NEED ADVICE DH company moving to Maine do we go?

[Alicnwondrln]

DH company just found they are merging with a company in Maine. Kittery to be exact. He was told yesterday they want him to go to work in the company in MAIne. Many others are losing there jobs. So do we do it. He has been with the his current job for over 6 years and his boss and the owner of the company and most of the board os going to the new company as well. We dont know yet if the salary will be the same, benefits and stuff like that yet. All we know is if he doeesnt go he will have no job.
I am nervous that if we move and it doesnt workout there he will struggle to find new work. I work at Shaws here and could transfer to a closer one, so that would not be an issue.We have to sons so if we are gonna move we need to start planning now, as DS6 would have to change schools. I feel like this is a huge decision for our family. I would love some feedbak or advice about living in Maine, or is it better to stay in NH ?
How are the schools up there? Stuff like that.
Thank you my friends...

 

[phorsenuf]

My sister lives in Wells, Me and likes it there alot. I think its about 20 minutes to Kittery (in fact she may be selling their house due to a job change to!)
NH of course doesn't have any sales tax but property tax is a killer. Housing prices are probably going to be a little more expensive being on the seacoast and all.
I think if I were you I'd find out from the company if his salery and benefits will stay the same and then go to an onsite cost of living calculator and do some comparisons. I know for us if we were to move back to NC from NH we could actually take about a $20,000 pay cut because of the difference between here and there.

Here's one of those calculators and this is a pretty good website too.

http://www.homefair.com/homefair/se...name=27&internal=T&type=gate&partner=homefair

 

[Alicnwondrln]

thanks I will look into it
DH was looking at places like Exeter, Hampton Falls places near 95 that are easy ways back to MA if the job ever had an issue. I am also looking to places in Kittery. I have found some cute places. If you work in MAine though and live in NH dont you still have to pay maine state taxes and wait to get them back?

 

[nealymouse]

I would never advise anyone I dont know to move to ME or NH but as a Mainer I have to say I love it here.

Maine your property taxes are going to be lower then NH. NH you wont have a sales tax but much higher property taxes !!

If you work in Maine and live in NH you still have to pay the Maine income tax.

Kittery is right on the boarder to NH so all your shopping can be done in NH to avoid the sales tax.

I grew up in Kittery. Its a beautiful quaint town with good schools. Portsmouth New Hampshire is one of my favorite small cities. Very chicque.

South Berwick in not far from Kittery and IMO the best place to be if your DH is working in Kittery. Its expensive in the housing market but if your coming from MA you may find it a lot less ? Great schools.

Berwick Academy if you want a private school is up on the hill (cant miss seeing it) I can say thats a great school becasue I went there LOL.

The Maine slogan is "The way life should be" and I believe that.

What company does your DH work for ?

 

[jrsmom]

I have lived in NH for the past 10 years ( Moved from MA ) and we love it. Exeter is a beautiful area with good schools. My sister will be moving there soon as my bil will probably be taking a job with a practice there. The prices of homes in NH have risen a lot over the past ten years just like MA, however you can still get more house for your money. The prices will still be lower that MA on most properties. The property taxes are high though. I do think that it all evens out.


Vickey

 

[The Mystery Machine]

Basic things...

Who is paying for relocation?
What is salary?
Promotion or demoted?
Housing prices same or higher?
Can your bank account afford it, new house, relocation, etc???
Can he get a new job where you are at?
Can you afford the job loss so he can get a new one?
Savings for job search?

We figured we spent 30,000 on our move, including the realty fees.

Do your "Math" compare it to your budget.

 

[Alicnwondrln]

Basic things...

Who is paying for relocation?
What is salary?
Promotion or demoted?
Housing prices same or higher?
Can your bank account afford it, new house, relocation, etc???
Can he get a new job where you are at?
Can you afford the job loss so he can get a new one?
Savings for job search?

We figured we spent 30,000 on our move, including the realty fees.

Do your "Math" compare it to your budget.

