I agree with Muleskinner. It doesn't seem to matter at this point. Get to know the state by visiting often. It all depends upon what you are looking for and used to now.
The South Central is heavily industrialized and a "shopper's paradise." It is also crowded. The Seacoast is small but "picturesque", albeit ruined, in my opinion, by The Seabrook Nuclear Power Plant. There is no viable evacuation plan for a "Three Mile Island" type disaster. So, if you don't mind the possibility of glowing in the dark, by all means consider the seacoast.
The Southwest part of the state is rural and convenient to Mass and Vermont. It is my understanding that many people fled the city of Keene several years ago when city property taxes went through the proverbial roof. I had friends who worked at Kingsbury Machine Tool move over to Chesterfield and pushed east toward Vermont along Rt 9.
The Lakes Region is stunning. It is a contrast in money. There are some very wealthy towns clustered around Lake Winnipesaukee and yet some old mill towns to the west of there like Franklin.
The Upper Valley of the Connecticut River is another absolutely beautiful area. The twin state area that centers around Hanover and Dartmouth College has the students, "artsy" crowd, the "intellectuals" and the services, not to mention the Hitchcock Memorial Hospital and the Norris Cotton Cancer Center. Check out the frescoes in the Dartmouth Library on the ceilings. Your neck will ache from staring upward. Property taxes and prices in Hanover are probably the highest in the state. There are reasonable alternatives in the area.
Conway, as you know is skiers paradise. You have to like tourists.
The Northern County of Coos is only for the very hearty and those that can bear the isolationism, frozen temperatures, and "winter fun" that only the deep woods can afford.
Good luck and have fun touring around the state. My personal favorites are the Hanover area and the Lakes Region. If you want to stick near western Mass, try Peterborough and Dublin. They are well located along Rt 101, east of Keene. Smaller towns along the Connecticut River like West Chesterfield NH put you within a few miles of I-91 and Brattleboro Vt. which is 20 minutes to Greenfield, and 40 minutes to Holyokle and I-90.Â
