"It's a real struggle to afford housing these days, especially when all the prices are geared towards households with two+ incomes. It leaves people like me stranded with no options, other than living in a car in a Walmart parking lot or a highway rest stop, which is what I've resorted to doing since leaving my apartment. This is not how a hardworking person should be forced to live. It's disgusting to see all these new houses being built, with price tags ranging from $450,000 to several million dollars. Meanwhile, someone like me, who's bringing in $900 a week and has excellent credit, can't even get a mortgage for more than $275,000. And even if I miraculously find a house within that price range, the mortgage payments alone would deplete nearly half of my income, which is far from the recommended 30%."

— Michael, 40, Exeter

"Having grown up here in New Hampshire, I looked forward to raising my own children here. However, our state’s shortage of affordable housing has made it difficult for my family to live here in the Granite State. My partner and I have been trying to buy a home since 2018 but it’s been very difficult to find anything suitable in our price range. We’ve put in 6 offers and 4 have been beaten by cash offers alone. Because we haven’t been able to find any stable, affordable housing, we’ve had to resort to living in seasonal housing during the off-season and moving out for vacationers and living with our parents. Our struggle to find a home has put a big strain on my marriage. At this point, we are considering leaving New Hampshire so that we can find a stable place to call home and raise our children."

— Anonymous, 39, Upper Valley

"I was excited to move up to the North Country after getting a new job in Lincoln. Unfortunately, because of the area’s severe housing shortage, it took me a long time to find a home I could afford. For months, I was forced to commute for four hours a day for work, while desperately looking for a new place. It shouldn’t be this hard for young, hard working Granite Staters to find a place to call home! We desperately need more affordable housing so that young people can live, work + thrive in the North Country."

— Katie, 29, Littleton

“I’ve personally experienced the consequences of New Hampshire’s housing shortage. I ended up unhoused in the winter while I had a full time job making snow at a ski resort. I had enough income to afford rent but simply couldn’t find any available rentals in my area because of the shortage. As a result, I had to live in a tent on and off for a while because there were no options for housing in my area. It is outrageous that New Hampshire’s housing shortage is so severe that even people working full time cannot find stable housing. Something really needs to change about how we address the housing crisis in this state because we simply cannot go on like this.”

— Ally, 25, Center Conway

"My family and I have experienced first hand the very real consequences of New Hampshire’s housing and cost of living crisis. My sister’s ex and their son have not been able to find any affordable homes in the Lakes Region and, as a result, have been living with me and my husband for the last 9 months. This living situation has put a real strain on my whole family, including my nephew, who deserves a permanent place to call home. New Hampshire’s high cost of housing, childcare, and utilities is making it impossible for single parents to make ends meet. For the sake of our families and children, we need more affordable housing and childcare in the Lakes Region and all over the Granite State."

— Eliza, 29, Franklin

"After graduating from college in Tennessee I was excited to move back home to New Hampshire, where my family lives. I grew up in Portsmouth and looked forward to returning to its accepting, inclusive environment there, where I feel safe as a person of color and member of the LGBTQIA+ community. However, the housing crisis has made it impossible for me to find housing here. The shortage of housing in New Hampshire combined with the super expensive rent makes it really hard for young people to find any affordable housing. Sadly, at this point, I’m questioning if it’s even worth returning to New Hampshire because I honestly don’t think I will be able to find anywhere to live. I think I might have to stay here in Tennessee, where it is easier to find housing but it is also considerably more dangerous for people of color and the LGBTQIA+ community. I shouldn’t have to be choosing between living somewhere I can find housing and living somewhere where I feel safe and accepted."

— Bella, 21

"Plenty of people including myself have grown kids living with them due the housing shortage. I have my son his girlfriend and my grandson living with me in an apartment. The rent is out of control I believe that rentals should be offered to established NH residents before they all get gobbled up from people moving in from Massachusetts and the trip state area."

— Jodie

"I was renting a house in Bethlehem, NH. The owner of the house decided to sell and gave me 17 days to get of the house. That was in February of last year. Now I am living in my car and cannot get an apartment where I can afford the rent."