He assuming so far that the job and salary are the same
the issue is that if we stay her ewill he be able to find a job with as good as asalary
he hasnt had to look for a job in a long time over 6 years

 

[mickeyfan2]

How long could you survive in NH if your DH turns down the job? Will he still get unemployment? If he cannot find employment in NH, what would you plan be then? Is his job easy to find in the NH area? I would have him looking (but not applying yet) at what is available in your area for him if he chooses to stay.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

He assuming so far that the job and salary are the same
the issue is that if we stay her ewill he be able to find a job with as good as asalary
he hasnt had to look for a job in a long time over 6 years

My dh is going thru a merger and I would say.....
If it is not for a promotion and he can find another job where you at now, I don't see a reason to go.

 

[luvflorida]

I would never advise anyone I dont know to move to ME or NH but as a Mainer I have to say I love it here.

Maine your property taxes are going to be lower then NH. NH you wont have a sales tax but much higher property taxes !!

If you work in Maine and live in NH you still have to pay the Maine income tax.

Kittery is right on the boarder to NH so all your shopping can be done in NH to avoid the sales tax.

I grew up in Kittery. Its a beautiful quaint town with good schools. Portsmouth New Hampshire is one of my favorite small cities. Very chicque.

South Berwick in not far from Kittery and IMO the best place to be if your DH is working in Kittery. Its expensive in the housing market but if your coming from MA you may find it a lot less ? Great schools.

Berwick Academy if you want a private school is up on the hill (cant miss seeing it) I can say thats a great school becasue I went there LOL.

The Maine slogan is "The way life should be" and I believe that.

What company does your DH work for ?

We live in southern coastal Maine. I agree with everything nealymouse has posted. The area she mentions is a nice area, and there are many other nice areas as well. Generally speaking, the closer you get to the coast the higher the housing prices will be.

I don't really think there is too much of a difference between southern Maine and northern New Hampshire. We live about 20-25 minutes from New Hampshire which makes it easy to shop in New Hampshire and save on sales tax, (shhhhh, don't tell the state of Maine!). Many people who move to Maine seem to think things move a bit slower here than in other states, but that isn't necessarily a bad thing.

Weather is the only thing that we really don't like- too much cold and not enough warmth, but it probably isn't any worse than the rest of New England. We've just had enough of it and we're looking forward to heading south, even if it's just for the winter months.

 

[Alicnwondrln]

My dh is going thru a merger and I would say.....
If it is not for a promotion and he can find another job where you at now, I don't see a reason to go.

this is the thing i dont know if ew can find another job with as good as a salary before we would have to move. Dh hasnt looked for another job for some time and last time he did he didtn get alot of respones
i am redong his resume now and we will have to see what happend from here

 

[The Mystery Machine]

this is the thing i dont know if ew can find another job with as good as a salary before we would have to move. Dh hasnt looked for another job for some time and last time he did he didtn get alot of respones
i am redong his resume now and we will have to see what happend from here

Good Luck. We are in the same boat. DH has been interviewing for 2 months. Outside the company and inside. (He has to find a NEW job within his current company).
It is nerve wracking.

We did do the "move" before the merger, we knew it was coming to secure a better position for us. We went from Missouri to Texas. He still might lose his job.
The thing about chasing a merger is that you can end up with the shaft.

Are they paying for the move????? When it is all said and done it will cost you alot of money to move.

My dh is home almost everyday now working from his "virtual office". This is me.....

 

[Alicnwondrln]

Good Luck. We are in the same boat. DH has been interviewing for 2 months. Outside the company and inside. (He has to find a NEW job within his current company).
It is nerve wracking.

We did do the "move" before the merger, we knew it was coming to secure a better position for us. We went from Missouri to Texas. He still might lose his job.
The thing about chasing a merger is that you can end up with the shaft.

Are they paying for the move????? When it is all said and done it will cost you alot of money to move.

My dh is home almost everyday now working from his "virtual office". This is me.....

there will be no relocation so we wil have to pay to move it will probably cost alot
and there is no gurantee but staying here with no job isnt any better

 

[The Mystery Machine]

It cost us 30,000 to move. That includes all the realty fees.

