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Everyone wants a home that mixes affordability with comfort and New Hampshire does this very well. Families love the Granite State's beaches, midlands, and mountains as tourists before moving here and calling it home.
But before you decide to relocate, you have to do some research into the exact cost of living around the state -- and that's how we're going to help you.
These are the places in New Hampshire that cost a pretty penny -- the most expensive cities in the state.
After we saved up for months and could finally afford it, we landed on this list of the ten most expensive cities in New Hampshire for 2021.
So where is the most expensive place to live in New Hampshire? That would be Durham.
the 2015-2019 American Community Survey for the 26 places in New Hampshire with more than 5,000 people.
Here are the 10 most expensive places to live in New Hampshire for 2021:
What's the most expensive place to live in New Hampshire? Well, HomeSnacks crunched the numbers and discovered that Durham is the most expensive place to live in New Hampshire.
So hopefully Somersworth (the cheapest place to live in New Hampshire) can show these guys how to live on a budget in the coming years. Read on for how these places had costs rise faster than inflation.
And if you already knew these places were expensive, check out some more reading about New Hampshire and the most expensive cities in the country:
The 10 Most Expensive Places To Live In New Hampshire For 2021
/10
Population: 11,159
Rank Last Year: 1 (No Change)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 6.5x (most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 56.8x (7th most expensive)
More on Durham: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Durham comes in at $53,523 and the median home value is $348,500 for 2021.
/10
Population: 5,660
Rank Last Year: 2 (No Change)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 3.7x (6th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 53.6x (5th most expensive)
More on Newmarket: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Newmarket comes in at $68,500 and the median home value is $255,400 for 2021.
/10
Population: 112,109
Rank Last Year: 4 (Up 1)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 3.7x (5th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 53.5x (4th most expensive)
More on Manchester: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Manchester comes in at $60,711 and the median home value is $227,600 for 2021.
/10
Population: 21,775
Rank Last Year: 3 (Down 1)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 5.1x (3rd most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 64.3x (2most expensive)
More on Portsmouth: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Portsmouth comes in at $83,923 and the median home value is $425,600 for 2021.
/10
Population: 88,815
Rank Last Year: 6 (Up 1)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 3.6x (9th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 58.5x (11th most expensive)
More on Nashua: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Nashua comes in at $74,995 and the median home value is $267,900 for 2021.
/10
Population: 8,508
Rank Last Year: 5 (No Change)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 5.5x (2nd most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 77.4x (24th most expensive)
More on Hanover: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Hanover comes in at $109,514 and the median home value is $603,700 for 2021.
/10
Population: 9,244
Rank Last Year: 7 (No Change)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 3.4x (11th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 56.8x (8th most expensive)
More on Exeter: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Exeter comes in at $69,575 and the median home value is $236,100 for 2021.
/10
Population: 9,166
Rank Last Year: 9 (Up 1)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 4.0x (4th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 78.2x (25th most expensive)
More on Hampton: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Hampton comes in at $92,220 and the median home value is $372,000 for 2021.
/10
Population: 31,577
Rank Last Year: 12 (Up 3)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 3.7x (7th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 62.0x (18th most expensive)
More on Dover: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Dover comes in at $71,631 and the median home value is $264,700 for 2021.
/10
Population: 13,623
Rank Last Year: 12 (Up 2)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 3.6x (8th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 61.7x (17th most expensive)
More on Lebanon: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Lebanon comes in at $67,698 and the median home value is $245,400 for 2021.
How We Determined The Most Expensive Places To Live In The Granite State For 2021
The two most important things to think about when it comes to being able to afford if you can live comes down to:
- How much do money do I make?
- How much do I have spend to live there?
You need to understand your costs in the context of how much money you make.
For example, if the median household earns $100,000 and spends $40,000 on housing it's actually cheaper to live there than a place with a median income of $50,000 and housing costs of $21,000. You might spend more on housing, but you have more money overall to play with.
With that example in mind, we derived several statistics from the latest Census American Community Survey 2015-2019 around incomes and costs. They are:
- Median Home Price / Median Income (lower is better)
- Median Income / Median Rent (Higher is better)
- Median Home Price
We added simply median home price because high home prices generally correlate with higher expenses for all costs related to homes (heating, electricity, etc).
You can then compare these metrics in each of the places in New Hampshire to figure out which is the most expensive.
What you are left with is a "Cost of Living Index" by taking the average rank of each of these metrics for each city.
So we used that cost of living index in order to rank all of the 26 places in New Hampshire that have more than 5,000 people.
The place with the highest cost of living in New Hampshire according to the data is Durham. You can download the data here.
Taking A Chunk Out Of Your Paycheck In New Hampshire For 2021
Well there you have it, the places in New Hampshire that have the highest cost of living, with Durham ranking as the most expensive city in the Granite State.
Here's a look at the most affordable cities in New Hampshire according to the data:
- Somersworth
- Newport
- Franklin
For more New Hampshire reading, check out:
- Best Places To Live In New Hampshire
- Cheapest Places To Live In New Hampshire
- Most Dangerous Cities In New Hampshire
- Best Places To Raise A Family In New Hampshire
- Safest Places In New Hampshire
- Worst Places To Live In New Hampshire
Detailed List Of The Most Expensive Cities In New Hampshire
| Rank | City | ExpensiveScore |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Durham | 4.0 |
| 2 | Newmarket | 6.67 |
| 3 | Manchester | 8.0 |
| 4 | Portsmouth | 8.67 |
| 5 | Nashua | 9.0 |
| 6 | Hanover | 9.0 |
| 7 | Exeter | 10.33 |
| 8 | Hampton | 10.67 |
| 9 | Dover | 11.0 |
| 10 | Lebanon | 11.67 |
| 11 | Derry | 12.33 |
| 12 | Hooksett | 13.0 |
| 13 | Concord | 13.33 |
| 14 | Pinardville | 14.33 |
| 15 | Londonderry | 14.33 |
| 16 | Keene | 14.33 |
| 17 | Milford | 14.67 |
| 18 | Laconia | 15.33 |
| 19 | Claremont | 15.67 |
| 20 | Hudson | 17.0 |
| 21 | South Hooksett | 18.0 |
| 22 | Berlin | 18.33 |
| 23 | Rochester | 19.0 |
| 24 | Franklin | 20.0 |
| 25 | Newport | 21.0 |
| 26 | Somersworth | 21.33 |