— Lee, Bethlehem

"I pay an enormous amount of money just to live in a one-room studio that is a converted porch, right next to a train station. It has no closets. I went to an open house for an apartment that was over $1200/month, also with no closets; the walls and doors were basically made of cardboard, and the house smelled like cigarettes and mold. The carpets were dirty, and the walls were scuffed and stained. Six (6!) other people were there, viciously competing with each other for this expensive, dirty slum. I can't save up enough money for first, last, and security. I'm 38 and can't deal with roommates at this age. This is just becoming ridiculous."

— Kristen, 38

"I am getting kicked out of my place so he can charge more to someone else It’s getting crazy that nobody will take housing vouchers and are also complaining about the homeless population but will also be charging ridiculously for rents that people that are single parents or on SSI can’t afford."

-Tracie

"I lived out of my car from January 2021 to November 2021 because I couldn't find housing, or the housing that was available was expensive seasonal rentals. When I did find a spot, it was the size of a shed without any running water, or a stove. I lived in the shed for 1.5 years. I'm now living in an apartment but it took me until early Spring 2023 to find a place. My roommate is a manager in Settlers Green and makes more than me so they pay more of the rent. This isn't sustainable."

— Jess

"My husband John and I live in “low income housing.” He is on full time disability (well retirement now, he’s 67, a Senior) and brings in a small pension from his time in the Navy. I work full time at Walmart. We live in a three bedroom handicapped accessible apartment because my husband has multiple sclerosis. It is only my husband and our cat living in a three bedroom apartment. An apartment that could be put to better use for a bigger family, not for a couple. We have tried to downsize to a two bedroom, or even a one bedroom apartment, but these people at Keene Housing Authority say we make “too much money.” So therefore we aren’t voucher holders to help with our rent. They have told us numerous times that the only reason we are allowed to stay is because of my husband’s disability. Instead, they jack our rent up to almost $2000 a month which takes my husband’s entire disability check, and most of his Navy pension check. How is this low income housing?"

— Robin

"I am currently a full time infant/toddler teacher living on my own and paying all of my own bills including rent. I feel lucky that I make the income that I do, however I live paycheck to paycheck. I have to be very smart about how I spend my money. Otherwise, I would not have enough money for gas and enough groceries. I am very grateful to have the landlord that I do. This is the only apartment in the seacoast area that I could afford on my own. I would not be able to live in my own space if my rent were even the slightest bit higher. I don’t do any extra activities outside of work that cost me money, or even drive to see friends that live more than 10/15 min away because I cannot afford the extra gas money. I have to budget and really choose wisely on my priorities and have to save strategically for the most important ones which is how I live."

— Lauren

"I’ve stayed in a abusive relationship because of the lack of affordable housing in my area."

— Jen, Wolfeboro

"I had to wait for a voucher for 11 years, finally got it, and I’ve spent two years trying to find somewhere in our town so the kids can finish school. There’s been nothing that’s affordable and qualifies for the rules of the voucher or those that will accept it, and now I lost it because too many people need it. How about me and my family, we do too?! This is all so unfair!"

— Christina

"I want the American Dream of home ownership that even my grandparents working in factories could afford. Even condos are hard to come by. I rented below my means for a decade to save for a down payment . No matter how much I save, housing prices increase more than salaries. My Portsmouth apt and building is poorly maintained and run like a slum. In a year, my rent has been raised from $1.3K to almost $2K. Dumping $2k to predatory landlords is not financially smart. I'm in my mid 30's and still trying to establish roots, but keep getting financially pushed out of communities. I hoped to build a family by now, but financially doesn't make sense. "

