Five Questions: with Kristin Reyes
Kristin Reyes, Broker & Realtor
Kristin Reyes is a New Hampshire real estate broker who runs Reyes Home Team with her husband, powered by Real Brokerage. She works with buyers & sellers across southern NH. She’s best known online for her home & town tours, which have built her a large following on Instagram & TikTok and help people fall in love with New Hampshire before they ever set foot here. Kristin is a wife & mom of three and has deep roots locally through youth sports and community events.
1. What are you seeing right now that you think people in New Hampshire should be paying more attention to?
I think people should be paying much closer attention to the shift happening in New Hampshire’s housing market right now.
For the last several years, New Hampshire has been somewhat of an anomaly compared to the rest of the country. While many markets across the U.S. experienced declining home values, longer days on market, and weakening buyer demand, New Hampshire seemed almost immune.
Southern NH, in particular, has benefited tremendously from Massachusetts buyers crossing the border in search of more affordable homes. That steady demand helped keep our property values high, even as much of the country experienced a slowdown.
But I think we're starting to see some cracks in that armor.
Between rising home prices, property taxes, and mortgage rates, the financial advantage of moving from Massachusetts to New Hampshire isn't nearly as significant as it once was. And this fall, we're finally starting to see buyers push back.
What's especially interesting is that home prices haven't necessarily come down, but buyer behavior is changing. Homes are sitting longer, price reductions are becoming more common, and buyers are being far more selective about what they're willing to pay.
I don't think we're looking at a housing market crash, but I do think we're entering a period where New Hampshire can no longer defy the affordability challenges facing the rest of the country. And that's something both buyers and sellers need to be paying attention to.
2. What is the biggest challenge facing New Hampshire over the next few years?
I think housing affordability is, without question, the biggest challenge facing New Hampshire over the next several years. Only 15% of NH households earn enough to afford the median-priced single-family home. Think about that. We're essentially pricing 85% of our own households out of homeownership.
And unfortunately, there's no easy solution. The cost of land, labor, and construction has become so expensive that developers are often incentivized to build luxury homes just to make the numbers work. While NH does offer some financial incentives for affordable housing development, they're nowhere near enough to address the shortage we're facing.
My biggest concern is what this means for the future of our state. How do we attract and retain teachers, nurses, first responders, and young families if they can't afford to live here? At some point, this becomes much bigger than a housing issue. It becomes an economic and workforce issue that could fundamentally change the future of New Hampshire.
3. What’s happening in your industry that you think will have the biggest impact on New Hampshire?
I think Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) have the potential to make a huge impact on New Hampshire's housing market, and they're something more homeowners should be paying attention to.
An ADU is essentially a secondary living space on your property, whether that's a standalone structure or a converted portion of your existing home. The biggest benefit? You can generate rental income to help offset your mortgage while simultaneously adding much-needed housing to our communities.
I recently helped a homeowner in Windham convert an existing in-law apartment in his 1950s home into a legal ADU. It took nearly six months to navigate the town's approval process, but today he's collecting $3,500 per month in rental income from a two-bedroom space that otherwise would have gone unused!
Of course, there are challenges. Town regulations, permitting, and construction costs can make the process complicated, and building a standalone ADU can easily cost $200,000 or more.
But I think this is an opportunity we're only beginning to explore. ADUs could help tackle two of New Hampshire's biggest housing challenges at once: creating more affordable rental options while making homeownership more financially sustainable for existing homeowners.
4. If you could change one thing about New Hampshire, what would it be?
I’d make summer & fall longer!
5. What’s one piece of advice you’d give to someone trying to succeed in New Hampshire today?
Not sure on this one!