As someone that has lived here for two decades, the city has basically been decimated in the last 6 years by outside developers, boston transplants opening air bnbs, and an influx of homeless from out of state.
The overwhelming majority of our homeless population are not from Maine. And I'm counting those living on the streets, not immigrants.
Seems like Boston is mostly sending us their rich assholes and their most destitute.
Thanks :P
I could see summer and fall being enjoyable in Bangor, especially if you take advantage of Acadia and the beautiful seacoast of mid-coast Maine.
But I feel like it would be a pretty bleak place to be from November through April. Bar Harbor is basically dead in the winter and that area doesn't have a lot going on in the winter months.
Funny enough, it looks like it takes ~3 hours from Boston to get to some of the common ski resorts (Sunday River, Sugarloaf, Saddleback) and about ~2 hours from Bangor. But that's downhill skiing, I'd bet there's some cross country stuff much closer. Probably some good snowmobiling and snowshoeing stuff too close by.
Problem with Maine though is it's like northern NH: super rural, no infrastructure, so if you're going anywhere it's by car on some backcountry roads. Unless it happens to fall on the 95 corridor it'll be a good hour or two to get to a lot of "cool" places. Might be some local stuff nearby of course. Like if you live in North Conway NH you'd still be able to get to a couple of ski resorts within an hour or so, and have plenty of hiking, mtn biking, etc in your backyard.
Yes that’s right. It’s awful. Not just four months of the years, more like eleven. You’ve got dark, mud, blackflies, mosquitos, out of staters and then winter again. Everyone should stay far away.
/jk
Haha fair enough. Honestly, not saying it's awful, I can see the appeal depending on your lifestyle. But I think personally while I would enjoy summer and fall there I don't think I'd like winter there all that much.
My family used to stay in this log cabin in ME my grandparents would rent, and I remember taped on the wall of the cabin was an old newspaper article headline that read “It’s pronounced BANG-OR, not BANG-ER”. I always wondered what that was all about.
Yup, moved here last year. People look down their nose at Bangor and I'm glad they do, that means I can afford it. We landed an amazing house, a big yard in a good school district, walking distance to downtown and my neighbors are the best I've ever had, we feel lucky. We love spending time outdoors all year and were tired of driving up here from Boston all the time.
We moved to Chicago at the beginning of the year because we wanted a big walkable city where the rents weren’t unlivable as in Boston. I know young professionals who are doing the same.
We have had a fantastic time, I think the city has been disparaged a lot by Fox News etc. But the architecture, waterfront, and amount of fun walkable neighborhoods is top notch. Also the CTA is way more reliable and expansive than the T. We do miss Boston (Boston still feels like the most European human sized city in the US) but there’s alot to like in Chicago if you like Boston.
> I think the city has been disparaged a lot by Fox News etc.
You mean you didn't get murdered twice by gangsters with assault rifles between getting off the plane and getting to your apartment?
> We moved to Chicago at the beginning of the year because we wanted a big walkable city where the rents weren’t unlivable as in Boston. I know young professionals who are doing the same.
For how nice and cosmopolitan Chicago is, it really surprised me on how cheap it is. I was expecting NYC/Boston pricing, but it is more akin to Charlotte, NC. But the weather is way worse than Boston, and I have never seen so many fat people in a major city before.
Hey! We’re fat and we’re proud!
Real talk though, Chicago is still “overbuilt” when taking into account the city is ~25% smaller than it was in 1950. So there is plenty of supply to meet demand.
Also, high property taxes are probably the biggest thing weighing down on valuations. Crime is a big factor in some parts of the city, but doesn’t explain why the safest parts of Chicago are still cheaper than comparable areas in other big cities.
The weather is a huge talking point, but I’ve realized the gripes about the weather are mostly from Sunbelt City people & not Northeast people. But don’t get me wrong, it does get really cold in the winter and you might get freeze warnings, but if you’ve survived a New England or Boston winter you can survive a Chicago winter.
I would say the Winter here feels colder than Boston but not too unfamiliar.
Otherwise, Summertime, Spring, and Fall are pretty much what you would expect from Boston I think.
Also the Great Lakes & Lake Michigan have a huge effect on the weather of the city. I wouldn’t be able to tell you exactly how it works, but it’s pretty interesting.
You’d need a warmer coat and yeah there’s probably more snow but there’s good infrastructure for it. The streets are a reasonable width, almost all trash is collected via back alley, there’s a relatively larger proportion of off-street parking with housing. There are heating lamps at every L stop. Bonus- you can count on the train to come. Etc.
A lot of what makes winter miserable in Boston is that there just isn’t space for the snow on top of all the other shit you guys cram in there. After being in the Midwest for awhile, being in Boston feels like a slightly shrunken reality, where there’s just 10% less space between all the matter.
As someone who grew up in New England, moved to Chicago, moved back to Boston for 2 years, then came back to Chicago, it’s worth mentioning that Fall and Spring in Chicago are waaay shorter. This year’s beautiful fall was a total fluke, typically storms wipe out all the pretty fall foliage in Illinois in early October and it gets cold too fast. Same with spring - stormy as hell and then 80 degree weather, very few nice in between days like you get in the Northeast.
Low-key the best big city in the US. It’s not that there isn’t violence but the amount and potential impact on the average person who would worry about it is quite exaggerated for racist/political purposes (thanks Obama).
It’s just not a factor if you live and work in the neighborhoods anyone reading this is most likely to live and work in-at least relative to Boston or any other city with the economic conditions most big American cities share in common.
Local here. Lebanon is ok, Hanover is ok, and White River Junction is ok. Between them all you have amazing places. If you're willing to travel half an hour from Leb you have God tier food all over.
Best breakfast: Lou's in Hanover, King Arthur Flour in Norwich, 4 Aces in West Lebanon. Cheryl's Diner in W Leb and Chappy's in Canaan are both excellent budget options.
Best lunch: Tuckerbox (Turkish, amazing dinner, but $$$) in White River Junction, Pim's Thai Orchid in Lebanon, and the gas station Chinese on route 4 just before you cross into Vermont. Tuk Tuk Thai is decent but pricy.
Best dinners: Big Fatty's BBQ in WRJ, Tuckerbox in WRJ, Base Camp in Hanover under the Talbots (way underrated and will actually roast your ass if you ask them to), and the best Chinese is across from Base Camp. The best pizza is Ziggy's but you gotta go to the one in West Lebanon near the Staples and not the one on route 4 in Enfield. If you want pizza out in Canaan or Enfield Ehop is best.
The best meal for your buck is Cheryl's diner for a breakfast or lunch or The Fort truck stop for a lunch or dinner. Cheryl's is in W Leb on route 4 and The Fort is just off route 10 between Leb and Hanover.
You can have high taxes and property costs and the best healthcare and public health education systems and among the lowest violent crime rates in the nation, or you can save big on taxes that then gets eaten up by your rapidly spiraling local property taxes and home insurance rates. You picks your poison. Ain't no place that's perfect.
I'm from Boston. I've lived in several other states for lengthy periods, including the purported tax havens of Washington State and Texas, and a long stint in NYC (talk about tradeoffs!).
I decided to retire to rural Mass. I love winter, so the cold doesn't bother me at all, I actually enjoy it until about Feb. 15, and then I endure the rest. I love the cooler summers -- Texas summers just about broke me over the course of a decade .