— Hannah

"Two years ago I left an abusive relationship with my son's father. At the time, we were living in a 3 bedroom apartment with our then 1 year old son. Even working full time and putting my son through daycare, I could no longer afford our apartment. Since October of 2021, my 3 year old and I have been couch surfing, even living in our vehicle while I struggle to maintain a full time job and college with my son in childcare during the day. I have been on housing lists for as long as I can remember, but have not even come close to nearing the top of the list. I was rejected for even studio apartments. My income is not “low enough” to be pushed to the top but not high enough for even the cheapest of apartments. All I want is a home for my son. The rules and regulations for state help is just as bad. My vehicle payments are not considered a “necessity” which takes almost half my income, but without a vehicle, we wouldn’t have a place to sleep most of the time and I wouldn’t have a way to work. With the way the state works, they don’t count my main bills and it’s frustrating because landlords and apartment buildings DO. The system was designed against people like me. I grew up in foster care and once you leave, they dump you."

— Mariah

"My husband and myself both work fulltime and can barely afford both rent and groceries. Every month is a struggle especially with our two children. We live in a non desireable area and have bad credit and cannot afford to save money for a home in a better area due to the cost of rent. We make too much money to receive section 8 or housing assistance and food stamps, but not enough to live some place safe with enough bedrooms for ourselves and our two teenage daughters. Many people are homeless not due to lack of employment or drug or alcohol abuse as many believe, but because rent is so high"

— Christine

"I make pretty good money, I work at hypertherm, the best company in the upper valley to work at. But even then, I can’t find a 2 bed 2 bath that allows dogs in a affordable price range. I’ve been sleeping in my car during the day, and working nights, just to scrape by."

— Charles

"I'm 22 and have a job in construction but have been fighting with my living situation and have been on the streets. I can't find any homes and I'm trying to start my life"

— Dylan, 22, Keene

"I’m working full-time and a full-time nursing student. My landlord forced me into a month to month lease to raise the rent by $400/month after being with them for 7 years. I can’t afford that and I can’t afford any of the places near my job or school. It’s hard enough as it is but I’ve had to rely on friends and family to house myself and my daughter until we find something that is safe and affordable."

— Christina, Lebanon

"My husband and I have been working hard for years to be at a point to start our life with a house and family. Even with our full time jobs we cannot afford a home. This has been going on for years now. I'm starting to realize we may never have children because of this since we cannot have raise a child in a studio apartment. Our area is especially difficult because it is a resort town so there is no affordable housing since the pandemic. All the businesses nearby need workers, including my own, but there is no where for them to live."

— Rebecca, Wolfeboro

"I find myself staying in toxic situations for a place to sleep."

— Morgan, Newbury

"I’m a young professional who works full time, often taking overtime, but still cannot afford even the cheapest available apartment in NH."

— Aidan, Londonderry

"I am a single father who has been looking for a place for just myself and my son for months now, every place that seems to be "affordable" once I read the details they say I need to make atleast 2.5x or 3x the rent amount in monthly income... I am ONE PERSON, the system is setup for us single patents to fail HARD and it is crushing and defeating."

— Anonymous

"Tried to create a new one bedroom apt in our 4000+ sqft house. Nearly finished but now they state it’ll need a fire suppression system installed to pass the final. Way too much $$ for me so no rental. Expensive obstacles to creating housing in NH."

— Anonymous

"My landlord sold their house and now I have to find another place to live. It’s been 4 months with no luck. Most often I don’t meet the requirements that landlords set to rent, I don’t make 3 x the rent. Due to the special needs of my kids, the schools in low income areas are not able to educate them in the way that they need. A shelter is not a good place for them. The people who work and live at the shelter are not going to be able to accommodate my kids. "

— Casey

"We’re a family of 4, 2 adults and 2 kids . We’ve been looking for a rental. However with one income it proved impossible. We couldn’t afford the rent so now we’re being evicted. Which makes it even harder to find a place. I think NH wants everyone to be homeless . There is no low income housing accessible to most with all the lists being a 3 to 5 year waitlist."

— Courtney

"My family has lived in the same house for 11 years, which we rent from a childhood friend of my husband. Our monthly rent has not risen with the other housing around us, and we pay about half the market rate. There are no houses similar to our for rent in our area. If we had to find a new place to live, we would have to move far from our current location to find anything close to affordable. Our landlord is retiring and will soon decide the fate of the house, so we don't know if we'll still have a home in a year or two. I hope that we can buy the house, but I just finished grad school 2 years ago and really am not prepared for a mortgage. If we can't figure out a way to stay where we are, our quality of life will change drastically."

