There’s no single thing that New Hampshire must do to make sure that people who already live here want to stay. Taxes, environment, jobs, lifestyle – they’re all important.

That is the conclusion of researchers who analyzed state polls which asked more than 3,300 established residents to say, in their own words, the top three reasons for staying in New Hampshire rather than moving to another state.

“Given these findings, simple development strategies based on any one factor, like low taxes or stronger environmental laws, are unlikely to trigger substantial population retention alone,” conclude authors Kristine Bundschuh and Kenneth Johnson of the UNH Carsey School of Public Policy in their report, titled “Why Do People Stay?”

The study looked at NH Granite State Polls from 2010–2012 and 2018–2019. People of all ages said they are most likely to stay for economic reasons, the physical environment, family, and the social atmosphere but the reasons are interconnected. “People (appreciate) the overall experience of living in New Hampshire because of a combination of local benefits,” the report states.

One factor that didn’t show up too often, despite our first-in-the-nation primary, was politics. Just 12% of respondents listed that as one of their three reasons for staying.

Talking to people who stay here is important, the report said, because “the state has one of the most mobile populations in the United States,” with an average of nearly 46,000 residents leaving the state every year.

“On average, nearly 1.3 million New Hampshire residents do not migrate into or out of the state in a given year. Understanding why those residents stay in New Hampshire can be an important element of the state’s comprehensive development strategy,” the report said. “What motivates people to move to New Hampshire is important to the state’s future and garners considerable policy attention. Much less consideration is given to retaining current residents.”

The report can be seen online at carsey.unh.edu/publication/retaining-residents-is-important-to-new-hampshires-future

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