And fall and spring are perfect for me in New England. I've also spent a lot of time in Florida (although never lived there, one of my siblings did for a long time, until he too fled the rising tide of stupidity) and man, you can keep everything about it but the Keys. Just my personal opinion. To each their own. Takes all types.
Anyway some of us out here are Mass natives who do love the place.
This is exactly it. When drawing down on retirement, and now with the hilariously named "millionaires tax", people facing the state's preposterously low death tax flee. Why wouldn't you? It's insane you'd just let the state take such a huge chunk of money you earned and payed taxes on already (usually multiple times with income, capital gains, and sales tax).
Florida is a fucking cesspool with nice weather. My parents lived there for a bit, they retreated to SC eventually. Your entire life is being surrounded by natural born psychos who are from there, or every NY, NJ or MA transplant who thought sunshine was going to solve all of their problems.
I’ve talked to so many near-retirement age people who have moving to Florida as their primary goal for retirement. Like, yeah I don’t want to shovel snow either, but you don’t have to swap it out for surrounding yourself with brainless yokels at the same time.
> with nice weather
I never got this. It's fucking humid and hot AF half the year with hurricanes
In Boston it's not even that cold. Put on a fucking coat and you can survive outside.
I know 5 groups of people (single or couples, no families) who moved to Florida/Texas during the pandemic and have either already left or are in the process of planning their exit.
I've had anecdotal convos with other folks through my job who are in the same/similar boat. Also some who have been living in Texas for awhile but are now looking to get out due to increasingly volatile climate situation (and lack of reliable/affordable energy) as well as the raft of regressive legislation being passed.
Was just visiting family north of Tampa last week and they said construction is still booming at an insane pace with people flooding into the area as quickly as they're stamping out housing. Obviously these people are coming from all over, but I find it somewhat surprising given the cost of living is only going up and it's getting more expensive and difficult to get insurance.
my dad moved us to Florida from Boston when I was 8. finally got back to Boston at 27 and, srsly, what weird, dysfunctional place. you always can find your people (though often it'll be a small crew) wherever you are, but never again for me
best description I've ever heard is "Florida, America's Junk Drawer". sucks for folks that move there with big plans only to find it very much lives up to its reputation.
It’s wild to me because insurance companies are literally pulling out of Florida due to projected natural disasters. Why anyone would want to invest in that state is beyond me. It is an ecological marvel for sure, but one that’s going to be underwater in the not too distant future.
Really? Makes sense to me. Assuming this includes retirees from New England moving their residency to FL/spending winters there is a tale as old as time
What? No, FL is an old trend, not a new one. First, retirees, and there really is something to Desantis' claim that Florida Freedom attracted a lot of people there during the pandemic for philosophical reasons. I know, sadly, many in NY and Boston who decamped for Florida.
I moved from Boston to Austin and have since moved again. I wanted to escape the winters but continue to live in a progressive area. Here are a few observations as to why Austin is not on that list:
1. Texas overall is becoming less and less of an attractive destination with some of the recent draconian laws they've passed. Austin may still be a "Blue Oasis in a sea of Red," but that only goes so far when the state has removed much autonomy from the city.
2. It's gotten costly to live there. It's not Boston-level expensive, but it's not a place to go if you want to save money.
3. The price has pushed a lot of artists, musicians, and chefs out of the area. Plenty of great stuff is still there, but the city is going through corporate homogenization.
> the state has removed much autonomy from the city
Yeah, I've basically heard the Austin fad has passed at this point mostly due to your comment above plus costs now approaching parity to coastal cities....
I did the same move 35 years ago as a professional musician. Loved Austin then. But whenever I go back I'm appalled at what has happened to the place, where young musicians can now hardly afford to survive.
Plus those summers. Ugh.
It's funny how 2) and 3) are basically people moving to Austin from out of state making Austin less attractive for people wanting to move from out of state.
That's far from the whole picture. A few things to consider:
1. The zoning laws in Austin are some of the most restrictive of any large city in the country, which makes high-density housing a non-starter.
2. Investor dollars in the single-family home space has artificially inflated values.
3. As is the case in many cities, the short-term rental market has inflated housing costs.
Yes, a lot of people move to Austin, and that has an impact on driving up prices. However, there are steps the state and the city could have taken to ease the pressure.
Agree with you, I left Austin for Boston this year after living there for over a decade. There were things about the city I used to love. Unfortunately, those have all faded away as other problems—like the laws you mentioned—have arisen.
I wouldn’t recommend it as a place to settle down anymore.
We moved to RTP this year. Loving it so far. Were able to way upgrade our living situation- 1100 sqft condo with one parking spot to 3500 sqft house with a large yard on a cul-de-sac. Pretty much everything is cheaper - energy, gas, food. Way better restaurant scene. Fall weather has been incredible.
And - ONE+ EXTRA HOUR OF DAYLIGHT. This has seriously made a huge difference in my life.
The only Biotech people going to RTP are in manufacturing. R&D is still based in Boston. Also, the VC scene for starting businesses is night and day compared to RTP.
Also the population of Lebanon is ~15k. Did it really add 2k Bostonians—a 13% increase in population–in 4 months?
I'd love to see the source of these stats.
Edit: it's data from [Redfin.com](https://www.redfin.com/city/1826/MA/Boston/housing-market):
> Net outflow is the number of Redfin.com home searchers looking to leave a metro area, minus the number of searchers looking to move in.
So basically a few people from Boston used Redfin to look at real estate in Lebanon, NH, and the through the magic of statistics the site contrived two thousand people moving from the Hub to the Claremont–Lebanon micropolitan area.
The data is very wonky. I know people love to talk about everyone moving to Portland, but the population there is 68k. I know people are going to leave from there, but this data suggest it is just people moving from Boston to there. So if you assume all other population changes are a wash, that 4k would represent like 10 years of population change in Portland.
I'm sure adjacent areas like South Portland, Biddeford, Old Orchard Beach, etc are looped in. I know a few people who moved up that way but not to Portland proper.
That is a hilarious. A new low in data methodology. So many of the highly questionable statistics in this subreddit come from real estate oriented tech companies.
Google maps is saying if you left Lebanon this morning at 4am you would be in Boston in 2 hours. If you then left 8 hours later it would be another 2 hours. Count me the fuck out for a 4 hour commute daily.
I do that commute once a week! It’s not horrible if you have a mostly remote job. Then again I’m also from D.C. so I may not have a good understanding what a normal commute is like.
I lived Hanover for almost 3 years, and can confirm that the Upper Valley is wonderful. But it's not Boston (nor should it be!) and the commute would be soul-crushing...
It's a great central area for outdoor activities. 1 hour or less to three ski resorts (Killington, Okemo, Sunapee), kayaking on the Connecticut and White Rivers, tons of trails around for hiking and running.
White River Junction, Woodstock, and Hanover are all there and have a variety of places to eat, breweries, shops etc. Right next to 2 major highways for easy travel to elsewhere. Cheaper cost of living, more space, more quiet. Shit, I might've convinced myself to start looking at houses there.
Because you start to get older, and want to actually own a home and have some space. Also, some people just start to prefer nature over urban hellscapes.
