Another moving thread.. (Manchester, Nashua, Salem: real estate, apartment, rental market)

[CandJSmith]

Hey folks, first time poster, quite a long time guest lurker..

My wife and I are seriously looking to relocate to the Southern NH in the summer of next year. We have lived in Charleston for several years now, and we are tired of the South, and want to move back north. My wife is from Manchester, and I'm from NOVA so four seasons is how we like it.

We are concentrating on southern NH because my wife is from there (still got family, friends, and familiarity there) and I want to be closer to Boston (I SO miss the big city atmosphere).

We're looking somewhere in between northern Manchester and Nashua. Upper Seacoast might be a little too far north for what we're looking for. Places like Bedford are out of our price range. I guess the best thing to do would be to explain our expectations:

1. Price: We're looking at the $900 to $1200 price range. That's in $1200 a month max. We ARE looking to rent, at least in the short-term. Would prefer a house, apartment or townhome (for privacy reasons) with at least 3 bedrooms, but it looks like multi-family is the only option we really have for the most part, which is kind of depressing.

2. Schools: We do have three young girls, ages 8, 6, and 5, so schools, especially of the elementary and middle level, are extremely important. My wife has already decided they will go to Central for high school (she graduated there) so that's not really a big issue.

3. Jobs: Obviously, we need to go where the jobs are! It would be ideal for us to line up jobs before we move, and then start on the job two weeks or so after we get there. We are hoping to save enough money for at least two months living expenses, but we would like to get a job relatively quickly so we don't dip into our savings too much.

That's the basic parameters we're at for right now. We are trying to get everything nailed down to the penny and day as much as possible, while still budgeting in the unexpected. But we want to make this as smooth a transition as possible.

So where to look? Hooksett (my wife's preference)? Litchfield? Londonderry? Manchester? Nashua? My wife is familiar with most of these places, but she hasn't really lived there since she became an adult. I've only been there 3 times, and while I love what I've seen, I'm completely unfamiliar with the area.

Thanks for the help guys. Looking forward to moving up there, we seriously can't wait to get the hell out of South Carolina.

[AngelaK]

Of the places you mentioned, Londonderry would be my pick based on the schools. I am not sure about the rental market there currently, though. Good luck.

[BF66389]

While east of the Merrimack river (Litchfield/Londonderry) can be very nice my wife and I weren't a fan of the Route 93 commute into MA; 93 just seems to jam up SOO much more than 3 does (of course, since its a straight shot into Boston). This ruled those areas out for us.

I would highly suggest checking out Hollis/Amherst/Merrimack/Nashua although Hollis/Amherst tend to be more pricey. Hollis is known for great schools and its a more rural setting...but close to the highway/major town (Nashua)...so not actually rural.

Jobs really depends on your line of work/desire to commute; if you were a rodeo clown...I'd say this is a bad area. If you hold a security clearance/some engineering/IT experience...then there are several defense contractors and IT firms in the area...or if you commute further south- in MA.

[BF66389]

Oh, and if you want to stay east/off 93. Londonderry & Wyndam seem to be the best bet school wise.

As for renting a house...I'd checkout realtors; I'm guessing they would have the best knowledge. And perhaps craiglist?

[Ken E]

Originally Posted by CandJSmith

Hey folks, first time poster, quite a long time guest lurker..

My wife and I are seriously looking to relocate to the Southern NH in the summer of next year. We have lived in Charleston for several years now, and we are tired of the South, and want to move back north. My wife is from Manchester, and I'm from NOVA so four seasons is how we like it.

We are concentrating on southern NH because my wife is from there (still got family, friends, and familiarity there) and I want to be closer to Boston (I SO miss the big city atmosphere).

We're looking somewhere in between northern Manchester and Nashua. Upper Seacoast might be a little too far north for what we're looking for. Places like Bedford are out of our price range. I guess the best thing to do would be to explain our expectations:

1. Price: We're looking at the $900 to $1200 price range. That's in $1200 a month max. We ARE looking to rent, at least in the short-term. Would prefer a house, apartment or townhome (for privacy reasons) with at least 3 bedrooms, but it looks like multi-family is the only option we really have for the most part, which is kind of depressing.

2. Schools: We do have three young girls, ages 8, 6, and 5, so schools, especially of the elementary and middle level, are extremely important. My wife has already decided they will go to Central for high school (she graduated there) so that's not really a big issue.

3. Jobs: Obviously, we need to go where the jobs are! It would be ideal for us to line up jobs before we move, and then start on the job two weeks or so after we get there. We are hoping to save enough money for at least two months living expenses, but we would like to get a job relatively quickly so we don't dip into our savings too much.

That's the basic parameters we're at for right now. We are trying to get everything nailed down to the penny and day as much as possible, while still budgeting in the unexpected. But we want to make this as smooth a transition as possible.

