The availability of affordable yet well-maintained housing has become a perennial issue in New Hampshire communities and in the New Hampshire Legislature.
Jada Lindblom
While local and state policies and programs may open pathways to increased housing opportunities, policies alone won’t create new housing or keep existing homes in safe and livable condition. It takes people with specialized skills to do the work.
In New Hampshire and nationwide, numerous organizations and employers have noted shortages of professionals in the building and building restoration trades. The impacts of these shortages could be major: Recent research spearheaded by the New Hampshire-based organization Bring Back the Trades Inc. (BBTT) indicates that by 2030, the U.S. may face a $325 billion annual economic loss if job shortages in the skilled trades are left unfilled.
According to Shana Brunye, BBTT’s chief operating officer and research director, “the trades are facing a ‘perfect storm’ of an aging workforce and rising demand.”
This storm is being felt on the local level. While individuals and families seek housing options, community organizations such as downtown business alliances and historical associations are striving to upkeep older buildings that give cities and towns their unique identities and sense of place. New Hampshire’s four seasons of weather extremes aren’t easy on the built environment.
An increasing number of organizations and institutions around the state are tackling the topic of workforce development. Research from the University of New Hampshire on youth retention suggests that early exposure to available career pathways can be an important component of whether youth feel encouraged to stay in the state after graduation. With one of the oldest median ages in the nation, youth retention is a critical consideration of workforce development in New Hampshire.
NH Preservation Alliance Career Exploration participants erect a quarter-scale timber frame barn from Heartwood School at Canterbury Shaker Village. (Steve Booth Photography/New Hampshire Preservation Alliance)
Bring Back the Trades aims to address these concerns by reaching students directly through job fairs and scholarships. Similarly, but with a more specific purview, the New Hampshire Preservation Alliance is also working to champion trades careers by directly engaging young people. While Bring Back the Trades’ mission broadly encompasses all trades careers, New Hampshire Preservation Alliance focuses on specialized skills pertaining to the restoration and maintenance of older homes and buildings.
These organizations’ priorities and strategies have been informed by continual collaborations with trades professionals, as well as data from specialized research. Bring Back the Trade’s recently published report offers valuable data to fuel advocacy and outreach efforts.
In 2023, the New Hampshire Preservation Alliance, along with the Northeast Regional Initiative for the Preservation Trades, worked with University of New Hampshire Cooperative Extension Community and Economic Development researchers to better understand the region’s preservation trades workforce shortfalls and opportunities for expansion.
These studies collectively illustrate that we’re in an important moment for the trades. As society faces widespread concerns about how AI may replace many types of jobs, the modern digital era may also trigger revived interest in the benefits of trades career paths.
Many young people are tired of feeling glued to their phones and are looking to reduce screen time. The building trades offer opportunities for hands-on work with tangible outcomes that provide a daily sense of accomplishment. On-site work can mean spending time in fresh air, seeing different parts of the state, and working alongside a variety of other skilled professionals. In the preservation trades research, 96% of tradespeople reported job satisfaction.
The New Hampshire Preservation Alliance is currently in their third year of hosting Career Exploration weeks, mentored mini-internships offered during winter and spring school breaks. The organizers have seen a steady increase in applications and inquiries. Youth applicants to the Career Exploration weeks have been drawn to the program for a variety of reasons, including interests in saving historic buildings, exploring new outlets for creativity, and finding alternatives to desk jobs.
In addition to facilitating internships and mentoring, New Hampshire Preservation Alliance and Bring Back the Trades each use public events to build career awareness. Both organizations are currently preparing for expos that will allow youth and other career-seekers to interact with trades professionals and engage in hands-on demonstrations.
On March 14 and 15 in Manchester, the Old House and Barn Expo will bring together homeowners, tradespeople and career seekers. Next, on April 18, Bring Back the Trades will welcome students to the 2026 NH Skills Expo in Londonderry, where a variety of employers will be ready to share information about their lines of work.
Past expo events hosted by BBTT have attracted thousands of attendees, offering further indication that students, parents, and educators are recognizing that the trades can provide promising career paths for New Hampshire’s young people.
Oliver Fifield of Historic Barn Restoration LLC demonstrates tool sharpening at NH Preservation Alliance Career Exploration program at Canterbury Shaker Village. (Althea Barton/New Hampshire Preservation Alliance)
Bring Back the Trades’ Brunye shares that through BBTT’s advocacy work, their organization is “starting to see a shift in how students and parents view these careers — they are seeing the stability, the high pay, and the chance to build something real.”
New Hampshire Preservation Alliance is feeling optimistic as well. As they track their progress and outcomes, they report feeling inspired and motivated as past participants go into careers such as interior painting or start post-graduation planning for electrical work or timber framing.
One thing that is clear to both organizations is that the building and restoration trades can appeal to a broad range of people and interests. These trades can engage individuals’ passions for history, art, community engagement, physical activity, teamwork, the outdoors, math, engineering and much more.
Through the work of organizations such as Bring Back the Trades and the New Hampshire Preservation Alliance — each bolstered by networks of dedicated mentors, volunteers and sponsors — young people in New Hampshire now have a variety of opportunities to explore different professional paths and find the right fit for their own future success.
For more information about these organizations and their upcoming expos, visit:
New Hampshire Preservation Alliance’s Old House & Barn Expo, March 14 and 15, St. Anselm College, Manchester, https://www.nhpreservation.org/old-house-barn-expo
Bring Back the Trades Skills Expo, April 18, Londonderry High School, Londonderry, https://bringbackthetrades.org/events/
Jada Lindblom is economic development state specialist at the University of New Hampshire Cooperative Extension.
The availability of affordable yet well-maintained housing has become a perennial issue in New Hampshire communities and in the New Hampshire Legislature. While local and state policies and programs may open pathways to increased housing opportunities, policies alone won’t create new housing or keep existing homes in safe and livable condition.
Property taxes pay for 70% of public education costs in NH
In a tour of New Hampshire ahead of this year’s elections, former U.S. transportation secretary Pete Buttigieg spoke in favor of increasing government support for child care in a roundtable discussion at the Granite YMCA in Concord.
Slim profit margins, high operating costs, low staff compensation and limited government funding led to an 11% net loss in licensed child care programs in New Hampshire between 2017 and 2025, according to new research from the UNH Carsey School of Public Policy.
Bob Baines, the former mayor of Manchester, past principal of Manchester High School West and current Manchester School Board member, died in Boston on Jan. 23 due to complications following heart surgery.
Two New Hampshire child care centers will share more than $1 million in federal grants to expand and address the state’s child care shortage.
When Saint Anselm nursing students arrive for their first day of class, they now enter spaces that mirror where they’ll spend their future careers
Extending the fall harvest means farming through the cold
The district recently received an unexpected $2 million bill from the risk pool that administers its health insurance, part of a debt shared by dozens of school districts across the state
