Posted: 10/3/2025 11:52:38 PM EDT
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Hello everyone, I'm going to retire in a few years and I'm looking to flee my communist utopia for someplace more like America. My wife grew up across the river in Maine near Kittery. Her best friend lives in South Berwick, which is across the river from Rochester. NH is more appealing when it comes to taxes and gun laws than ME. I've been looking at properties outside the city limits of Rochester. What's the skinny on that area? Good local ranges / shops around there? How anal are folks about shooting on your own property? I'm looking to get some acreage, maybe around 10-15 acres. I'd like to have a house built - anything specific to the area I should consider? Thanks! |
"I wasn't put in jail for what I did. I was put in it for what I think... They won by making a DC jury scared that people like YOU AND I exist outside of their liberal bubble." - T-Robertson5-0, J6er and political prisoner
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Not in that area, but since you're looking at buying land you should become familiar with NH's Current Use program. Essentially it incentivizes landowners to keep things green via greatly reduced property taxes. Helps the town out as well by not packing more people requiring services, school children, and traffic in. Basic requirement is 10 unimproved acres. So if you're buying land to build on, you need at least 11 or 12 acres depending on the size of your build site. As an example, I was paying aprox $40 a year for 39 acres. Then I built a house on a bit less than 2 acres. I'm paying full value for the house/home site, and still paying pennies for 37 acres. I can do everything I want on those 37 acres as long as I don't build. There are two levels of Current Use. Normal everyday CU and CU receiving the 20% recreational discount. A vast majority are in the former. People confuse this all the time and think the land cannot be posted, but that only applies to parcels receiving the 20% recreational discount and there you must allow certain activities. Most vacant larger parcels are already enrolled in CU and that passes through to you upon closing. No work needed on your end. You can confirm whether or not it enrolled in CU by looking at the tax cards/map for that town. Too many different systems town to town to cover in this post. In order to improve your land with buildings/driveways/etc, you need to take a portion out of CU and pay a penalty called the Land Use Change Tax. LUCT is 10% ad valorem of the portion you're taking out. I paid about 2600 when I paid mine with another 30 odd dollars going to the county deeds register because why not add another fee. More info in the booklet at this link: https://www.revenue.nh.gov/document/current-use-booklet ************************************************ TLDR. You do not want 10 acres. You want 12 or more. Saves money that way. PS. Had a house built within the last couple years. Buckle up, you're in for a ride. |
Peace has always been the reign of mediocrities, and pacifism the bleating of a herd of sheep which allow themselves to be led to the slaughterhouse without defending themselves. ~some dead French guy.
Joined:
Sep 2025
Posts:
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NH, USA
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Hello. I'm a state rep whose district covers Rochester Ward 5 and Milton (a town just north of Rochester). There are several ranges in the area. Renaissance has an indoor range, as well as White Birch. Both are just south of Rochester. For indoor ranges, the least expensive are all in Maine, including Southern Maine Fish and Game. That range goes to 200 yards. If you have several acres, just remember to shoot with a good backstop and that you need to be at least 100 yards away from occupied dwellings (unless your neighbors are chill). Further north is cheaper in NH for housing, as a rule. Near Rt 16 gives easy access to the Rochester/Dover/Somersworth area, where shopping is generally done. Hope to see you move in, Neighbor! |
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I lived in Rochester for 10 years. People love to hate it, and not without some reasons. Downtown is like any other depressed city with a drug problem. Maple St and Signal St stick out in my mind as the "bad" areas, and they have their share of homeless and welfare dregs. Any city of that size is going to have the same issues, so its not unique or disqualifying. Just poorish with poor people problems. The outskirts are like any other semi-rural suburb. Stay more than 2 miles from downtown and you won't even know that you're in a "city". |