Dec. 21 – Granite Staters who bought a median-priced home in late 2024 had to pay a mortgage of more than $3,000 per month, and that only included principal and interest.
But they may also have heard a new report this week showing that New Hampshire’s middle class earns significantly more than the national average.
The report defines the median income for households in New Hampshire as ranging from $108,470 – the second highest in the country, and up 30% from 2019 – to $180,784, higher than the national average of between $75,225 and $125,375, according to ConsumerAffairs.
“Like Massachusetts, New Hampshire’s middle class will earn much higher wages than the rest of the country in 2023,” the report said.
For many, New Hampshire’s economy presents a battle between above-average wages and skyrocketing housing costs.
To buy a home at the statewide median price would have cost a family about $2,700 per month in January and almost $3,100 in November — $383 more per month — assuming a 5% down payment. Home prices and interest rates were both higher in November.
But real estate agent Moe Archambault was optimistic about homebuyers before 2025.
“I think interest rates are about to come down so people who have been waiting will get a lower interest rate,” said Archambault, principal of Moe Marketing Realty Group in Laconia.
That assessment was made before the Federal Reserve cut a policy rate this week as expected, but said it expects fewer rate cuts next year than previously anticipated.
‘Still pretty strong’
The state’s unemployment rate has changed little throughout the year, remaining at 2.5% or 2.6% through the first eleven months of 2024.
New Hampshire had the fourth lowest unemployment rate in the country in October, behind only South Dakota, Vermont and North Dakota.
“Overall, I think the economy is still quite strong,” said Greg David, an economist with the state Economic and Labor Market Information Bureau.
The November employment report showed that 11,640 more Granite Staters were working than a year earlier and 560 fewer residents were unemployed, according to Employment Security.
New Hampshire retailers hit high notes all year long.
The total solar eclipse that darkened some North Country towns, including Lancaster, for several minutes on April 8 also attracted many tourists to eat in restaurants or stay overnight. Business owners made the most of the opportunity with special sales, souvenirs and more as thousands of people headed north to experience the solar eclipse on the “path of totality.”
As the season moved toward holiday shopping, many small business owners reported promising sales in 2024.
“I’m selling more gold chains than I’ve ever owned,” said Cheryl Scaramuzzi, store manager and buyer at Capitol Craftsman Romance Jewelers in Concord.
And the labor market remains rosy for many.
“I think there are plenty of jobs for job seekers,” said Barry Roy, regional president of Robert Half, a staffing agency with offices in Manchester, Nashua and Portsmouth.
However, the work dynamics have changed, Roy said.
Over the past year to 18 months, “many companies have asked people to come to the office or to their location more often than in the past,” Roy said.
“Some remote jobs are now hybrid. I think job seekers are missing out if they’re still thinking that there’s a lot of remote work out there.”
Troubling signs
But at least a few cracks are visible.
The number of bankruptcies and delinquencies on credit cards will both increase in 2024.
“Those are signs that the cookie is crumbling,” Archambault said.
New Hampshire saw a 17.7% increase in foreclosures filed during the year ending September 30, compared to the same time frame a year earlier, surpassing the national average of 16.2%.
The latest figures for New Hampshire show delinquencies on credit cards are up, but they remain below the national average, said David, the state economist.
According to David, bankruptcies in the first half of 2024 were 6% lower than in the first half of 2023, but almost 6% higher than in the first half of 2022.
Meanwhile, the number of people at the bottom of the economic spectrum is growing.
The number of people experiencing homelessness rose 52% in 2023 from the previous year — the highest percentage gain of any state, according to a new report released this week.
The national average increased by 12%.
The number of homeless people in New Hampshire grew from 1,605 homeless people statewide in 2022 to 2,441 in 2023, measured on one night in January, according to a report from the New Hampshire Coalition to End Homelessness.
“Much work will still be needed to reverse these trends, but we know that homelessness is a solvable problem if the systems addressing it have adequate resources and support,” said Jennifer Chisholm, executive director of the New Hampshire Coalition to End Homelessness.
mcousineau@unionleader.com
