Looking for Off-Grid/Homestead Communities in New Hampshire (Littleton, Lancaster: renting, houses)
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
My husband and I are looking for some land in or near a Homestead/Off-grid community who might be willing to help us get started.
We used to live in MA but have been living in Florida the past year and a half, and are looking to move back up north to live a more self-sufficient lifestyle.
I've been looking at land all over the state and have come to a point where I really need to talk with someone local who is 'living the life!' LOL I've researched for years but will have specific questions about areas in NH.
Any thoughts & questions are welcome. I don't mean to be vague, just reaching out to see if any response first. Thank you.
Thank you for the links. Some I had seen already but others were very helpful.
"Do you have any specific questions and what is your budget?"
We'd like to pay for land outright, so $50,000 would be great for at least 5 acres. We're starting to look at counties with no zoning and/or no building inspectors. At this point we really need to just find a realtor who understands what we're looking for and make a trip up north to walk some land.
Specific question, I guess would be what are people like in each of the regions; North, Lakes, etc.
Community, of course, will be pretty important as we don't know anyone in NH.... yet!
"Also, have you looked at Maine as well?" We have considered Maine but prefer NH.
NH seems more of a melting pot of people who find common ground in freedom & liberty.
Presence or absence of zoning depends on the individual town, not the county. Building permits and inspections are determined by the state (septic) and the town (building codes). Counties in NH have relatively little power compared to some other states.
"We'd like to pay for land outright, so $50,000 would be great for at least 5 acres. We're starting to look at counties with no zoning and/or no building inspectors. At this point we really need to just find a realtor who understands what we're looking for and make a trip up north to walk some land."
10K an acre is easily doable, but steep. I paid slightly more than 5 per acre for ~40 acres and while that was the market price, it was still pricy compared to a year prior. You might find that as you increase in acreage the price comes down. There is a realtor in Lancaster who listed the property I bought who might be able to help point you in the right direction, but I REALLY recommend you do your own homework with any property he lists. Keep in mind that few realtors understand the wont for no zoning/controls and cash in the pocket is what matters.
Buying land with the intent to build is tricky to say the least. Can you get a driveway in, can you get power in, is it on a Class VI road and therefore requires town approval IAW state law, do you cross any wetlands to get in, can it perc, are there any easements, are you in a flood zone, are there significant slopes, do you think you need to blast bedrock/granite to build, etc, etc.
I personally was pretty confident in my abilities to pick something, but I was already renting in the area and just had a quick drive to walk around multiple times. If this is a no kidding real deal for you all, you might look at renting a house(easier said than done) as a base and then buying land after you've found the perfect spot. Note that any builder worth his salt will be on a two plus year list currently.
RE counties. Other than the unincoperateds, counties are essentially nothing here. Everything is pretty much town by town. So your town votes in zoning you're stuck with the HOA. If a town rejects zoning then it is fair game. Example-Dalton(a little nothing town further north) rejected a NIMBY move for zoning-they have no permitting for houses other than the state required driveway and septic permits. Other towns are similar, but without the NIMBY push. Luckily you can research almost everything on the town's website.
"Specific question, I guess would be what are people like in each of the regions; North, Lakes, etc."
Can't really help you as I rent/live in the Lakes Region and am building further north. In the Lakes Region, my neighbors have NJ and MA plates while my generous landlord has NH plates but is from NY. The neighbors don't speak with me and I don't speak with them. I like the locals or those who have assimilated in with the locals.
Further north where I am building, I've met my neighbors and don't care where they're from. I've had offers of help, offers to watch my land, offers to let me park a trailer/store equipment on their land. I've shared phone numbers and have pulled up in their driveways to BS.
I guess you can see where my preferences lie.
That said anywhere you move in a rural/semi rural state you have to look at a couple of essentials->food, essentials such as hardware/lumber, health care, and as you get old-specialty health care.
OP, there are a couple hits on the google search I ran on towns with lack of zoning. NH last updated their stuff in 2019, and I think that was just for a special project. It may help you narrow things down.
It isn't completely up to date as I think Rumney implemented some hybrid not quite zoning regulation and Dalton voted to completely remove even the emergency zoning they had. It looks like neither towns update their websites well and they certainly don't post board minutes in a timely fashion.
There is a lot that can go into researching individual towns, but I find crawling through board minutes over the last few years enlightening. I preferred to read the whole set of minutes as it gives a feel on the town, but you can also search for trigger words via google.
Non hotlinked search string example of a Rumney search for zoning in their BoS page:
Thank you for the links. Some I had seen already but others were very helpful.
"Do you have any specific questions and what is your budget?"
We'd like to pay for land outright, so $50,000 would be great for at least 5 acres. We're starting to look at counties with no zoning and/or no building inspectors. At this point we really need to just find a realtor who understands what we're looking for and make a trip up north to walk some land.
Specific question, I guess would be what are people like in each of the regions; North, Lakes, etc.
Community, of course, will be pretty important as we don't know anyone in NH.... yet!
"Also, have you looked at Maine as well?" We have considered Maine but prefer NH.
NH seems more of a melting pot of people who find common ground in freedom & liberty.
Price-wise, I'd suggest looking north of Littleton, NH for best deals on land and more natural surroundings. If you're still considering Maine, you want to look north of Bangor and/or well west of I-95. Maine has its "unorganized territories", which offer low taxes and regulations.
Presence or absence of zoning depends on the individual town, not the county. Building permits and inspections are determined by the state (septic) and the town (building codes). Counties in NH have relatively little power compared to some other states.
Thank you. Your insight is very helpful & appreciated! Sounds like we may be on similar wavelength, lol.
We transplanted into MA and things were good in the rural town we lived in until the 2016 election - when the so called "tolerant" became intolerant of any other viewpoint than their own. Neighbors were no longer behaving neighborly.
I'm getting too old for that nonsense.
We're considering way up North (at least north of the Lakes Region as well) for exactly what you mentioned, just want to be a good neighbor, help each other out regardless of viewpoints (just don't be a jerk), share phone numbers and BS in each others driveways.That sounds refreshing.
Thank you. Your insight is very helpful & appreciated! Sounds like we may be on similar wavelength, lol.
We transplanted into MA and things were good in the rural town we lived in until the 2016 election - when the so called "tolerant" became intolerant of any other viewpoint than their own. Neighbors were no longer behaving neighborly.
I'm getting too old for that nonsense.
We're considering way up North (at least north of the Lakes Region as well) for exactly what you mentioned, just want to be a good neighbor, help each other out regardless of viewpoints (just don't be a jerk), share phone numbers and BS in each others driveways.That sounds refreshing.
you might want to read the thread about what do you wish you researched before moving to a rural area. Its on Rural and country living here on CD. Not about NH but it can be very useful. food for thought.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I've researched for years but will have specific questions about areas in NH.