 

[camlace]

Not sure why a move would be absolutely required if you are currently in Burlington, MA? Burlington to Kittery is approx 1 hour. If he doesn't have to commute during peak travel hours the commute shouldn't be too bad from Burlington to Kittery. The only real bad part would be on 128 from Burlington to 93.

Good luck with your decision

 

[The Mystery Machine]

If your dh can commute and look for a job at the same time, that would be your best bet. Is that possible for you???

Good Luck. It is a jungle out there. I am sure your dh will make the right decision.

 

[Alicnwondrln]

Not sure why a move would be absolutely required if you are currently in Burlington, MA? Burlington to Kittery is approx 1 hour. If he doesn't have to commute during peak travel hours the commute shouldn't be too bad from Burlington to Kittery. The only real bad part would be on 128 from Burlington to 93.

Good luck with your decision

thye would want him 8 to 5 so
he would spend along tim ein the car according to him and it would an issue for my job I would not be able to wrok it all monday thru friday
Dh has never been big on driving a long way to work
also they woul dneed him to possibly travel and he says if he takes it it would be easier to move

 

[mtdevine615]

Well I live in Maine and I do love it. I haven't always loved it. When I was younger I couldn't wait to get out of here. So I worked out of state for a while but soon realized just how nice it was back in Maine. Since you're talking about Kittery there are a lot of options open to you. You could live in Maine or New Hampshire and a lot of people have already listed the pros and cons of both. My biggest question to you is what does your DH want to do? I suppose if it didn't work out you would still be close enough for him to work in the Boston area. I wish you all the best.

 

[barkley]

i would check into alternate job opportunities in the area and decide weather in the event of job loss you would be better off (financialy, emotionaly) where you are now or in the new enviornment.

the reason i say this is because one of our former neighbors was in a similar situation (either move to the home of the new parent company or only a 6 month guarantee with the new company in the state we live in). they picked up and moved from california to arizona (away from all of their family) and within 6 months the parent company filed for bankruptcy and let all of the previous company's staff go (later found out it was planned all along-in negotiations to buy out the old company they had agreed to keep on so many staff members, upper managment positions-the bankruptcy allowed them to restructure and get rid of anyone they wanted to). so the family was left in a new, unfamiliar area with no emotional support as dad searched for a new job (and there was not much available in his area of employment). the only godsend for them was that in buying their new home they opted to only pay down 50% of the equity they had gotten from their prior home sale-so they had a large emergency fund to get by on.

i think you have to view a job transfer (in the case of a company sale or take-over) the same as if you were opting to take a new job and relocate. don't assume that anything the old company did will transfer to the new company, and don't think of it as "well i have x number of years seniority"-it's realy just like starting over from day one.

 

[Alicnwondrln]

i would check into alternate job opportunities in the area and decide weather in the event of job loss you would be better off (financialy, emotionaly) where you are now or in the new enviornment.

the reason i say this is because one of our former neighbors was in a similar situation (either move to the home of the new parent company or only a 6 month guarantee with the new company in the state we live in). they picked up and moved from california to arizona (away from all of their family) and within 6 months the parent company filed for bankruptcy and let all of the previous company's staff go (later found out it was planned all along-in negotiations to buy out the old company they had agreed to keep on so many staff members, upper managment positions-the bankruptcy allowed them to restructure and get rid of anyone they wanted to). so the family was left in a new, unfamiliar area with no emotional support as dad searched for a new job (and there was not much available in his area of employment). the only godsend for them was that in buying their new home they opted to only pay down 50% of the equity they had gotten from their prior home sale-so they had a large emergency fund to get by on.

i think you have to view a job transfer (in the case of a company sale or take-over) the same as if you were opting to take a new job and relocate. don't assume that anything the old company did will transfer to the new company, and don't think of it as "well i have x number of years seniority"-it's realy just like starting over from day one.

you hit the nail on the head
this is DH fear that we will move and then someothing will happen and he own have a job, he was saying today if we dont it he wants to move somewhere like Exeter or a place near 95 so he could commute back towards MA. I have redone his resume today and started looking for stuff around here. I think we only want to move if we have to meaning if he cant find anything around here. Thanks for your response Barkley it was great.