Oh no, not again [Jobs] (Hilo: real estate, condo, broker)

[ayce]

Yes, another "Thinking About Moving to Hawaii" thread . . . . sorry.

The wife and I are planning on moving out in about 4 or 5 years. We're aiming to be financially independent at that point (or pretty close to it) and not really needing to work but we're not exactly senior citizen discounts age quite yet so we would prefer to work both to keep padding the nest egg as well as keep us from driving each other crazy.

We've been thinking about the BI mostly because the whole point of us moving to HI is to live a more relaxed lifestyle. I've done the 60 - 80 hour work weeks, high stress stuff and we sort of want to semi-retire early someplace where we don't have to deal with rush hour traffic (like is found on Oahu) or have the stress of needing the paycheck.

The BI seems like we can buy a place for a reasonable enough price on the Kona side without stretching ourselves financially and without being in a condo or living in a neighborhood where the houses are one atop of each other.

That said, I love Maui. Wouldn't mind living there either. It just seems less doable based on cost of real estate.

Okay, so question is . . . what kind of work would I be able to find? I'm sure my wife can find something in the restaurant or retail industry. She's done that most of her life. Me, well, I'm not sure if my background translates into something that can make decent money on an island other than Oahu.

Currently a VP-level business side exec in a Fortune 1000 company in the technology space.

Over 20 years of project management and product management experience in the tech world.

Have never stopped dabbling in software development (been writing code for my own pleasure for 20+ years). I like to hack a bit of PHP and work on websites in my spare time. Currently learning Apple Swift as I've always wanted to write my own iOS apps.

I also dabble a bit in real estate as an investor so I understand real estate and have been thinking about getting my RE license just to get MLS access to deals for my own investment purposes.

In a previous life before tech I was a stock broker so I'm very familiar with investment products, financial planning, and though my license is long-ago expired, I don't think it would be too challenging for me to retake the licensing exams.

. . . So any advice on how I translate that into a job in Hawaii that doesn't involve having to live in Oahu?

For instance, it seems to me that with the prices of homes anywhere in Hawaii that there's need for basic financial services but are brokerage services like that available at the branch level on the islands or do people do everything through branches in Oahu?

Is it possible to get a gig in Oahu and work remotely from the BI or Maui? Is that common given the high COL in Oahu?

I hear that RE pays a lot but there is low demand for RE agents.

I'm sure someone will suggest doing software development or other work remotely for the mainland but my big concern is that most of that would be contract work and nothing lasts forever which means that from time to time I would need to jump on a plane back to the mainland and try to land new clients. Landing clients today, while I'm here in the mainland and my contacts are fresh, not that big of a problem. But contacts go stale so it just seems like an depleting resource I don't want to have to rely on.

Any insights would be appreciated.

[whtviper1]

Originally Posted by ayce

Yes, another "Thinking About Moving to Hawaii" thread . . . . sorry.

Ah yes, winter is approaching on the mainland.

Originally Posted by ayce

The wife and I are planning on moving out in about 4 or 5 years.

More likely than not, you are asking questions better answered 3 to 4 years from now - who knows what the job market will be like then.

Originally Posted by ayce

Me, well, I'm not sure if my background translates into something that can make decent money on an island other than Oahu.

Things may change in 3 to 4 years - but your background while potentially useful on Oahu will likely not lead to a decent (depending on your definition of decent) wages on the BI or Maui.

Originally Posted by ayce

. . . So any advice on how I translate that into a job in Hawaii that doesn't involve having to live in Oahu?

You'll need to find a mainland company that lets you work remotely in Hawaii in the IT space. Or, a low paying County job.

Originally Posted by ayce

For instance, it seems to me that with the prices of homes anywhere in Hawaii that there's need for basic financial services but are brokerage services like that available at the branch level on the islands or do people do everything through branches in Oahu?

Those services are already available on the Big Island

Originally Posted by ayce

Is it possible to get a gig in Oahu and work remotely from the BI or Maui?

Very unlikely

[Jane M]

OP: you do not have to move to Hawaii to obtain a more relaxed lifestyle. There are many places in the continuous U.S. that can offer what you are looking for.

