Abstract
Migration is critical to New Hampshire’s future. Between 2020 and 2025, the state’s entire population gain was due to migration, since more people died than were born in the state. In part, this migration gain is because fewer New Hampshire residents leave the state than residents of nearby states. While much attention focuses on attracting migrants to New Hampshire, another important piece of the state’s migration puzzle is understanding why people consider leaving.
In this brief, authors Kristine Bundschuh and Kenneth Johnson examine New Hampshire residents’ likelihood of leaving the state and explore why residents consider leaving the state. Their analysis reveals that nearly a quarter of residents are somewhat or very likely to leave New Hampshire in the next five years. The greatest likelihood of leaving is among younger and never married residents. In contrast, they found little differences in likelihood of leaving by other characteristics and life experiences such as educational attainment and household income.
Most residents who are considering leaving offer multiple reasons for doing so. Economic reasons are the most prevalent, but they are often combined with climate, relationships, and new adventure. This suggests that policies supporting a lower cost of living, more affordable housing, and greater employment opportunities are important and address some of likely migrants’ concerns, but many people consider multiple factors in their decision to leave and thus may be less likely to be dissuaded by improving one single factor.
Department
Carsey School of Public Policy
Publication Date
Summer 8-18-2026
Series
Issue Brief #201
Publisher
Durham, N.H.: Carsey School of Public Policy, University of New Hampshire
Recommended Citation
Bundschuh, Kristine and Johnson, Kenneth M., "Retaining Residents Is Important to New Hampshire’s Future: Why Do People Leave?" (2026). Carsey Publications. 576.
https://scholars.unh.edu/carsey/576
Rights
© 2026 University of New Hampshire. All rights reserved.