OT--Help, dont know where in NH to move to

Hello everyone, My name is Angie and I currently live on Long Island, NY. 43yrs old married w/2 teenage girls. Hubby is a retire NYC police officer. We are considering relocating to NH and dont know where to start looking. We have heard that the NH Police would hire hubby with consideration of his 20years with nypd. Anyhow......We started looking at different NH sites and looked at Nashua and places east...like Portsmouth. I'm unsure the info I'm getting is correct. If you would please give some insight into different areas/county's ect....looking for low crime, down to earth neighborhood, that is not too "country like" than again, not a city like NYC, if that even exsist. I know.....I'm going on an on...Any help would be really really apprecitated....Thank you so much

Hi Angie, welcome to the NH board! I grew up in NH and just recently moved to MA.  NH does not have ANYTHING that is close to NYC  LOL  Nashua is a good community with many nice neighborhoods.  It tends to be a little more expensive than communities which are not as close to the NH/MA border. 

NH websites you may want to visit are www.nhmagazine.com which will give you ideas of what is going on in NH, business information, dining, entertainment, etc.  You could also look at statewide newspapers such as www.unionleader.com for ideas of real estate, employment, and any other news happening within the state.

As for your husband being hired by a NH police dept. --- they would scoop him up in a heartbeat!! Just realise that salaries are nothing like they are in NYC. 

My son is a firefighter/EMT in Concord, and I have friends who are on the Police force in Concord, NH (which I believe they are hiring!)  Both the police and fire have just completed union contract negotations and are in line for salary increases.

Best wishes in your search!

Thanks so much.....When you say a little more expensive, can you elaborate? We live on Long Island and it is so expensive here your hair would curl! Our LIPA alone (electric) is an average of 300.00 each month car insurance for 3 cars is 400 month. The average cost of homes range from 350,000.00 up to millions. If you live in an "average" area as we do, you could spend the min of 350-400 for a VERY AVERAGE home. (not over the top at all) and the property taxes are (the low end 5,500 up to 15,000) we pay about 6700. Can you give me the names of a few neighborhoods in Nashua? How about Concord? Is it nice there too? We really appreciate your time and knowledge, I'm going to check out those websites now!  Thanks again

You are very welcome!

I did not live in Nashua, but worked in the town immediately north of it (Merrimack).  Prices are no where near as expensive as you are paying!  Average home prices in NH are anywhere from the mid 170's to upwards of $500K.. of course there are many that are even higher priced (especially if you want anything with water frontage).  Electric rates vary based on which part of the state you live in and which utility company is serving that community, but I can tell you that I was in a 2 bedroom home and and my average electric bill was about $110 a month.. even with washer/dryer/stove/fridge/freezer, computers running 24/7 etc.  Property taxes also vary by community, as each community sets its own tax rate, and then there are county and state taxes added to that (not to mention the school district taxes).  NH has no income taxes or sales taxes, but they will "nickle and dime" you in other ways!

Concord is a nice community (state Capitol), although it is considered a "city" by NH standards, its population is approximately 50K (I think, but you could always look on the state's website to find out about community sizes - www.nh.gov)

Car insurance will DEFINITELY not be as expensive as you are paying now! (that is outrageous!)  For a 2008 Ford Escape I was paying about $800 a year.

Wow! I sure did pick a good time to post, you are a wealth of infomation...THANKS....We have a three bedroom ranch and pay that much in electric! They say Long Island electric rates are the highest in the nation! I believe it. I cant wait to visit everyone says NH is gorgeous.

Hi Angie,

I have lived in New Hampshire all of my life.  I lived in Portsmouth growing up, and then Barrington, Exeter and now Nottingham.  Portsmouth is a wonderful community.  They have done so much with the downtown area.  It boasts the seacoast, Strawberry Banke, nightlife, excellent restaurants, and is smaller and not as expensive as Nashua or Manchester.  The school system is good, and it has less crime than the bigger cities.  You are close to Boston, Concord, Portland Maine, just about anywhere.  Concord is the State capital.  You can also own property in the "rural" area of Portsmouth.  I would recommend Portsmouth to anyone.  Nashua has come a long way from where it was years ago.  It is a larger city, with more industry.  I don't really go to Nashua much.  I spend quite a bit of time in Concord and Manchester.  They are wonderful cities, but Portsmouth is my favorite.

Hi, and thank you for your advise! I really do appreciate it. Sounds like Portsmouth is wonderful!

Hi Angie,
I've lived in Manchester all my life.  I love it here.  It is the largest city in NH (unless Nashua has taken over that title, which is possible).  I think the population is about 120,000.  We most probably have the highest auto insurance rates in the state, but still not as high as what you're paying.  It has its rougher spots, like any city, but it also has wonderful neighborhoods, like where I live, which is the west side near the Town of Bedford.  The north end is also very nice (but pricey).  One of the benefits of living in Manchester is that it's central to everything.  Boston is an hour away, and so is New Hampshire's lovely lakes region and the ocean.  You're also not far from the mountains and skiing if you like to do that.  We have  wonderful museums (Currier Art Museum, Millyard Museum, Historical Association), theatres, the Verizon Wireless Arena where there are several concerts and is home to the Manchester Monarchs, affiliate of the LA Kings hockey team and Manchester Wolves (arena football).  We also have a baseball park that is home to the NH Fisher Cats, the AA affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays.  The Manchehster-Boston Regional Airport is also located here.  The schools are good, and Manchester has a few colleges within its borders - Saint Anselm College, So. NH University, UNH-Manchester, Hesser College, Art Institute.  Taxes, which I think are high all over the state, aren't too bad in Manchester by comparison.  I think if you don't want to be too much "in the country," you should probably search around southern and coastal regions of NH, like Manchester, Portsmouth, Nashua.  You could go as far north as Concord also.  Windham is also very nice, but I think there are a lot of exclusive homes there.  Merrimack's taxes are quite high as are those on the coast, like Rye.  Bedford is a really nice community.  They just built a new high school, so I don't know what that will do to their taxes.  Previous poster is correct:  The closer you get to the Mass. border, the higher the cost of living seems to go.

I love NH.  I think that anywhere you'll look, you'll find something you love.  Every community has its own special attributes.  It just depends on what you're looking for. 

Hello to you!  Thanks so much for all the great information. It sure is helpful, being that we've never been to NH. At least we have a starting point.

Thanks...Angie

Hi there,
I have lived in Portsmouth my entire life!  I actually worked in the dispatch center for the Portsmouth PD before I got hired for Hampton Fire.  Portsmouth Is a great community, and has some great neighborhoods.  I live in an area called Elwyn park.   Most of the houses in my neighborhood are anywhere from 300-500k.. I think mine is assessed somewhere in the 380's.  I live just outside of the downtown area and right off or Rt 1.  My back yard feels like Im away from the city, but really Im minutes away from a good bar hop or some shopping!!!  Let me know if you need any info -
K8