Article Summary: This article will help anyone looking for information pertaining to a commercial real estate and commercial lending in the State of
New Hampshire.
New Hampshire, nestled away in New England, is one of the
nation's smallest states, with just 9,359 square miles of real estate. It is
also one of the nation's wealthiest states, with the highest ranked median income
in the country. The per capita personal income is above the national average,
coming in at sixth in the nation.
New Hampshire's population is concentrated in the central and southern
parts of the state. The most populated area of the state is in Merrimack County
where the state's capital, Concord, and most populated city, Pembroke,
are located. Only 5% of the residents live in the northern third of the state
which, has lost much of its population due to the decline in the paper and logging
industries that were prevalent in the region. If an investor is willing to take
some risk with property use, the northern portion of the state has some industrial
land available at a relative mark down. The problems presented with this land
are, of course, what to do with it, and how to deal with increasing environmental
regulation.
For business owners or developers with commercial interests looking to locate
in New Hampshire, there's positive news. The residents of New Hampshire have
the income to spend on retail, and luxury retail, in particular, is experiencing
rapid growth. Additionally, New Hampshire charges no general sales tax, so residents
from neighboring states such as Massachusetts and Connecticut frequently cross
the border to shop tax free.
The state also has very reasonable and fiscally responsible business tax policies,
making New Hampshire a prime area for light industry and service firms. Educational
service firms, those that score educational testing or offer tutoring services,
in particular are choosing to locate in New Hampshire. Education is big business
here, with 22 college and universities crowding this small state. The rental
market in these university areas is slightly different from that in other places:
it is strong, but very small. This is because most of the colleges and universities
are rural and self-contained. Students live on campus in, mostly, university
housing, so there's not a big demand for off-campus housing. A residential
investor might do better off focusing on housing for faculty and staff as opposed
to the larger, more volatile student housing market.
About seven and a half percent of New Hampshire's commercial real estate
is dedicated to agriculture. The climate of the state is good for dairy, cattle,
apple orchards and poultry farms. However, the percent of farming land has remained
steady over the past three decades, and is not expected to grow in the near
future. Further, given the dynamics of agriculture in that state, small-scale,
boutique or artisanal agriculture, agriculture isn't in decline, so there's
not a lot of redevelopment of previously agricultural land.
A small, but active portion of commercial real estate can also be found along
New Hampshire's coast. There are 18 miles of beach front property
that border the Atlantic Ocean. This area makes for attractive vacation property,
but is probably already developed to capacity. An investor in this area is probably
looking at resale instead new development.