— Sean

"My last landlord retired and sold to a new landlord who tried to jack up the price over $1,000 - we were forced to leave because we were unable to afford it. Most other tenants left the building."

— Mel

"We moved to Manchester from Texas Dec 2018. Our rent was under $1,800 per month. Our apartment complex sold and every lease renewal rent goes up by $300+ a month it seems. Now in 2023 our rent is over $2,300 a month. Last year, my husband had a stroke. We renewed for only 3 months, not sure how long he would be out of work. When we renewed again, they tacked on another $150 per month, 3 months after a $250+ increase. When we complained, they told us to go to Southern New Hampshire Services, who would cover our rent, back rent, and utilities. They were eager to get us signed up and racking up the late fees to get money from the program. Given the long wait times, they earned thousands of dollars in late fees per tenant per 3 month funding cycle. I think this program ended up encouraging landlords to be greedy. Now the program is our of funds but I am stuck with high rent and no savings to move."

— Christine

"My experience looking for housing in New Hampshire has been absolutely brutal. I have been trying to buy a house because rental prices are so expensive, but have lost many bids. Between high rental prices and the outrageously competitive market, finding a home that I can afford in New Hampshire has been an endless struggle. I’ve been forced to stay in a house that I can’t afford because I have no other options. It shouldn’t be this hard for working families - like my own - to find stable, affordable housing in New Hampshire. "

— Bianca, Salem

"Right before Covid, I lost my housing and switched to living in a van full time. My local credit union refused to approve me for a small personal loan because I did not have an address to put on the application."

— EJ, Concord

"I accepted a new job and relocated to New Hampshire in early spring 2023 from central New York. I had no choice but to live in a hotel due to the lack of housing. Rent seems to be much too expensive surpassing 30% of my income. This has been preventing me from being accepted to even appear on a wait list for an apartment. The struggle to find housing is a struggle I never thought I would go through in my lifetime."

— Adrian, Concord

"My landlord is raising my rent by 60% with a 2 month notice. I am a responsible citizen with a successful career and still cannot find dog friendly housing in my price range in NH. Where are we to go? New Hampshire tenants deserve protection and affordable housing options!"

— Kim, Concord

"I work almost 60 hrs a week and struggle constantly. It's too expensive to live around here"

— Anonymous

"When I transitioned out of the Marine Corps, I had signed a lease in Riverview in Durham. They tried to up the rent on a signed contract a few days prior to my family moving there from North Carolina. We got a lawyer and eventually realized we weren't going to get the house at the agreed rate. We lucked out through word of mouth; however that was after the established system had failed to protect our rights as tenants."

— Curtis, Durham

"I have been without heat for 3 years. Now being evicted because they don’t want to fix it and cannot find a rental."

— April

"Going to have to live in a camper soon…. Can’t afford to rent an apartment anymore and I’m sure many are in the same boat"

— Anonymous

"I tried to create a new one bedroom apt in our 4000+ sqft house. It was nearly finished but now the state says it’ll need an expensive fire suppression system installed to pass the final inspection. Its far too expensive for me so now there is no rental. There are too many expensive obstacles to creating housing in NH."

— Anonymous

"As a family of 3 with two incomes we are still struggling to find something reasonable."

— Anonymous

"I’m a 30 yr old woman who works hard day in and day out and I have a job where I make decent money, but that still isn’t enough. My dream of owning a home is very uncertain and I see that among a lot of people my age. The costs to buy or rent houses and apartments right now is astronomical and nearly impossible to obtain. It’s unfair to young Granite Staters that are working hard to build our futures. How are we supposed to afford to live in our state with higher housing and rentals on top of the already growing financial pressures of inflation? There needs to be a change because our generation and generations to come can’t sustain a comfortable life with the way things are."