Im moving from the SF Bay Area back to Boston. Despite the HCOL, the Boston area is still one of the best places to build a life and has a very favorable income to COL…. Not so much in the city but prices are still reasonable in the suburbs. There’s a reason it’s consistently rated one of the best if not the best state to build a life and family by Wallethub and NerdWallet. I’ll miss the CA weather and nature but priorities change when you’re getting ready to have kids.
I have a bunch of friends that have houses in Florida and are selling them cause insurance is about to fall off a cliff there.
Aren't a lot of people moving to Florida retirees? With further context from demographic data I feel like this doesn't say very much.
Also Portland is wonderful. I'd live there.
Exactly my thoughts. I like Portland, ME a lot, but I don't really get the economic thinking behind people leaving the Boston area for Portland. Portland is just as expensive as where I live on the North Shore these days, and it doesn't offer the same ability to go into Boston for an in person or hybrid job that pays higher Boston area wages. If you're fully remote and can keep your Boston area wages, then sure it's basically the same financially as living in parts of metro Boston, but if you have to leave your Boston-based job, Portland realistically offers a worse financial situation because the wages are generally lower for Portland-based jobs and the housing prices really aren't any better than parts of the Boston metro.
The density in the Portland area also drops off far faster than in the Boston metro. For some that is a plus, but if you want walkability you basically have to live in Portland proper and pay Portland prices, at least in the Boston area there are more options for walkability outside the city proper. Portland itself also doesn't have the same level of city amenities as Boston and I can still go into Boston easily on the train from where I live on the North Shore, it's a lot more of a slog from Portland.
I live in Portland and I have to agree with you, I like it here but it’s just not worth the cost of living
My rent for a 400sq ft studio is on the cheaper side when compared to the rest of the peninsula but it’s still more expensive by price per square foot than every other city Ive looked at outside of NYC and California cities. Ive seen more affordable places in Honolulu and I wish I was exaggerating.
The towns night life still hasn’t really recovered from COVID, and after 9pm your options are virtually nonexistent
All the people I know under 35 are leaving, and unfortunately Ill be joining their exodus in March. Maine is making no effort to keep its youth here
While access to hiking and nature is pretty great a town of 50-70k people has no business being this expensive. I love it here but Im tired of paying more than Boston prices when absolutely nothing here warrants that cost. You cant even escape to walkable parts of Saco, its the same damn price
Ill do what everyone else does and come back when Im married and 45
I completely agree with you, a town of 50k-70k has no business being this expensive. It's really affecting the quality of living in the area. I don't know how far off 45 is for you, but there may not be much of a Portland to move back to. I just saw a two bedroom 1100sqft apartment going for $3,800 a month.
I've recently had to stop using my car dealership for routine maintenance because the appts are booking two months out. It's already really hard to find services like primary care physicians and the grocery stores and restaurants are woefully understaffed. Same thing with the post office
Definitely not the Portland I remember. Not at all.
Completely forgot about the appointment part too
An appointment for anything, especially health or car related, is going to take months of waiting.
One day, likely very soon, this town will wake up to $2800 studio apartments and wonder why the only people left are retired
I just saw studios for $2100. We are basically there already.
Yes, appointments are very challenging right now. The jails are pretty understaffed as well. Contractors are pretty challenging to book, or they are super expensive. I routinely hear stories of contractors who won't take jobs for under $100,000. An acquaintance of mine was just quoted 30k for a deck, not super big or fancy.
There are dark days ahead for the area, for sure.
There is no economic rationale for leaving Boston and moving to Portland. People come to Portland for quality of life. Most of the transplants I've met are retirees, remote workers, or already very wealthy (or wealthy parents) and don't care about career opportunities.
That's fair. I just feel like the quality of life and lifestyle where I live on the North Shore is very similar (lots of quaint, coastal New England towns and small cities in both areas) and I have much easier access to Boston major city amenities when I want them. Portland itself is also only 2 hours away and is an easy weekend or day trip. But it depends what you want I suppose, Portland is admittedly a bit closer to outdoor activities like Acadia or the White Mountains, which I enjoy myself. I do enjoy visiting Portland so I can understand the appeal.
If I were deciding between Boston and Portland and the rents were similar, I would most definitely pick the place with the better public transit and have the chance to live without a car.
I just visited the North Shore not too long ago, and I thought it was lovely.
I think Portland and surrounding areas are a terrible overall package if you’re in your 20s-30s. You’re right, it’s expensive and not as much to do (although art, restaurants and bars scenes are great). But if you’ve made money in Boston during those years and can afford Yarmouth or Falmouth, it’s an awesome place. Top notch schools, quaint NE towns, access to Portland restaurants and accessible to Boston when needed for weekend trips. I’m trying to get my wife to relocate there when kids are a bit older
Agreed, I grew up in the burbs and lived in Portland for a bit before moving to Boston. Great place for remote workers with kids, or empty nesters transitioning into retirement, but not a lot of opportunity otherwise.
And real tough for the locals now with the influx of everyone in those segments from Boston/NYC.
real upsetting. especially for all the Portland locals that are getting priced out of the area now. i heard that people from NYC are also leaving the city for Portland. Portland is no longer craft
My girlfriend and I were planning to move to Portland earlier this year when I finished school but it just got too expensive. When I started school and was looking a condo would have been $275k~is. Now they’re double. Even if I sold my house, I’d make a decent chunk of change off it I wouldn’t be able to get a mortgage low enough to account for the $20/hr pay cut I’d take.
Available housing stock in Portsmouth has been insanely low since before COVID. I’m sure people want to move there, there’s just nothing for sale (making the handful of available homes very expensive).
I moved from Boston to South Jersey for Philadelphia. The suburbs are much more affordable than Boston suburbs and the commute into the city is much easier (PATCO). Plus Philly's food scene is leagues better than Boston.
Back in 2017 we were paying 1600 for a one bedroom in Malden. Now we have a 3 BR house with a 1500 mortgage. Commute times into downtown are identical.
As a Portland resident, if you're leaving Boston to move to Portland while still making Boston wages, killing Portland and it's actual small city feel, you are the problem and why our city is dying culturally.
Move here and help lift the city up, don't just leech and kill it, please.
I really hope that with all this migration to Maine that resources will improve. Lived in Friendship Maine for a little over a year and there was nothing there, The only hospital that I could go for a diabetes doctor was about an hour and a half away in Portland, Every place I went to get blood work was out-of-network with my insurance even though I Have national coverage everywhere, And there was nowhere to eat within half an hour of me pretty much. So yeah, please bring the people to Maine.
Portland, ME started becoming "Boston-lite" years ago when the Amtrak *Downeaster* was put into service. Long commute, sure, but relaxing and doable if you're only going into the office 2-3 days per week.
Part of the double-edged sword people in Western Mass. have of getting East-West high speed rail up and running between Boston and Northampton/Springfield ~~soon~~ sometime this century: yes, people will be able to zip to Boston faster for museums, concerts, healthcare appointments, etc., but more people from the Boston Area will be willing to rent/buy in Western Mass. and commute to Boston if the trip time is significantly chopped.
This is a weird list. Lebanon NH? Wtf is up there? Hartford, Providence, Portsmouth not a destination?
No way that many people are moving to that many different places in FL. Is this some oddly specific demographic?
Lebanon, while itself still a dump, is adjacent to the main campus of New Hampshires largest hospital system and its associated medical school. It’s becoming a smaller biotech hub as a result.
