I've lived in Manchester my whole life (except 4 years for college). I've raised my son here. Sure, it's got a higher crime rate than a rural town with a tiny population, that's the nature of crime, but if you're looking for a city with more than 100,000 people, I can't imagine a safer one. We have all the amenities, we're 45 minutes from Boston, 30 minutes from the beach, 30 minutes from the mountains. I've traveled a lot, and I still choose Manchester to live in.

All that said, the price of housing right now is crazy. If you care about making the optimal financial decision, it might not be a good time to buy. The North End is the "rich" part of town, lots of old victorian homes. It's very nice and very bougie, and it's close to downtown. Definitely a nice place to settle if the prices don't scare you off.