— Britney, Manchester

"I’m paying $1200 for a studio, that’s $1200 for a glorified room. It’s absolutely ridiculous and I’m barely able to afford it but it was the cheapest I could find."

— Anonymous

"We were forced to move out of the state. I work in healthcare and my husband and I both make over $100k/year but we could not afford to buy a house in New Hampshire, especially with the cost of child care for two small kids."

— Lauren, Lebanon

"I live in a rundown apartment with multiple health code violations. My husband and I wanted to try to foster a child last year and got an inspection, we told our landlord what needed to be fixed and nothing has been done. Recently, I asked the health inspector to come again and do a formal inspection. He sent a letter with the violations to our landlord and a few days later we got an intent to evict notice. This is obvious retaliation and we are working to find a lawyer for advise. In the meantime we're now struggling to find a new place and it's nearly impossible to find anything pet friendly that is remotely affordable. This is a nightmare."

— Allyson, Claremont

"I am very lucky to have roommates but if it hadn’t been for them letting me rent a room I’d be homeless. I work full time and still can not afford a studio on my own. A studio I mean come on. Nothing is less than $1000 a month and I couldn’t even dream of buying anything with the way things are."

— Bree, Greenland

"I have a full time job and make over 93K a year. But between student loans, car payments, groceries, gas, paying into retirement, and all the other bills it seemed as if rent for apartments was based on 2 gross incomes and not one. And why is rent based on gross income? No one takes home gross income. I had to live with family for 3 months before finding something affordable. I had to move out of state and live in a tiny studio 450 sq ft. I look around and think 'I went to college and got my masters degree and make great money but this is all I can afford?' What is wrong with this country?"

— Shannon, Nashua

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Housing Stories from Granite Staters

"I was renting a house in Bethlehem, NH. The owner of the house decided to sell and gave me 17 days to get of the house. That was in February of last year. Now I am living in my car and cannot get an apartment where I can afford the rent."

"I’ve stayed in a abusive relationship because of the lack of affordable housing in my area."

"I make pretty good money, I work at hypertherm, the best company in the upper valley to work at. But even then, I can’t find a 2 bed 2 bath that allows dogs in a affordable price range. I’ve been sleeping in my car during the day, and working nights, just to scrape by."

"I'm 22 and have a job in construction but have been fighting with my living situation and have been on the streets. I can't find any homes and I'm trying to start my life"

"I find myself staying in toxic situations for a place to sleep."

"I’m a young professional who works full time, often taking overtime, but still cannot afford even the cheapest available apartment in NH."

"Tried to create a new one bedroom apt in our 4000+ sqft house. Nearly finished but now they state it’ll need a fire suppression system installed to pass the final. Way too much $$ for me so no rental. Expensive obstacles to creating housing in NH."

"My last landlord retired and sold to a new landlord who tried to jack up the price over $1,000 - we were forced to leave because we were unable to afford it. Most other tenants left the building."

"Right before Covid, I lost my housing and switched to living in a van full time. My local credit union refused to approve me for a small personal loan because I did not have an address to put on the application."

"My landlord is raising my rent by 60% with a 2 month notice. I am a responsible citizen with a successful career and still cannot find dog friendly housing in my price range in NH. Where are we to go? New Hampshire tenants deserve protection and affordable housing options!"

"I work almost 60 hrs a week and struggle constantly. It's too expensive to live around here"

"I have been without heat for 3 years. Now being evicted because they don’t want to fix it and cannot find a rental."

"Going to have to live in a camper soon…. Can’t afford to rent an apartment anymore and I’m sure many are in the same boat"

"As a family of 3 with two incomes we are still struggling to find something reasonable."

"I’m paying $1200 for a studio, that’s $1200 for a glorified room. It’s absolutely ridiculous and I’m barely able to afford it but it was the cheapest I could find."

"We were forced to move out of the state. I work in healthcare and my husband and I both make over $100k/year but we could not afford to buy a house in New Hampshire, especially with the cost of child care for two small kids."

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