine it would be tough moving there for a young single person knowing no one. Last time we were home (grew up in Nashua), my wife and I went to Martha's Exchange for a few beers. We struck up a conversation with the couple sitting next to us at the bar. Turns out they were from upstate NY--had moved to the area for work. I asked them how they liked the area--they loved the proximity to the ocean, mountains, Boston, etc. but seemed like they were holding a little back. Then they said that they didn't find the people friendly at all, and didn't really like the atmosphere too much. They told us that in the year and a half they had been going to the bar, we were the first people who showed any interest in talking to them.
Anyway, just an anecdote--point being that people are people--I've been to Philadelphia and other parts of PA loads of times and always found everyone to be really friendly. Move to NH--but just don't do it for the wrong reasons!
And Nashua really is weak, live music wise. Not sure why--maybe hurt by proximity to Boston or not much of any art/music scene in the city--who knows.
I live about 20 miles south of Nashua. A friend of mine who is very very social lives in NH and heartily suggests going to meetup.com, go to Nashua or wherever in NH that interests you, and see what kinds of meetups are available. Any interest you might have is likely to be represented, and you can join a group of people who don't already know each other and so on.
I think the best chances for tech jobs are within shootin' distance of Nashua, less so in the other towns mentioned. Virtually nothing around Portsmouth/coast.
Good luck- NH is a fine place to live and work!
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Nashua pros & cons
