New Hampshire, Areas For Buy & Hold

[Trevor Ewen]

New Hampshire has always been on my short list of places I could live in my post NYC future.

I know what areas I think are nice. We're actually big fans of Keene, for the occasional weekend trip. That being said, I have never asked advice from NH investors.

What areas are people investing in for cash flow, buy & hold? What property types tend to be popular? Who are your renters? Where do they work? Why do they live in NH?

Thanks in advance.

[William Boudle]

What areas are people investing in for cash flow, buy & hold? The rental markets are strong in the places noted above. Here's how I see them breakdown when it comes to money. I could be off but I've lived in most of these areas personally and this is how they feel to me.

$$$$$ - Portsmouth/Seacoast (Hampton Beach seasonals are high in summer/low in winter)

$$$$ - Keene, Nashua, Dover, Durham Area

$$$ - Manchester, Salem, Concord

$$ - Somersworth - Rochester - Plymouth, Lebanon

$ - Berlin / North NH

There are no big cities. Manchester is about 4 or 5 times the size of Keene population wise and that's the biggest city. As mentioned above, it's kind of a "large town". There are a good deal of SF in every town. I used to live in "the zone" in Manchester and felt safe walking to the store at midnight. Even the bad areas of NH are nothing crime-wise compared to any of the cities in Massachusetts. Perhaps because of more strict drug policies?

The southeast (Rt 3 East) is where most of the money is. As mentioned above, Portsmouth is outrageous, but commands a very high rental market. I paid $700/m in downtown for a studio 10+ years ago. As Al mentioned, the markets surrounding it have had good growth and a resurgence in the past few years.

http://project.wnyc.org/median-income-nation/#8/42...

What property types tend to be popular? When I think New Hampshire I think colonial or old farm house. A ton of old 4-5 family units in Manchester. Do some google street view around Nashua & Manchester. 

Who are your renters? Depends on the area, but in the Southeast, they are working class. Hi property taxes and housing prices can keep a lot of people renting into their 30's. Blue collar.

Where do they work? There are a few big jobs up here. Some off the top of my head: UNH, Dartmouth,Hypertherm, Timberland, Lindt, Dell, SIG. There are a good deal of contractors and blue collar workers. There used to be paper mills up north, but they shut down and added a prison (Berlin) and the place has gone to par. If you're a risk taker in it for the long haul, places can be had really cheap up there. 

Why do they live in NH? As mentioned above, safety, good schools, no sales tax. Plus our motto sounds kind of bad ***. Live Free or Die.