Brian Dano
NECPE:
The committee has selected a vendor to shepherd NECPE into the future, Lease UP.
Lease Up is a tenant rep brokerage software company, with a suite of tools for brokers and owners. However, they are creating a new listing platform that will be “For Us by Us” from scratch.
In short, we selected them for three main reasons:
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We control the data.
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Search engine optimization (SEO) and search engine marketing (SEM) to individual listing pages drive traffic to NECPE not the vendors website.
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AI, we will be integrating AI tools to help our users and clients get out of the tool faster.
This is a big decision; one we did not take lightly. We all fear that if we select the wrong tool, it may irreparably harm the NECPE brand and its membership. The board was unanimous in its decision to move forward with this vendor, after seeing demos of the tools considered (other options included, REsimplifi, Moody’s & PrimeMLS.
What I am seeing:
I am starting to hear from brokers that their activity is starting to slow down (in ME & MA), that has not been my anecdotal experience here in NH.
What I attribute this to:
Massachusetts is imploding or at least living up to its “Taxachusetts” nick name. We have seen multiple companies leave MA to come to NH this year already, SynQor moved from Boxborough MA to Salem, NH similarly, Analogic Corp. moved for Peabody MA to Salem, NH.
A recent survey done by Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce Foundation said that 26% of residents in their 20s and 30s say they are likely to leave Greater Boston within the next five years. About 50% said they would be leaving MA entirely. All of this makes NH extremely attractive. According to Tax Foundation New Hampshire is #3 of all 50 States in lowest effective taxes. Moreover, our abutters rank as follows, Maine is #26, Vermont is #42, and Massachusetts is #43.
Maine recently set the groundwork to become the first state in the nation to “ban” data centers over 20 Megawatts, however last Friday (4/25/26) Governor Janet Mills vetoed the bill, siting the existing large data center project in Jay Maine, and the jobs it will bring to the region.
Vermont has instituted updates to S.100 the Home Act with new Act 250 exemptions, like what NH is doing with HB 631 (allows Multifamily development in commercially zoned areas with sufficient infrastructure). NH is making it easier to get projects done than abutting states.
Economy:
The morning of me writing this the UAE has announced its leaving OPEC (4/28/26). I think this could be good for consumers as OPEC restricts supply, and so maybe we will not have to pay $4.00+/- per gallon at the pump as supply can meet demand in a free market. The Strait of Hormuz is still closed, which has exacerbated gasoline costs, which surged 21.2% in March According to Dr Sam Chandan, which is the largest monthly increase on record.
Uncertainty is still at hand in the short to medium term. Policy shock happens every day, though the economy and investors have thicker skin, or have become numb to the news. According to Dr Chandan, the Fed has a 77.5% chance of holding flat for the rest of the year. Just last week I was talking to Mishra Shruti at Bank of America she thought that there was a possibility of two rate cuts in September/ October, if the Iran conflict ends, and the new fed chair is instated by the Senate.
My understanding is that Powell will remain as Fed Chair until Kevin Warsh is approved by the Senate, which may be a while with the Seante banking committee’s nomination process paused. Core inflation is about 3.3%, Which is higher that the 2% target, however job growth is slowing. The autonomy of the Fed chair will be tested, and it will be interesting to see how this all unfolds.
In 2025 we had the worst jobs year we have had while we were not in a recession according to Dr Chandan. I personally think AI taking people’s jobs is not a true factor yet. But I do hear anecdotally that if you are looking for a job right now it is quite difficult.