By Lisa Sevajian, Realtor · Last updated October 16, 2026 · 10 min read

How Do You Choose the Right 55+ Community in MA or NH?

Thinking about a 55+ community? Start with the part no listing can show you.

You toured one last weekend. The clubhouse was gorgeous. The pool sparkled. The kitchen had everything you'd want.

Then you drove home and felt torn. Would you really use the pool? What's that fee going to be in five years? What happens if your knees give out and the bedroom is upstairs?

If you're stuck on this, you aren't alone. It's one of the most common questions my partners and I hear. Here's how you pick the right one, from Andover MA to Salem NH, with your eyes open.

You aren't just buying a home. You're joining a set of rules.

What should you decide before you tour a 55+ community?

Decide how you want your days to feel. Then pick the place that fits that.

Ask yourself a few honest questions:

• Do you want a busy calendar, or a quiet street?
• Do you need to live on one floor, now or later?
• How close do you want to be to your family, your doctor and the airport?
• Do you want a garage for the car, the golf clubs and the holiday boxes?
• Will you travel for months at a time, and who'll watch the house?

Write your answers down. When you tour, you'll know in ten minutes if a place fits.

What's the age rule, and why does it matter?

Most 55+ communities follow a federal law called the Housing for Older Persons Act.

Under it, at least 80 percent of the homes need one person who is 55 or older, per HUD. The community has to publish its rules and check ages, and the HUD rule says that check gets updated at least every two years. Some places set the age at 62 instead. Riverside Woods in Andover MA, for one, needs at least one household member who is 62 or older, per the Town of Andover MA.

The details live in each community's own documents. Ask these:

• Is the age 55 or 62?
• Can a younger spouse, partner or family member live with you?
• How long can guests stay?
• What happens if you pass the home to someone under 55?

These rules protect the community. Make sure they fit your family, too.

What if your spouse is under 55, or the grandkids visit a lot?

Ask before you buy. A younger spouse can often live with you, but the community's own rules decide.

Some communities set a minimum age for a spouse or partner. The rules also decide what happens to a younger spouse if the older spouse dies, and whether an heir under 55 can move in. Guests have their own rules, like how many nights the grandkids can stay and when visiting kids can use the pool.

Our guide to who can live in a 55+ community has a quick list to check in the master deed and rules. For grandkids, rentals, pets and parking, see the guest and rental questions.

What questions should you ask on the tour?

Ask the questions the brochure skips.

• Where's the primary bedroom, and is there a first floor plan?
• How many steps from the garage to the kitchen? Is there an elevator?
• What does the monthly fee cover, line by line?
• When did the fee last go up, and by how much?
• Is any special assessment planned? That's a one time bill to every owner, often for a big repair.
• Who clears snow from your walk and steps, not just the road?
• Can you rent the home out later? What are the pet rules?
• What's on the activity calendar this month?

Then sit in the clubhouse for a while. Owners will tell you the truth. Ask them what they love and what they'd change.

Which documents should you read before you make an offer?

Read the papers that set the rules and the money. They tell you more than any tour.

• Master deed and bylaws. These set the age rule, what you own and how votes work.
• Rules and regulations. Pets, rentals, guests, parking, grills and more.
• Budget. Where the fee money goes each year.
• Reserve numbers. How much is saved for roofs, roads and siding. Big lenders look for a budget that puts at least 10 percent toward reserves, per Fannie Mae.
• Meeting minutes. Read the last year or two. You'll spot coming repairs, fights and fee talks here first.
• Master insurance certificate. What the building policy covers, and the deductible.

In Massachusetts, your attorney will also get a 6(d) certificate. It shows whether the seller's condo fees are paid up, per state law. In New Hampshire, you can ask the association for its reserve status, the next two years of planned repairs, insurance details and three years of fees and special assessments, per state law.

Don't skip this part. It's where you find out if the fee you love today will hold.

Is the condo fee worth it compared to keeping your house?

It can be, if the fee covers the work and the bills you'd pay anyway.

In your house, you pay for the roof, the driveway, the lawn, the plow, the painter and every surprise. In a 55+ community, many of those are in the fee. You'll still pay your mortgage, your property tax and your own unit insurance.

So add up what your house really cost you last year, outside the mortgage and taxes. Then compare that to the fee and what it covers. Our guide to 55+ condo fees shows you how.

In MLS PIN sales from October 2024 to October 2026, monthly fees in the 55+ communities on our list ran from about $220 to $781. That's a wide range, so always compare what's included.

Are stairs a deal breaker in a 55+ home?

They might not be today. They could be later. Plan for the future you, not just the you of today.

Look for a first floor primary bedroom, a walk in shower and few steps from the garage. Elevator buildings make every floor easy. Some townhouses put the bedroom upstairs, which is fine now and harder later.

If you love a home with stairs, ask if there's room for a chair lift or a first floor bedroom someday.

How does resale work in a 55+ community?

You'll sell to people who fit the community's age rule, so you'll want a home they'll love.

The good news is that many sell steadily. Riverside Woods in Andover MA had 24 sales in two years, and Eagles Landing in Tewksbury MA had 18, per MLS PIN. Across the 55+ communities on our list with five or more sales, homes sold for about 97 to 101 percent of the final asking price.

A few sales doesn't mean a bad community. They often mean owners stay a long time. Ask how many homes sold last year, and how long they took.

How do MA and NH compare for a 55+ move?

The big difference is income tax versus property tax.

Massachusetts taxes income at 5 percent, per the state. New Hampshire doesn't tax wages, and its tax on interest and dividends ended for periods starting January 1, 2025, per the NH Department of Revenue Administration. New Hampshire property tax rates often run higher. Salem NH is $18.16 per $1,000 for 2025, and Methuen MA is $10.40 for FY2026.

Ask your CPA to run your income both ways. Then add the real tax bill on the real home.

When life changes, how do you know it's time?

You'll usually feel it before you say it out loud.

Maybe the house feels too quiet. Maybe the stairs or the yard wear you out. Maybe you want to be closer to the grandkids, or you just want your weekends back. None of those are wrong.

See the full list of 55+ communities, with prices and fees, in our 55+ communities north of Boston guide. When you're ready to sell the house, too, the downsizing guide walks you through it.

This is general information, not legal, tax or lending advice. Check with your attorney, lender and CPA before you decide.

I'll guide you home.

Lisa Sevajian