If you do not have a job offer here, are not independently wealthy or are not a remote worker from a secure job on the mainland, you risk not being able to support yourself and your family if you move here. However, if you are planning to be independently wealthy and want to stay "busy" you can always by a coffee farm.

[leilaniguy]

Yeah, the snow is starting to fly. About being a R E agent, I don't see the advantage since everything in the MLS has to be offered publicly within two days of signature. Every real estate deal I've done here was on the internet.

[ayce]

@whtviper1: No, no snow flying here, haha. My wife and I have been discussing the "exit" plan for a few years now. Originally we were going to relocate to Thailand. I've lived there before. She's from there originally. But neither of us are thrilled with the political situation going on there right now. Realistically, at the COL in Thailand or even Vietnam we could make the transition right now but Hawaii was always one of the places on our wishlist and once I started running the numbers, it would take a little longer to get there, but it's doable financially without needing to work.

However, there's a saying in software development that a good programmer looks both ways before crossing a one-way street. I tend to plan on the paranoid side factoring in all kinds of worst case scenarios. So, my desire to work after moving is partially driven by the fact that I want to ahead of my projections. Always nice to have a cushion.

I appreciate your feedback on the markets being fluid and better to do my homework closer to the actual move. Also good feedback on what's available where. Thanks.

@Jane M: Having been born and raised in Southern California and travelled the US and the world quite extensively both for work and for pleasure, I'm fairly sure Hawaii fits the kind of lifestyle I'm looking for. I'm not the guy who takes his first trip to a tropical location and says, "Wow! I want to move here! Let me sell all of my stuff and move." :-)

I've lived in Thailand, several different places in Europe, travelled the Middle-East, India, and a good chunk of South East Asia. I usually fill up my passports long before they expire. Haha.

Unfortunately, I don't think coffee farming is for me. Maybe it is but I doubt it. I do want to keep intellectually stimulated, have something to do, new challenges, and such that a job in most of the fields I mentioned would provide. It's one of the reasons I still write software in my spare time for my own enjoyment.

But I hear you on the opportunities available on the Big Island for that kind of challenge. Great feedback. Thanks.

@leilaniguy: Thanks, though I wasn't necessarily talking about getting my RE license for Hawaii for investment purposes. I was talking more about getting it for back here on the mainland where any deal that has hit the sites like Zillow or Realtor.com is already too late because by the time you call your agent there are already 5 offers on it. Also, you would have lockbox access so you don't need to schedule a viewing around your agent.

I was just wondering if I do decide to get my license here, would it translate into any sort of opportunities there. I forget where I saw the stats but it showed that the average income of an agent was higher than the median income but there were very few open positions. Just wondering if that was an accurate picture of the market or if there was some other factor which I was unaware of, like maybe property management was being lumped into the same category as agent/broker.

Again, thanks everyone for your input, advice, and feedback. Much appreciated.

[whtviper1]

Originally Posted by ayce

I was just wondering if I do decide to get my license here, would it translate into any sort of opportunities there

Not likely. It would probably take several years to build relationships

[tweez]

You might look into opportunities at UH Hilo or Hawai'i CC. I have seen listings for part or full time professors with your experience. Also, Hawai'i CC has a continuing education dept. that may provide opportunities. They certainly offer business classes/PM classes and may be looking for teachers by the time you are looking to make the move.

[ayce]

BTW, I really do appreciate all of the feedback. Believe me, when I went off to live in Asia a lot of expats gave me similar cautions. Likewise, after becoming an expat, I was the one telling seekers of a new life, "Unless you want to teach English for $1000 a month, you won't find any work here." So I understand the skepticism and perhaps even cynicism when yet another mainlander wants to move to Hawaii.

[ayce]

Originally Posted by tweez

You might look into opportunities at UH Hilo or Hawai'i CC. I have seen listings for part or full time professors with your experience. Also, Hawai'i CC has a continuing education dept. that may provide opportunities. They certainly offer business classes/PM classes and may be looking for teachers by the time you are looking to make the move.

Thanks. Something I'll look into.

[hotzcatz]

If you like writing apps, then why not write apps? Now that everything is so much more connected than it used to be and especially if you're working in a digital field, you should be able to write apps from just about anywhere?