So where to look? Hooksett (my wife's preference)? Litchfield? Londonderry? Manchester? Nashua? My wife is familiar with most of these places, but she hasn't really lived there since she became an adult. I've only been there 3 times, and while I love what I've seen, I'm completely unfamiliar with the area.

Thanks for the help guys. Looking forward to moving up there, we seriously can't wait to get the hell out of South Carolina.

Of the towns you listed i would probably pick Hooksett (on the Pembroke side).

[Valerie C]

Welcome C and J Glad you finally decided to jump in--the water's fine! Glad to hear that you enjoy 4 seasons, we've still got all 4 up here despite Global Warming

First I want to address the school issue. Do you mean that you want the girls to go to Central despite the town you chose? No problem if you chose to live in Auburn (tuitioned to Central) or Hooksett (tuitioned to Central or West). Bedford now has its own HS... Seriously do some investigating on the Manchester high schools in recent years. It may be quite different from what your wife remembers when she graduated...

One of my favorite sites to recommend when somebody is considering various towns is the NH.gov Community Profile site (NH Community Profiles (http://www.nh.gov/nhes/elmi/communpro.htm - broken link)) No vested interest in leaning you toward one town or another, just the facts presented in either html or pdf format.

Regarding a rental--the NH MLS includes a rental search (Northern New England Real Estate Network - Official Website of the Northern New England MLS) That's the best place to see what's out there. Craigslist as well (but remember that you'll see many of the same listings as you saw on NNEREN, but packaged differently. Some real estate agents post their listings on craigslist without disclosing up front that they are agents... sometimes leading potential buyer/renters to disclose a bit too much of their personal information to the agent representing a Seller/Property Owner. It may be difficult to find a 3-BR in the price range you are looking BUT my crystal ball is a little cloudy on where prices will be next year. All I can say is that it's sure to be more here than where you're presently living...

Jobs, yeah, they are sort of a necessity unless you've got a big Trust Fund you're living off... Depending on what you both do, I would recommend staying (as you are already planning) in the southern tier, with easy access to Massachusetts. The unfortunate truth is that there are more jobs in MA, and they tend to pay more than NH. The downside is that you'll have to pay MA income tax (5.3%)

So you mentioned a couple of towns--Hooksett, Litchfield, Londonderry, Manchester & Nashua. Hooksett has been experiencing LOTS of growth--new subdivision neighborhoods, condos, office parks, shopping, etc. all along Rte 3/Mount St. Mary's area (now condos)

I'm a little biased toward Londonderry, but it's not perfect. (very limited recreational programs, great schools, overall a "nice & safe" town. Music program is excellent, the high school band is HUGE, traveled to Beijing China in June. The only school I know where it's cool to be a Band Geek (I can say that cuz my kid is one! Here's the show they did last Saturday night (Salem Band Show, what a GREAT time! (
YouTube - LHS Marches @ 2008 Salem Band Show)
The town leaders are pushing for more commercial development, but the residents are resisting those efforts. Meetings are well-attended these days, and that's exactly how it should be. Residents have to keep their elected officials in line

OK, enough from me--I'm sure you'll get lots more opinions

[GregW]

Check (google) Rolling Meadows Condominum Association, Clubhouse Lane, Londonderry, NH. We have a mix of 2 & 3 BR town houses. Some may be for rent or sale. The town houses are grouped in blocks of 5 or 10 units with a total of 150 units on 65 acres of land that include 20+ acres of lawn and 3 ponds. Each unit had a carport and most have decks. Unfortunately, I do not have the phone number with me but it is in the yellow or white pages.

[CandJSmith]

Wow! There's definitely a wealth of information here!

Sorry I haven't responded earlier. Been extremely busy.

We will definitely investigate all these different suggestions. Keep them coming, please!

And THANK YOU for all the suggestions so far! It's good to know that there are plenty of helpful people here.

[CandJSmith]

Originally Posted by Valerie C

First I want to address the school issue. Do you mean that you want the girls to go to Central despite the town you chose? No problem if you chose to live in Auburn (tuitioned to Central) or Hooksett (tuitioned to Central or West). Bedford now has its own HS... Seriously do some investigating on the Manchester high schools in recent years. It may be quite different from what your wife remembers when she graduated...

Val..

The Central thing I was sort of kidding about, but we eventually do plan to live in a Central district (probably Hooksett),. We're not too worried about that right at the moment, considering our oldest is in 3rd grade right now. I know, time flies (hard to believe she's ALREADY in 3rd grade!), but we only plan on living wherever we chose to live next summer for 2-3 years, establish ourselves career and financially-wise, and then move to Hooksett/Manchester area. That's the plan for now, anyway.

My wife also has friends back home, and one of them is a cop in the Hooksett area, so he keeps close tabs on those kind of things (former Central grad as well). She only graduated there in '99, which is a lifetime for a school to go to crap, I agree, but I guess we'll get a better idea when we move there.

It's fun, I get to give my wife crap cause we'll be moving up there just in time for her 10-year reunion! WoOt!