Best Places03234, NH Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 03234, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. The coast is close, and the measures below put a number on how close. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
03234 ranks 6,019th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on low taxes by a wide margin, and an overheated housing market is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 03234
BestNeighborhood is the only ranking that scores 40 measures of daily life neighborhood by neighborhood and lets you re-weight every one of them yourself.
03234's strengths and weaknesses
Where 03234 ranks high
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 99% of zip codes
- Crime safetyBetter than 95% of zip codes
- Healthcare accessBetter than 94% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than 93% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than 91% of zip codes
Where 03234 ranks low
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 7% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 59 pleasant days a year, better than only 7% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 12% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$1,283 a month, better than only 16% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 03234
A household needs to earn about $100,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 03234 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is only a little above the area's median income of $98,189; the gap is small, which keeps homes within reach of local pay.
Where the monthly payment goes
Assumes a 20% down payment, a 6.6% 30-year fixed rate, and a 28% share of income going to the payment. The rate is the 2026-07-23 30-year fixed average, series MORTGAGE30US from the St. Louis Fed, which publishes Freddie Mac's weekly survey. Against the median home value, property tax uses 03234's effective rate of 1.72%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices and rents, renting stays cheaper than buying across the first 10 years here, so the case for buying rests on staying much longer or on prices rising faster than assumed. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 03234
03234 runs older than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 03234.
Who works in 03234, and how
Work in 03234 centers on health care & social and retail trade. Unemployment is low, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 82%
- Work from home 13%
- Transit, walk, or bike 5%
Life in 03234
The coast is about 49 minutes away. Distance to the water changes a lot across 03234, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 03234, month by month
03234 sees roughly 59 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 87 degrees. January highs sit near 37, with lows near 16. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 37° | 26° | 16° |
| April | 61° | 46° | 33° |
| July | 87° | 73° | 59° |
| October | 66° | 51° | 39° |
Flying in and out of 03234
The nearest airport, Manchester Boston Regional, is about 20 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is General Edward Lawrence Logan International, about 61 miles away.
The best schools in and around 03234
Schools across 03234 average a B−, better than 55% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Epsom Central SchoolB− · 40% proficient
- Chichester Central SchoolC+ · 37% proficient
Top high schools
- Coe-brown Northwood AcademyA− · 63% proficient
- Pembroke AcademyC+ · 40% proficient
- Pittsfield High SchoolC+ · 35% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 03234 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
03234 measure by measure
Cards are ordered by how much each measure matters to you, so the ones you weighted highest come first. Expand to see every measure. Percentages compare 03234 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 03234
Is 03234 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 03234 ranks 6,019th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on low taxes, low crime, and health care access, and lowest on an overheated housing market and the weather. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 03234 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $338,444. The overall cost of living runs about 6% above the national average. Set against a $98,189 median income, cost of living beats 66% of zip codes.
Is 03234 safe?
Yes, 03234 is safer than 95% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $160 per resident a year.
Compare 03234 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 03234. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 03234 represents the same real quantity as a 60 anywhere else, and the ranking is a weighted average of those absolutes. The map colors come from a national scale calibrated against a population weighted random sample of 5,000 neighborhoods. That absolute scoring is what no other places-to-live ranking does: it puts a single neighborhood, a town, a metro, and a state on one scale, so the same 40 measures answer both which metro to move to and which street inside it to buy on. Read the full methodology.
03234 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 03234: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 03234: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 03234: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 03234: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
03234 detail on related sites:
- CrimeGrade: neighborhood crime rates behind the crime safety score.
- ISPreports.org: provider by provider internet availability and advertised speeds.
- CoverageWatch: the car insurance premiums behind the cheap car insurance score.
Federal and public data:
- U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey: income, home value, rent, vacancy, commute time and mode, educational attainment, home age, age structure, household type, industry, and race.
- NOAA Global Surface Summary of the Day: the daily station record behind the monthly temperatures and the pleasant-day count.
- FAA Passenger Boarding Data: airport size and annual passenger counts.
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey: the 30-year fixed rate used in the cost-to-buy estimate.
- FBI Crime Data Explorer: reported offenses behind the tangible crime cost estimate.
- U.S. EPA Air Quality System: five year average air quality index.
- FEMA National Risk Index: expected annual loss from natural hazards.
- CDC PLACES: disease burden, preventable risk, and barriers to care.
- National Center for Education Statistics: school enrollment and assessment inputs behind the school grade.
- FCC National Broadband Map: internet and wireless availability.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: employment and job growth behind the local economy score.
- Religious activity uses a proprietary religious signal measurement.
Your priorities
Move a slider to say how much a measure matters. Zero turns it off.