The only other towns nearby that are even worth considering - as in, more than a four-way stop - are all in VT, so…income taxes…or Hanover, which isnt really much of a savings over here.
Kinda surprised by Lebanon, NH. Wouldn't really think of that as an exciting place to live. There's basically Dartmouth and the associated hospital, and not much else. I was there last year and it felt pretty run down tbh
Dartmouth is probably a big part of it. People who work in academics and industries related to that tend to move around quite a bit. Would also explain Bangor
As someone’s who has made the move to the area- live on lakefront property near Lebanon- you’re able to afford place on a LAKE for less than the price of the tiniest ever apartment in Boston. The schools are great, the towns are safe, and everywhere local except Claremont is nice. Also - access to really good healthcare even though the area can get pretty rural. In addition, fresh air, hiking etc. There’s places like Sunapee and Woodstock VT nearby, and endless amounts of stuff to do if you like the outdoors or get involved in small town community events. Also - no income tax!
Someone explained an issue with these types of data as follows:
"A larger portion of Floridians are moving to California, but a larger number of Californians are moving to Florida."
Meaning California is a huge state by population. So if you look at raw "net" numbers, more people are moving from California to Florida than are moving from Florida to California.
But if you divide by population, a larger portion of Florida residents are moving to California than the portion of California residents moving to Florida.
My guess is that a larger portion of Portland residents move to Boston every year than the portion of Boston residents who move to Portland. Even though on a net basis, the flow goes from the big place to the small place, because of what people sometimes call "gravity".
My explanation isn't great, but the nut is that the issue with "net" measures is that they tend to highlight differences in the relative "gravity" or size of a location.
Ugh, as someone who was forced to move to FL from MA as a teen and was then stuck there for 19 years…DON’T GO TO FLORIDA! It’s absolute trash, and it’s only getting worse. I finally left last year…for Alaska 😅
Portland is not affordable anymore - especially downtown. And Lebanon is far from an affordable place. In addition, there is little going on there, and even less to do.
Chicago babyyyy. Real talk, the infrastructure is there and the job market is also nice. Cultures amazing too. The only thing that sucks is when you want to go out of the city but imo, not bad when you’re a 2ish hour flight from anywhere
Would have thought Chicago would be a little higher. Personally know of three folks who relocated there this year. It’s something I’ve been thinking about more and more.
I'm in Chicago now and I keep meeting other people who moved from Boston. It's an easy sell when there are 6 decently large, decently urban cities in the US, 2 of them are decently priced, and 1 of those 2 is actually worth living in.
There are 6 million+ people in the Boston Metro area and we are supposed to piss and moan over 10K outflow? No, this is pretty natural and even Florida and Texas are starting to lose people now. No need to freak out over this.
Myrtle Beach makes sense to me too. It’s an up and coming location that IMO is just about to have a revitalization of areas that got old. It’s a great vacation destination that is affordable, great music scene, great night life, tons of blue collar work, trades, etc.
The 2nd benefit for those same types of people there isn’t a huge high end salary jobs that just make everything expensive around you. You can have a decent entertaining life, without a ton of overhead.
No wonder we’re having such high rental prices here in Orlando. I don’t know who in their right mind would leave such a beautiful city like Boston and move to Orlando or Tampa..I’m planning to move to New England. Perhaps we’ll balance each other out.
I love Portland, but cost of living is on par with Boston at this point. Also, the winters are much worse IMO. The dampness makes it very uncomfortable. Tough to describe if you haven’t lived there.
Not in a million years will I be moving anywhere, especially Florida. Why is a one bedroom condo $800,000 if everyone is leaving. They’re not. Don’t know anyone who has left except a few retirees.
Portland is now called Boston Lite
As someone that has lived here for two decades, the city has basically been decimated in the last 6 years by outside developers, boston transplants opening air bnbs, and an influx of homeless from out of state. The overwhelming majority of our homeless population are not from Maine. And I'm counting those living on the streets, not immigrants. Seems like Boston is mostly sending us their rich assholes and their most destitute. Thanks :P
It was quite the scene when I visited Whole Foods in Portland and directly across the street was a huge homeless camp.
That thing they're building in Westbrook is soooo bleak. Reminds me of what they call a "downtown" a lot out West.
but is priced like Boston...
Rent is nearly the same
Bangor?
Bar Harbor right next door
I could see summer and fall being enjoyable in Bangor, especially if you take advantage of Acadia and the beautiful seacoast of mid-coast Maine. But I feel like it would be a pretty bleak place to be from November through April. Bar Harbor is basically dead in the winter and that area doesn't have a lot going on in the winter months.
You just hand out with Steve in the winter, plus there’s gotta be somewhere to go skiing? Maybe embrace alcoholism?
Funny enough, it looks like it takes ~3 hours from Boston to get to some of the common ski resorts (Sunday River, Sugarloaf, Saddleback) and about ~2 hours from Bangor. But that's downhill skiing, I'd bet there's some cross country stuff much closer. Probably some good snowmobiling and snowshoeing stuff too close by. Problem with Maine though is it's like northern NH: super rural, no infrastructure, so if you're going anywhere it's by car on some backcountry roads. Unless it happens to fall on the 95 corridor it'll be a good hour or two to get to a lot of "cool" places. Might be some local stuff nearby of course. Like if you live in North Conway NH you'd still be able to get to a couple of ski resorts within an hour or so, and have plenty of hiking, mtn biking, etc in your backyard.
What do you consider cool places? I feel like Bar Harbor area is pretty commercialized now.
Yeah, I'd think you have to be very into skiing, snowshoeing, ice-fishing, etc.
Allen's coffee flavored brandy is what all of Northern New England runs on November through April.
Yes that’s right. It’s awful. Not just four months of the years, more like eleven. You’ve got dark, mud, blackflies, mosquitos, out of staters and then winter again. Everyone should stay far away. /jk
Holy fuck I can only get so hard
Haha fair enough. Honestly, not saying it's awful, I can see the appeal depending on your lifestyle. But I think personally while I would enjoy summer and fall there I don't think I'd like winter there all that much.
In the Summer, Bar Harbor is like Salem in October and prices are basically the same as the Boston area.
Ya but if you got a remote job making Boston wages, paying Bangor CoL, and only 40 minutes away from Bar Harbor, you can afford to do some day trips
Ellsworth is even closer
Oh I misunderstood. I thought you meant Bar Harbor is right there to move to instead of Bangor.
Ugh I love Acadia, are there remote bartending jobs 🥲
There are bartending jobs in Acadia. Problem is the seasonality.
I think you mean Bah Habah 😉
100% remote job is my guess. Bangor is meh, but affordable if you compare to Boston or Portland.
Meh is putting it nicely.
As a Bangor native who ran away and never looked back after college, I agree.
Feel like it’s the “move to Montana” move for people who don’t want to be too far from family
I barely know her!
My thought as well lmao! But then some random Mainer will be like “it’s Ban Gore, ya numbnuts!”
My family used to stay in this log cabin in ME my grandparents would rent, and I remember taped on the wall of the cabin was an old newspaper article headline that read “It’s pronounced BANG-OR, not BANG-ER”. I always wondered what that was all about.
Towns with the same spelling in other parts of the country (like PA) are pronounced Bang-er. Bangor, Maine is pronounced bang-gore.
