Best Places03259, NH Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 03259, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Local pay runs high here, and housing takes the biggest bite out of it. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
03259 ranks 1,916th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on low taxes by a wide margin, and cell coverage ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 03259
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.
03259's strengths and weaknesses
Where 03259 ranks high
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 99% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than 98% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than 97% of zip codes
- Educational attainmentBetter than 97% of zip codes
- Healthcare accessBetter than 97% of zip codes
Where 03259 ranks low
- Cell coverageBetter than only 3% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than only 5% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 12% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 15% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 03259
A household needs to earn about $117,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 03259 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $140,694, so a typical household can afford the median home outright.
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 03259's effective rate of 0.96%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices, buying tends to cost more than renting for about the first 10 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 03259
03259 runs older than the country, and households here run smaller than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 03259.
Who works in 03259, and how
Work in 03259 centers on education and construction. Unemployment sits above the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 60%
- Work from home 36%
- Transit, walk, or bike 4%
Life in 03259
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 03259.
What the weather is like in 03259, month by month
03259 sees roughly 65 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 84 degrees. January highs sit near 34, with lows near 13. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 34° | 23° | 13° |
| April | 57° | 43° | 32° |
| July | 84° | 69° | 57° |
| October | 63° | 49° | 38° |
Flying in and out of 03259
The nearest airport, Lebanon Municipal, is about 48 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is General Edward Lawrence Logan International, about 105 miles away.
The best schools in and around 03259
Schools across 03259 average a B, better than 69% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Sandwich Central SchoolA− · 58% proficient
- Waterville Valley Elementary SchoolB · 47% proficient
- Kenneth A. Brett SchoolC− · 27% proficient
Top middle schools
- Moultonborough Middle LevelB− · 42% proficient
Top high schools
- Inter-lakes High SchoolB− · 45% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 03259 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
03259 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 03259 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 03259
Is 03259 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 03259 ranks 1,916th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on low taxes, tree cover, and quiet, and lowest on cell coverage and walkability. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 03259 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $437,700. The overall cost of living runs about 6% above the national average. Set against a $140,694 median income, cost of living beats 97% of zip codes.
Is 03259 safe?
Yes, 03259 is safer than 80% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $208 per resident a year.
Compare 03259 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 03259. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 03259 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.
03259 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 03259: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 03259: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 03259: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 03259: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
03259 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.