Sea Country development in Waianae (Honolulu, Makaha: real estate, house, rental)

[mobil1]

So I am considering a job offer in Honolulu. I've read all the threads with all the warnings basically saying to stay away from most of the west Oahu towns when looking for a place to live, especially Waianae.

I've been looking at real estate listings and I have seen some pretty nice looking homes in the various Sea Country communities, such as Holomoana priced from $325 - $400's. What's the story with these neighborhoods? They look like great bargains for HI. Is Sea Country basically a community of new homes built in the middle of "slums" (as people have generally referred to Waianae as)? Is this an effort to start the revitilization of West Oahu? I'm thinking these homes may be great investment opportunities.

The developer, DR Horton are currently building 1300+ sq ft homes in their Noho Kai community from $425 - $480. Too good to be true? Or is Waianae really THAT bad?

[jennyinhi]

I live in sea country in Waianae. It is a beautiful community. We are from the mainland and bought our home here in 2006. Our kids go to a wonderful public school here. I really love Waianae. It has a bad rap with the rest of the island, but actually its got really great, caring people living here. Waianae is a community of local bred people, although there are quite a few transplant residents in sea country. I will give you some insight before you consider moving here, the people here are warm and generous, but they need to know your motives before warming up to you. Many mainlanders come here with and try to upset and change the culture and lifestyle because it isn't the same as the mainland. Once the locals know you are good people, you are forever Ohana with them. The reason this community has had a bad rap recently is because there is a problem with the homeless community living in tents along the coastline. Waianae residents are really changing that situation and cleaning the beaches up now, the beach that is within walking distance of sea country has no homeless living there anymore and it is clean. The people out here are passionate about community and helping out local families and once you become part of this community... Waianae forever becomes home. I truly believe Waianae is one of Hawaii best kept secrets because its affordable by Hawaiian standards and by far one of the most beautiful areas on Oahu. I suggest visiting before making any decisions, I think you will be pleasantly surprised by sea country in comparision to other local communities.

[Waianaegirl]

Originally Posted by mobil1

So I am considering a job offer in Honolulu. I've read all the threads with all the warnings basically saying to stay away from most of the west Oahu towns when looking for a place to live, especially Waianae.

I've been looking at real estate listings and I have seen some pretty nice looking homes in the various Sea Country communities, such as Holomoana priced from $325 - $400's. What's the story with these neighborhoods? They look like great bargains for HI. Is Sea Country basically a community of new homes built in the middle of "slums" (as people have generally referred to Waianae as)? Is this an effort to start the revitilization of West Oahu? I'm thinking these homes may be great investment opportunities.

The developer, DR Horton are currently building 1300+ sq ft homes in their Noho Kai community from $425 - $480. Too good to be true? Or is Waianae really THAT bad?

Waianae is really that bad! We went back to visit our old house and we almost didn't reconize it! Slums is right! We did not want to be there after dark. There are some nice looking areas, but it's all about the people, and how they choose to live. There are mostly locals, born and raised. We had a very hard time "fitting in" and never quite did. And we were not the only white family living on that street, either. The beach there Pokai Bay was really nasty! You didn't really want to swim in that water. I would check it out first, if I were you. If someone lives there now and says they are improving it, then maybe they are in their hood, but I would go there myself, first.

[gypseas3]

Originally Posted by Waianaegirl

Waianae is really that bad! We went back to visit our old house and we almost didn't reconize it! Slums is right! We did not want to be there after dark. There are some nice looking areas, but it's all about the people, and how they choose to live. There are mostly locals, born and raised. We had a very hard time "fitting in" and never quite did. And we were not the only white family living on that street, either. The beach there Pokai Bay was really nasty! You didn't really want to swim in that water. I would check it out first, if I were you. If someone lives there now and says they are improving it, then maybe they are in their hood, but I would go there myself, first.

I was just in Waianae last year and stayed right on Pokai Bay. It was beautiful, not dirty at all, and no homeless people. Just my honest take on it...

[Waianaegirl]

Originally Posted by gypseas3

I was just in Waianae last year and stayed right on Pokai Bay. It was beautiful, not dirty at all, and no homeless people. Just my honest take on it...

That would be great if they are cleaning it up! The beach itself was fine (the sand), the water was nasty. Needles and diapers floating in the water, we had to go to the next beach down. Pokai Bay was so dirty and merky, that I was hit by a shark, in shallow water and never saw it coming, which isn't all that surprising, since they are stealthy hunters, but after that day, never again. It rammed me so hard that it lifted me foward and out of the water. I had the biggest brusie, from under my armpit, down to my hip. It hurt so bad. Thank God it just hit my and didn't bite me. The sharks seemed to love Pokai bay, we always saw fins in the water!

[jennyinhi]

Originally Posted by gypseas3

I was just in Waianae last year and stayed right on Pokai Bay. It was beautiful, not dirty at all, and no homeless people. Just my honest take on it...

I have to agree with you, Pokai bay is beautiful. Actually, it is so beautiful that Ko'olina brings in boatloads of people to swim in the water with the turtles and dolphins. I go there almost everyday and have never seen needles or diapers floating.