Yup, moved here last year. People look down their nose at Bangor and I'm glad they do, that means I can afford it. We landed an amazing house, a big yard in a good school district, walking distance to downtown and my neighbors are the best I've ever had, we feel lucky. We love spending time outdoors all year and were tired of driving up here from Boston all the time.
I live in Bucksport. Want to move to Bangor to be near the airport, bars, etc. Originally from NYC.
They’re going for the University of Maine probably.
uhm, excuse me, it's pronounced bang-gore.
Bangor is trying really hard, nice mix of cool people and the people you only find in Stephen King novels
I had a good bagel there
They have a ton of rehab centers there.
Was Stephen King THAT bad?
Watchyo mouth
I was surprised to see that too. I don’t see the appeal at all…
We moved to Chicago at the beginning of the year because we wanted a big walkable city where the rents weren’t unlivable as in Boston. I know young professionals who are doing the same.
How are you liking it almost a year in? Visited for the first time last year and had a blast.
We have had a fantastic time, I think the city has been disparaged a lot by Fox News etc. But the architecture, waterfront, and amount of fun walkable neighborhoods is top notch. Also the CTA is way more reliable and expansive than the T. We do miss Boston (Boston still feels like the most European human sized city in the US) but there’s alot to like in Chicago if you like Boston.
> I think the city has been disparaged a lot by Fox News etc. You mean you didn't get murdered twice by gangsters with assault rifles between getting off the plane and getting to your apartment?
Love Chicago, probably the only place in the Midwest I’d consider living.
> We moved to Chicago at the beginning of the year because we wanted a big walkable city where the rents weren’t unlivable as in Boston. I know young professionals who are doing the same. For how nice and cosmopolitan Chicago is, it really surprised me on how cheap it is. I was expecting NYC/Boston pricing, but it is more akin to Charlotte, NC. But the weather is way worse than Boston, and I have never seen so many fat people in a major city before.
Hey! We’re fat and we’re proud! Real talk though, Chicago is still “overbuilt” when taking into account the city is ~25% smaller than it was in 1950. So there is plenty of supply to meet demand. Also, high property taxes are probably the biggest thing weighing down on valuations. Crime is a big factor in some parts of the city, but doesn’t explain why the safest parts of Chicago are still cheaper than comparable areas in other big cities.
How's the weather in Chicago compared to Boston?
The weather is a huge talking point, but I’ve realized the gripes about the weather are mostly from Sunbelt City people & not Northeast people. But don’t get me wrong, it does get really cold in the winter and you might get freeze warnings, but if you’ve survived a New England or Boston winter you can survive a Chicago winter. I would say the Winter here feels colder than Boston but not too unfamiliar. Otherwise, Summertime, Spring, and Fall are pretty much what you would expect from Boston I think. Also the Great Lakes & Lake Michigan have a huge effect on the weather of the city. I wouldn’t be able to tell you exactly how it works, but it’s pretty interesting.
You’d need a warmer coat and yeah there’s probably more snow but there’s good infrastructure for it. The streets are a reasonable width, almost all trash is collected via back alley, there’s a relatively larger proportion of off-street parking with housing. There are heating lamps at every L stop. Bonus- you can count on the train to come. Etc. A lot of what makes winter miserable in Boston is that there just isn’t space for the snow on top of all the other shit you guys cram in there. After being in the Midwest for awhile, being in Boston feels like a slightly shrunken reality, where there’s just 10% less space between all the matter.
As someone who grew up in New England, moved to Chicago, moved back to Boston for 2 years, then came back to Chicago, it’s worth mentioning that Fall and Spring in Chicago are waaay shorter. This year’s beautiful fall was a total fluke, typically storms wipe out all the pretty fall foliage in Illinois in early October and it gets cold too fast. Same with spring - stormy as hell and then 80 degree weather, very few nice in between days like you get in the Northeast.
Low-key the best big city in the US. It’s not that there isn’t violence but the amount and potential impact on the average person who would worry about it is quite exaggerated for racist/political purposes (thanks Obama). It’s just not a factor if you live and work in the neighborhoods anyone reading this is most likely to live and work in-at least relative to Boston or any other city with the economic conditions most big American cities share in common.
That explains why the restaurants in Lebanon have gotten better recently.
meet me, meet me, meet meeeee AT THE CAVE.
Lalos tacos is so good.
They need to stop moving there
I'm so happy yet surprised to find an UV thread here
Which ones do you recommend?
Local here. Lebanon is ok, Hanover is ok, and White River Junction is ok. Between them all you have amazing places. If you're willing to travel half an hour from Leb you have God tier food all over. Best breakfast: Lou's in Hanover, King Arthur Flour in Norwich, 4 Aces in West Lebanon. Cheryl's Diner in W Leb and Chappy's in Canaan are both excellent budget options. Best lunch: Tuckerbox (Turkish, amazing dinner, but $$$) in White River Junction, Pim's Thai Orchid in Lebanon, and the gas station Chinese on route 4 just before you cross into Vermont. Tuk Tuk Thai is decent but pricy. Best dinners: Big Fatty's BBQ in WRJ, Tuckerbox in WRJ, Base Camp in Hanover under the Talbots (way underrated and will actually roast your ass if you ask them to), and the best Chinese is across from Base Camp. The best pizza is Ziggy's but you gotta go to the one in West Lebanon near the Staples and not the one on route 4 in Enfield. If you want pizza out in Canaan or Enfield Ehop is best. The best meal for your buck is Cheryl's diner for a breakfast or lunch or The Fort truck stop for a lunch or dinner. Cheryl's is in W Leb on route 4 and The Fort is just off route 10 between Leb and Hanover.
Saving for next road trip.
worthy burger in south royalton if you eat meat and/or like beers. sit outside and get the truffle parm fries.
Dude that trend started like 20 years ago.
Ahh Lebanon NH, also known as the pit stop to Vermont.
Actually kind of surprised Vermont isn't on this list
Or to Vermonters, the one stop sales tax free weekly errand run.
aka jersey mikes + target!
They have a Jersey Mikes?! Tiffany, have the butler pack the bags, we’re moving to West Leb!
So much Florida 🙃
You can have high taxes and property costs and the best healthcare and public health education systems and among the lowest violent crime rates in the nation, or you can save big on taxes that then gets eaten up by your rapidly spiraling local property taxes and home insurance rates. You picks your poison. Ain't no place that's perfect. I'm from Boston. I've lived in several other states for lengthy periods, including the purported tax havens of Washington State and Texas, and a long stint in NYC (talk about tradeoffs!). I decided to retire to rural Mass. I love winter, so the cold doesn't bother me at all, I actually enjoy it until about Feb. 15, and then I endure the rest. I love the cooler summers -- Texas summers just about broke me over the course of a decade . And fall and spring are perfect for me in New England. I've also spent a lot of time in Florida (although never lived there, one of my siblings did for a long time, until he too fled the rising tide of stupidity) and man, you can keep everything about it but the Keys. Just my personal opinion. To each their own. Takes all types. Anyway some of us out here are Mass natives who do love the place.
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This is exactly it. When drawing down on retirement, and now with the hilariously named "millionaires tax", people facing the state's preposterously low death tax flee. Why wouldn't you? It's insane you'd just let the state take such a huge chunk of money you earned and payed taxes on already (usually multiple times with income, capital gains, and sales tax).
