Whatever happens, it needs to be done with a car-less future in mind. Walking paths and/or electric monorails over every notch. Don't believe me? Just ask the people of Brockway, Ogdenville, and North Haverbrook how monorails worked for them!

Paying extra toward principal is the way to go. We're fortunate enough to do $500 extra a month and it's cutting 7 years off our mortgage and saving us interest in the long run. We're about 3 years in, so only 20 years to go now.

My wife and I got pre-approved the day before we made an offer. You just need to have your paperwork in order proving your income and assets/cash.

Someone I know just bought his first condo going through a local bank. He said they're more likely to give you a loan than the larger banks because they're also in the community you're in, and make their decisions in-house.

The biggest thing I learned is that you'll spend the first few years of homeownership getting the property up to your standards (cutting back trees and brush, planting grass) and fixing all the small things the previous owners put off fixing (looks like this doesn't apply to you!).

I've heard from friends in the business that a lot of new builds have inferior materials because of scarcity and inflation in recent years. Not saying this is true in your case, but keep an eye out for things that break or are of poor quality.

In general I'd say stay up on maintenance of your appliances and how your house is heated. You don't want it to break in the middle of the winter!

Get a pest company to come spray for insects around your foundation twice a year - it'll cost about $400-$500 per year but will kill the bugs that will damage your house over time.

This is the way!

Call City Wok and order the City Beef.

People with low plates in NH are politically connected. Gotta know somebody who knows somebody high up in the DMV. Normal people are outta luck!

Now, MA couldn't handle the look-the-other-way corruption. So much so that the patronage/bribery around low plates became a scandal, so they instated a yearly lottery for 4-digit and lower license plates. I scored a 4-digit plate starting with the number 4 a few years back. Most people don't care but some people find it cool.

It's the best bang for your buck in my opinion!

Black Mountain is the closest and is rarely ever crowded. It's a smaller mountain though, so if that's not what you're looking for, any of the other mountains in the area (Cranmore/Atitash/Wildcat) will be crowded similarly. My personal favorite is Sunday River in Maine. It's big and spread out so it handles the crowds well.

Yes ticks do exist in New England. Are they the menace the media and people who most likely never go outside claim they are? Hardly.

As others have said, do a tick check after you've been out in deep woods or fields with tall grass. Light excursions on well-maintained trails pose very little chance of encountering ticks. They primarily lie in wait on objects that brush up against you.

Excellent usernames in this thread 👏

This is underrated my favorite view in the whole state. Yes there are many others, but on a clear day when you come over that hill on 16 and see Washington, it's breathtaking and a truly special NH moment.

Yes, South Lawrence, especially the Mount Vernon neighborhood abutting Andover is the nicest neighborhood in the city. Basically the closer you are to Andover/North Andover, the nicer it gets. This doesn't mean you won't have the general city atmosphere but it's definitely not the ghetto.

If you're not tied to a specific area and are comfortable with the commute, I'd suggest looking in Salem, NH and the surrounding areas. Real estate tends to be cheaper in NH. Might be worth it for a little more peace and quiet. Even check out Haverhill.

Guy looks like Meatloaf in Fight Club

Exeter/Stratham/Newfields/Newmarket...any one of those towns will get you space but you'll be fairly close to the highway for access to Portsmouth and the beach. Personally I would look closely at Newmarket. Good downtown restaurants and young-ish vibe.

Newmarket is definitely small but has UNH the next town over, which keeps it young relative to the rest of NH. Also not too far from Portsmouth and the beach. The Stone Church and Oak House are two places lots of younger people hang out at. Dover is definitely bigger but similar situation albeit a little more working-class.

Manchester will have what you're looking for in terms of size and opportunities to meet people, but as others have said, a lot of it will be similar to what you've found in Portland, minus access to the ocean.

I would suggest checking out Portsmouth and the surrounding area. Dover and Newmarket are worth a look, easy access to Portsmouth and the ocean but cheaper and with a younger vibe due to proximity to UNH.

I have never taken it but I had a boss who took it for years and it was his preferred commuting option. Gets you right into downtown. He would walk to the office from there. Only downside was it sometimes wouldn't run due to weather and he'd have to drive in.

To get to Logan you'd have to hop on the Blue Line at Aquarium.

I always bring friends to Sunday River because I feel it's the biggest bang for your buck in terms of size for price paid. Yes it gets crowded on weekends but the mountain is big enough that they can be largely avoided, and overall having three lodges and multiple hotels spreads the crowds out better than other places. Everywhere will be crowded to a certain extent until the end of February. I tend to avoid Southern VT due to all the pushy and rude New Yorkers. Sugarloaf in Maine by far is the best and chillest vibe. You may have luck avoiding crowds at smaller areas but you may not get the bang for your buck.

Thank you. This is exactly what happens. Multiple cars ride each other's asses and repeatedly tap the brakes, causing the whip-crack effect when traffic slows in front of them ever so slightly. Leaving some space and not having to brake every time the person in front of you does, does wonders for preventing stop-and-go traffic.

It's (D)ifferent for someone like him. He would never have had to apologize.

He's not moving from his chair, I know that much.

Disastuh!

I live in Newbury, which is two towns south of Salisbury, with Newburyport in the middle. My wife is a physician who works 25 minutes away at a hospital in New Hampshire.

It's about 40 minutes to the edge of Boston from here, longer depending on where in the city you're going. The commuter rail runs from Newburyport right downtown to North Station for public transit non-driving access. There are two major highways (95 & 495) that make it easy to get anywhere in general.

While the con is that it's farther flung from the city than your other locations, it more than makes up for it in beauty. The beach and marsh environment is gorgeous, as is Newburyport and Ipswich if you go further south. My suggestion is to drive Route 1A from Salisbury to Salem to see the towns along the way. Spend some time in Newburyport.

Also, the quick access to the mountains in NH and Maine in general can't be beat if that's your thing too. It does get touristy in the summer due to the beach, but that can be pretty fun as there's a lot to do for restaurants/bars/entertainment without leaving the general area!

Good luck on your search!

Find your local armored tank. He might be inside.

There were a lot of loyal Trump voters who didn't forgive her for publicly rescinding her support after the Access Hollywood "Grab them" tape came out. It would've been close either way, but that contributed mightily to her close loss.