[jennyinhi]

Originally Posted by Waianaegirl

Waianae is really that bad! We went back to visit our old house and we almost didn't reconize it! Slums is right! We did not want to be there after dark. There are some nice looking areas, but it's all about the people, and how they choose to live. There are mostly locals, born and raised. We had a very hard time "fitting in" and never quite did. And we were not the only white family living on that street, either. The beach there Pokai Bay was really nasty! You didn't really want to swim in that water. I would check it out first, if I were you. If someone lives there now and says they are improving it, then maybe they are in their hood, but I would go there myself, first.

I am kind of confused, I read many of your other posts and I am wondering why you call yourself Waianaegirl? It seems like you hate Hawaii and post negative things about it every chance you get? Did you have that bad of an experience here in Waianae/Oahu? I too am white, I have never had an issue here because of it. But, I believe the vibe you give off is the vibe you receive, so maybe that's why you had a hard time fitting in. But, that can happen anywhere not just in Hawaii. From the couple of posts I read you haven't lived here since you were twelve and I am assuming you're an adult now? How would you know whether Sea country is a good community or not (considering most of it was built between 2005-2008)? I believe the original post was asking whether sea country was a nice community. Which I know it is from experience. I think you missed out on a great learning experience here in Waianae when you were a kid. This place is full of real Hawaiian culture, not watered down culture fed to the tourists. It is not the mainland US and I knew that when we moved here, I learn something new almost everyday. I have made some great friends here and truly feel like this is home. I am sorry if I come off being mean, but I really take pride in this community and I volunteer for a lot here, so I see a lot of positive here too. Maybe next time you come to Waianae, you could come to Sea country and see that Waianae is not all "slums".

[pj737]

Originally Posted by mobil1

The developer, DR Horton are currently building 1300+ sq ft homes in their Noho Kai community from $425 - $480. Too good to be true? Or is Waianae really THAT bad?

We're talking cheaply built tract homes here. 1,300 sq ft in Waianae for $450,000 is a rip off. The lots are small but the land isn't worth much out there - maybe $10-20/sq ft (to give you an example, a 5,000 sq ft lot in Hawaii Kai is $90-$100 sq ft and town is $125-$200 sq ft). These D.R. Horton homes are deemed as affordable because by Oahu standards - $450K for a brand new home is a steal. But these developers are acquiring this land for dirt cheap and they are built very inexpensively. The brand new neighborhoods may look nice now but give it a few years and it will start to deteriorate due to lack of owner-upkeep. Remember that the homes don't make the neighborhood - it's the people that reside in them. The demographics of Waianae will work against gentrification for perpetuity.

[Waianaegirl]

Originally Posted by jennyinhi

I am kind of confused, I read many of your other posts and I am wondering why you call yourself Waianaegirl? It seems like you hate Hawaii and post negative things about it every chance you get? Did you have that bad of an experience here in Waianae/Oahu? I too am white, I have never had an issue here because of it. But, I believe the vibe you give off is the vibe you receive, so maybe that's why you had a hard time fitting in. But, that can happen anywhere not just in Hawaii. From the couple of posts I read you haven't lived here since you were twelve and I am assuming you're an adult now? How would you know whether Sea country is a good community or not (considering most of it was built between 2005-2008)? I believe the original post was asking whether sea country was a nice community. Which I know it is from experience. I think you missed out on a great learning experience here in Waianae when you were a kid. This place is full of real Hawaiian culture, not watered down culture fed to the tourists. It is not the mainland US and I knew that when we moved here, I learn something new almost everyday. I have made some great friends here and truly feel like this is home. I am sorry if I come off being mean, but I really take pride in this community and I volunteer for a lot here, so I see a lot of positive here too. Maybe next time you come to Waianae, you could come to Sea country and see that Waianae is not all "slums".

I lived in Waianae for 6 years,and Makaha for 2. I'm sorry, but I strongly disagree with what you are saying about, if you give off a vibe, you will get it in return. So you are saying that a 5 year old deserves to be treated badly, because that 5 year old is giving off that vibe first? No, I don't think so. I moved there (waianae) when I was 5 and moved out of there when I was 12, to Makaha, then moved to the mainland. Yes, I am an adult now, but all the bad memories of growing up there has obviously stayed with me. We go back every year. We no longer have family living there, but we do have friends, that I grew up with that are still there. So it's not like I haven't been back in years and have no clue what I'm talking about. You see the same town one way, and I another. That is just they way it is. Just because you see only the good and beautiful, doesn't mean there is no bad and the ugly. Even with all that said, I still didn't want to move (from Hawaii)because that was all I knew. Life didn't get any better when we moved to Denver. I didn't fit in there either. I was tan in the middle of winter, and because I lived in Hawaii, the kids assumed that I HAD to be rich, therefore I HAD to be stuck up. So they treated me like crap too. I miss alot of things about Hawaii, but don't miss alot about it either. I like visiting, but would never live there again. AND I am not the only person to say "negetive" things about Hawaii. But I'm glad that you love it and are doing so well

[Kolya]

Jenny,

Could you tell me more about this area, particularly the schools, as we are looking to make the move and have heard terrible things about schools/educational resources for our three children as well as rental $$$$ for families?

Thanks so much :-)
Kolya