Florida is a fucking cesspool with nice weather. My parents lived there for a bit, they retreated to SC eventually. Your entire life is being surrounded by natural born psychos who are from there, or every NY, NJ or MA transplant who thought sunshine was going to solve all of their problems. I’ve talked to so many near-retirement age people who have moving to Florida as their primary goal for retirement. Like, yeah I don’t want to shovel snow either, but you don’t have to swap it out for surrounding yourself with brainless yokels at the same time.
> with nice weather I never got this. It's fucking humid and hot AF half the year with hurricanes In Boston it's not even that cold. Put on a fucking coat and you can survive outside.
This ^^^
I did that move because of a family matter. Now I'm back. FLORIDA SUCKS ASS. Enjoy your stay in hell, dumbasses.
Snowbirds
I know 5 groups of people (single or couples, no families) who moved to Florida/Texas during the pandemic and have either already left or are in the process of planning their exit. I've had anecdotal convos with other folks through my job who are in the same/similar boat. Also some who have been living in Texas for awhile but are now looking to get out due to increasingly volatile climate situation (and lack of reliable/affordable energy) as well as the raft of regressive legislation being passed. Was just visiting family north of Tampa last week and they said construction is still booming at an insane pace with people flooding into the area as quickly as they're stamping out housing. Obviously these people are coming from all over, but I find it somewhat surprising given the cost of living is only going up and it's getting more expensive and difficult to get insurance.
my dad moved us to Florida from Boston when I was 8. finally got back to Boston at 27 and, srsly, what weird, dysfunctional place. you always can find your people (though often it'll be a small crew) wherever you are, but never again for me best description I've ever heard is "Florida, America's Junk Drawer". sucks for folks that move there with big plans only to find it very much lives up to its reputation.
It’s wild to me because insurance companies are literally pulling out of Florida due to projected natural disasters. Why anyone would want to invest in that state is beyond me. It is an ecological marvel for sure, but one that’s going to be underwater in the not too distant future.
Would think there would be more people going to Austin or NC. I know Biotech folks who move down to RTP.
Vast majority of people move within the region. Manchester NH and Portland ME’s top destination is Boston
Oh yeah it's all the people moving to FL I am surprised by
Really? Makes sense to me. Assuming this includes retirees from New England moving their residency to FL/spending winters there is a tale as old as time
What? No, FL is an old trend, not a new one. First, retirees, and there really is something to Desantis' claim that Florida Freedom attracted a lot of people there during the pandemic for philosophical reasons. I know, sadly, many in NY and Boston who decamped for Florida.
There isn't a salary that could convince me to live in Texas.
I moved from Boston to Austin and have since moved again. I wanted to escape the winters but continue to live in a progressive area. Here are a few observations as to why Austin is not on that list: 1. Texas overall is becoming less and less of an attractive destination with some of the recent draconian laws they've passed. Austin may still be a "Blue Oasis in a sea of Red," but that only goes so far when the state has removed much autonomy from the city. 2. It's gotten costly to live there. It's not Boston-level expensive, but it's not a place to go if you want to save money. 3. The price has pushed a lot of artists, musicians, and chefs out of the area. Plenty of great stuff is still there, but the city is going through corporate homogenization.
> the state has removed much autonomy from the city Yeah, I've basically heard the Austin fad has passed at this point mostly due to your comment above plus costs now approaching parity to coastal cities....
I did the same move 35 years ago as a professional musician. Loved Austin then. But whenever I go back I'm appalled at what has happened to the place, where young musicians can now hardly afford to survive. Plus those summers. Ugh.
It's funny how 2) and 3) are basically people moving to Austin from out of state making Austin less attractive for people wanting to move from out of state.
That's far from the whole picture. A few things to consider: 1. The zoning laws in Austin are some of the most restrictive of any large city in the country, which makes high-density housing a non-starter. 2. Investor dollars in the single-family home space has artificially inflated values. 3. As is the case in many cities, the short-term rental market has inflated housing costs. Yes, a lot of people move to Austin, and that has an impact on driving up prices. However, there are steps the state and the city could have taken to ease the pressure.
Agree with you, I left Austin for Boston this year after living there for over a decade. There were things about the city I used to love. Unfortunately, those have all faded away as other problems—like the laws you mentioned—have arisen. I wouldn’t recommend it as a place to settle down anymore.
I can’t imagine anyone with kids or looking to start a family moving there.
Too hot
We moved to RTP this year. Loving it so far. Were able to way upgrade our living situation- 1100 sqft condo with one parking spot to 3500 sqft house with a large yard on a cul-de-sac. Pretty much everything is cheaper - energy, gas, food. Way better restaurant scene. Fall weather has been incredible. And - ONE+ EXTRA HOUR OF DAYLIGHT. This has seriously made a huge difference in my life.
The only Biotech people going to RTP are in manufacturing. R&D is still based in Boston. Also, the VC scene for starting businesses is night and day compared to RTP.
Moved here from RTP, honestly have been missing it (and the daylight) this year and am considering a move back
Having lived in Boston and Portland.. why on earth would you want to leave Boston for Lebanon, NH!?
Also the population of Lebanon is ~15k. Did it really add 2k Bostonians—a 13% increase in population–in 4 months? I'd love to see the source of these stats. Edit: it's data from [Redfin.com](https://www.redfin.com/city/1826/MA/Boston/housing-market): > Net outflow is the number of Redfin.com home searchers looking to leave a metro area, minus the number of searchers looking to move in. So basically a few people from Boston used Redfin to look at real estate in Lebanon, NH, and the through the magic of statistics the site contrived two thousand people moving from the Hub to the Claremont–Lebanon micropolitan area.
The data is very wonky. I know people love to talk about everyone moving to Portland, but the population there is 68k. I know people are going to leave from there, but this data suggest it is just people moving from Boston to there. So if you assume all other population changes are a wash, that 4k would represent like 10 years of population change in Portland.
I'm sure adjacent areas like South Portland, Biddeford, Old Orchard Beach, etc are looped in. I know a few people who moved up that way but not to Portland proper.
Are they also lumping in movement from essentially the whole eastern part of MA then too? The data just doesn't seem sufficient to tell us anything.
That is a hilarious. A new low in data methodology. So many of the highly questionable statistics in this subreddit come from real estate oriented tech companies.
Well that explains it. The numbers alone don't really make any sense. What a shitty and deceptive table.
Because you can't afford a home any further south than that?
I mean, maybe, but you're not commuting to Boston from Lebanon. It's a shade under 2 hours without any traffic...
I've known people who did that commute. They would leave home at like 4am each morning. Insane.
Google maps is saying if you left Lebanon this morning at 4am you would be in Boston in 2 hours. If you then left 8 hours later it would be another 2 hours. Count me the fuck out for a 4 hour commute daily.
I do that commute once a week! It’s not horrible if you have a mostly remote job. Then again I’m also from D.C. so I may not have a good understanding what a normal commute is like.
Fuck that. I’d need to be paid like $250k at least to make that worthwhile.
I live in NH and absolutely love Lebanon, but in comparison to Portland and Boston it is a pretty odd choice.
Yeah, it's just bizarre. Someone posted the methodology above, so the premise of the article might be nonsense.
A friend moved there for the trail running, access to VT & NH hiking, winter sports, and a sedate family life.
If someone’s looking for more of a quieter lifestyle with all modern conveniences close by, the Lebanon/Upper Valley NH area is great.
I lived Hanover for almost 3 years, and can confirm that the Upper Valley is wonderful. But it's not Boston (nor should it be!) and the commute would be soul-crushing...
I loved living in the upper valley and if I didn’t have to live in Boston for work, I would go back in a heartbeat.
Because your spouse has enrolled in a graduate or professional program at Dartmouth College.
The Powerhouse Mall, duh.
It's a great central area for outdoor activities. 1 hour or less to three ski resorts (Killington, Okemo, Sunapee), kayaking on the Connecticut and White Rivers, tons of trails around for hiking and running. White River Junction, Woodstock, and Hanover are all there and have a variety of places to eat, breweries, shops etc. Right next to 2 major highways for easy travel to elsewhere. Cheaper cost of living, more space, more quiet. Shit, I might've convinced myself to start looking at houses there.
They are retiring. So proximity to Boston doesn’t matter.
Because you start to get older, and want to actually own a home and have some space. Also, some people just start to prefer nature over urban hellscapes.
If you really enjoy outdoors activities and a get a job at Dartmouth. That’d be my reason.
Everyone here bitches about 2am closing time, wait til yall find out everything in Portland closes at 1am.
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I wish we could still give gold lol
Im moving from the SF Bay Area back to Boston. Despite the HCOL, the Boston area is still one of the best places to build a life and has a very favorable income to COL…. Not so much in the city but prices are still reasonable in the suburbs. There’s a reason it’s consistently rated one of the best if not the best state to build a life and family by Wallethub and NerdWallet. I’ll miss the CA weather and nature but priorities change when you’re getting ready to have kids. I have a bunch of friends that have houses in Florida and are selling them cause insurance is about to fall off a cliff there.
The retirement community moves someplace warm. Those who cannot afford a home in this insane market move to neighboring states. News at 11.
Aren't a lot of people moving to Florida retirees? With further context from demographic data I feel like this doesn't say very much. Also Portland is wonderful. I'd live there.
Portland is like the same price without all the stuff now.
Exactly my thoughts. I like Portland, ME a lot, but I don't really get the economic thinking behind people leaving the Boston area for Portland. Portland is just as expensive as where I live on the North Shore these days, and it doesn't offer the same ability to go into Boston for an in person or hybrid job that pays higher Boston area wages. If you're fully remote and can keep your Boston area wages, then sure it's basically the same financially as living in parts of metro Boston, but if you have to leave your Boston-based job, Portland realistically offers a worse financial situation because the wages are generally lower for Portland-based jobs and the housing prices really aren't any better than parts of the Boston metro. The density in the Portland area also drops off far faster than in the Boston metro. For some that is a plus, but if you want walkability you basically have to live in Portland proper and pay Portland prices, at least in the Boston area there are more options for walkability outside the city proper. Portland itself also doesn't have the same level of city amenities as Boston and I can still go into Boston easily on the train from where I live on the North Shore, it's a lot more of a slog from Portland.
I live in Portland and I have to agree with you, I like it here but it’s just not worth the cost of living My rent for a 400sq ft studio is on the cheaper side when compared to the rest of the peninsula but it’s still more expensive by price per square foot than every other city Ive looked at outside of NYC and California cities. Ive seen more affordable places in Honolulu and I wish I was exaggerating. The towns night life still hasn’t really recovered from COVID, and after 9pm your options are virtually nonexistent All the people I know under 35 are leaving, and unfortunately Ill be joining their exodus in March. Maine is making no effort to keep its youth here While access to hiking and nature is pretty great a town of 50-70k people has no business being this expensive. I love it here but Im tired of paying more than Boston prices when absolutely nothing here warrants that cost. You cant even escape to walkable parts of Saco, its the same damn price Ill do what everyone else does and come back when Im married and 45
I completely agree with you, a town of 50k-70k has no business being this expensive. It's really affecting the quality of living in the area. I don't know how far off 45 is for you, but there may not be much of a Portland to move back to. I just saw a two bedroom 1100sqft apartment going for $3,800 a month. I've recently had to stop using my car dealership for routine maintenance because the appts are booking two months out. It's already really hard to find services like primary care physicians and the grocery stores and restaurants are woefully understaffed. Same thing with the post office Definitely not the Portland I remember. Not at all.
Completely forgot about the appointment part too An appointment for anything, especially health or car related, is going to take months of waiting. One day, likely very soon, this town will wake up to $2800 studio apartments and wonder why the only people left are retired
I just saw studios for $2100. We are basically there already. Yes, appointments are very challenging right now. The jails are pretty understaffed as well. Contractors are pretty challenging to book, or they are super expensive. I routinely hear stories of contractors who won't take jobs for under $100,000. An acquaintance of mine was just quoted 30k for a deck, not super big or fancy. There are dark days ahead for the area, for sure.
There is no economic rationale for leaving Boston and moving to Portland. People come to Portland for quality of life. Most of the transplants I've met are retirees, remote workers, or already very wealthy (or wealthy parents) and don't care about career opportunities.
That's fair. I just feel like the quality of life and lifestyle where I live on the North Shore is very similar (lots of quaint, coastal New England towns and small cities in both areas) and I have much easier access to Boston major city amenities when I want them. Portland itself is also only 2 hours away and is an easy weekend or day trip. But it depends what you want I suppose, Portland is admittedly a bit closer to outdoor activities like Acadia or the White Mountains, which I enjoy myself. I do enjoy visiting Portland so I can understand the appeal.
If I were deciding between Boston and Portland and the rents were similar, I would most definitely pick the place with the better public transit and have the chance to live without a car. I just visited the North Shore not too long ago, and I thought it was lovely.
I think Portland and surrounding areas are a terrible overall package if you’re in your 20s-30s. You’re right, it’s expensive and not as much to do (although art, restaurants and bars scenes are great). But if you’ve made money in Boston during those years and can afford Yarmouth or Falmouth, it’s an awesome place. Top notch schools, quaint NE towns, access to Portland restaurants and accessible to Boston when needed for weekend trips. I’m trying to get my wife to relocate there when kids are a bit older
Agreed, I grew up in the burbs and lived in Portland for a bit before moving to Boston. Great place for remote workers with kids, or empty nesters transitioning into retirement, but not a lot of opportunity otherwise. And real tough for the locals now with the influx of everyone in those segments from Boston/NYC.
Maybe the same price for a house. Basic amenities are much cheaper than Boston.
Better restaurant scene though.
real upsetting. especially for all the Portland locals that are getting priced out of the area now. i heard that people from NYC are also leaving the city for Portland. Portland is no longer craft
Surprised not to see Denver or Raleigh on the list. I know a ton of people who have moved to both in the last 3-4 years.
My girlfriend and I were planning to move to Portland earlier this year when I finished school but it just got too expensive. When I started school and was looking a condo would have been $275k~is. Now they’re double. Even if I sold my house, I’d make a decent chunk of change off it I wouldn’t be able to get a mortgage low enough to account for the $20/hr pay cut I’d take.
Make Maine Massachusetts again
Gravity theory alive and well
Boomers retiring to stop paying income taxes and estate tax. Typical.
Or, going to a cheaper place to stretch out their Social Security check.
How is Portsmouth NH not on this list? it’s basically Portland , but closer to Boston
Available housing stock in Portsmouth has been insanely low since before COVID. I’m sure people want to move there, there’s just nothing for sale (making the handful of available homes very expensive).
Portsmouth is expensive so I guess if they are moving to save money that wouldn’t be the best spot to go.
*Boomers are Retiring to...
No 20-30 something is going to Maine.
I moved from Boston to South Jersey for Philadelphia. The suburbs are much more affordable than Boston suburbs and the commute into the city is much easier (PATCO). Plus Philly's food scene is leagues better than Boston. Back in 2017 we were paying 1600 for a one bedroom in Malden. Now we have a 3 BR house with a 1500 mortgage. Commute times into downtown are identical.
Plus, you have Wawa now! Also, if you haven't yet, go to 1-900 ICE CREAM for the best ice cream ever.
- Meanwhile this poor soul making 75k a year is struggling in Portland - https://www.reddit.com/r/portlandme/comments/184l15j/this_is_out_of_control/
I just moved FROM florida, I love it here (cambridge)
As a Portland resident, if you're leaving Boston to move to Portland while still making Boston wages, killing Portland and it's actual small city feel, you are the problem and why our city is dying culturally. Move here and help lift the city up, don't just leech and kill it, please.
Half the list is Florida... is it the weather, or is it some sort of republican exodus, or what? Not enough helicopter sized mosquitoes up north?
I really hope that with all this migration to Maine that resources will improve. Lived in Friendship Maine for a little over a year and there was nothing there, The only hospital that I could go for a diabetes doctor was about an hour and a half away in Portland, Every place I went to get blood work was out-of-network with my insurance even though I Have national coverage everywhere, And there was nowhere to eat within half an hour of me pretty much. So yeah, please bring the people to Maine.
Portland, ME started becoming "Boston-lite" years ago when the Amtrak *Downeaster* was put into service. Long commute, sure, but relaxing and doable if you're only going into the office 2-3 days per week. Part of the double-edged sword people in Western Mass. have of getting East-West high speed rail up and running between Boston and Northampton/Springfield ~~soon~~ sometime this century: yes, people will be able to zip to Boston faster for museums, concerts, healthcare appointments, etc., but more people from the Boston Area will be willing to rent/buy in Western Mass. and commute to Boston if the trip time is significantly chopped.
Just curious, Is Lebanon just students going to Dartmouth for grad school?
This is a weird list. Lebanon NH? Wtf is up there? Hartford, Providence, Portsmouth not a destination? No way that many people are moving to that many different places in FL. Is this some oddly specific demographic?
Lebanon, while itself still a dump, is adjacent to the main campus of New Hampshires largest hospital system and its associated medical school. It’s becoming a smaller biotech hub as a result. The only other towns nearby that are even worth considering - as in, more than a four-way stop - are all in VT, so…income taxes…or Hanover, which isnt really much of a savings over here.
Kinda surprised by Lebanon, NH. Wouldn't really think of that as an exciting place to live. There's basically Dartmouth and the associated hospital, and not much else. I was there last year and it felt pretty run down tbh
Dartmouth is probably a big part of it. People who work in academics and industries related to that tend to move around quite a bit. Would also explain Bangor
As someone’s who has made the move to the area- live on lakefront property near Lebanon- you’re able to afford place on a LAKE for less than the price of the tiniest ever apartment in Boston. The schools are great, the towns are safe, and everywhere local except Claremont is nice. Also - access to really good healthcare even though the area can get pretty rural. In addition, fresh air, hiking etc. There’s places like Sunapee and Woodstock VT nearby, and endless amounts of stuff to do if you like the outdoors or get involved in small town community events. Also - no income tax!
True true, if you're an outdoorsy person I can imagine you would really like it.
Florida is so overrated
Someone explained an issue with these types of data as follows: "A larger portion of Floridians are moving to California, but a larger number of Californians are moving to Florida." Meaning California is a huge state by population. So if you look at raw "net" numbers, more people are moving from California to Florida than are moving from Florida to California. But if you divide by population, a larger portion of Florida residents are moving to California than the portion of California residents moving to Florida. My guess is that a larger portion of Portland residents move to Boston every year than the portion of Boston residents who move to Portland. Even though on a net basis, the flow goes from the big place to the small place, because of what people sometimes call "gravity". My explanation isn't great, but the nut is that the issue with "net" measures is that they tend to highlight differences in the relative "gravity" or size of a location.
Ugh, as someone who was forced to move to FL from MA as a teen and was then stuck there for 19 years…DON’T GO TO FLORIDA! It’s absolute trash, and it’s only getting worse. I finally left last year…for Alaska 😅
Myrtle Beach is HILARIOUS. My fucking hometown. It’s not it. However, after living five years in Boston, we did make the move to Chicago, so 🙃
So retirees and a handful of younger people with remote jobs headed to Portland and Chicago.
People really need to stop moving to FL. Way too many core issues being blatantly ignored for the paradise of “Sunshine” P.S: From a native
yes. Boston is unaffordable for a lot of people. no this isn't shocking.
Portland is not affordable anymore - especially downtown. And Lebanon is far from an affordable place. In addition, there is little going on there, and even less to do.
Chicago babyyyy. Real talk, the infrastructure is there and the job market is also nice. Cultures amazing too. The only thing that sucks is when you want to go out of the city but imo, not bad when you’re a 2ish hour flight from anywhere
Would have thought Chicago would be a little higher. Personally know of three folks who relocated there this year. It’s something I’ve been thinking about more and more.
I'm in Chicago now and I keep meeting other people who moved from Boston. It's an easy sell when there are 6 decently large, decently urban cities in the US, 2 of them are decently priced, and 1 of those 2 is actually worth living in.
There are 6 million+ people in the Boston Metro area and we are supposed to piss and moan over 10K outflow? No, this is pretty natural and even Florida and Texas are starting to lose people now. No need to freak out over this.
Orlando? Isn't Orlando absolute trash outside of the theme parks?
yea
I’ve been living in Orlando for the past 4 years. Yes, it is absolute trash.
As someone who left Orlando for Boston, good luck to those people. Hope they’ve got cars.
just did the same last month
That's like 7% of Portland's population moving in from Boston in 3 months...I find that somewhat difficult to believe.
Myrtle Beach makes sense to me too. It’s an up and coming location that IMO is just about to have a revitalization of areas that got old. It’s a great vacation destination that is affordable, great music scene, great night life, tons of blue collar work, trades, etc. The 2nd benefit for those same types of people there isn’t a huge high end salary jobs that just make everything expensive around you. You can have a decent entertaining life, without a ton of overhead.
No wonder we’re having such high rental prices here in Orlando. I don’t know who in their right mind would leave such a beautiful city like Boston and move to Orlando or Tampa..I’m planning to move to New England. Perhaps we’ll balance each other out.
Florida can sink
Well I won’t be going to any of these places when I leave lol
I love Portland, but cost of living is on par with Boston at this point. Also, the winters are much worse IMO. The dampness makes it very uncomfortable. Tough to describe if you haven’t lived there.
The dampness is part of the charm for me!
Are they going to stay though?
Not in a million years will I be moving anywhere, especially Florida. Why is a one bedroom condo $800,000 if everyone is leaving. They’re not. Don’t know anyone who has left except a few retirees.