Why don't people visit first before moving there? (high crime, houses)

[drsmiley06]

Okay, I've been to Hawaii (Oahu) three times in my life, twice on vacation and once for business. Why in the world do I keep reading about people wanting to move to Hawaii without visiting first? Why would anyone want to move somewhere without checking the area out first? I'm sort of baffled by how people just pick up and go, especially to an island out in the pacific. Go there first and see if you like it, if not, then consider yourself lucky that you saved yourself tons of money in moving costs.

[ZhugeLiang]

Originally Posted by drsmiley06

Okay, I've been to Hawaii (Oahu) three times in my life, twice on vacation and once for business. Why in the world do I keep reading about people wanting to move to Hawaii without visiting first? Why would anyone want to move somewhere without checking the area out first? I'm sort of baffled by how people just pick up and go, especially to an island out in the pacific. Go there first and see if you like it, if not, then consider yourself lucky that you saved yourself tons of money in moving costs.

Common misconceptions of Hawaii. Many Americans mistake Hawaii as being some dream paradise where they think they can escape everything which of course, it isn't. Hawaii is just a nice place with a temperate climate. Most people fail to realize that wherever they go, they cannot change who they are. To gain any enjoyment in where one lives, they must choose to enjoy it first.

The ones who rely on a different geographical location to magically change them are the ones who move to Hawaii and then get all bummed out in the first few months when they realize there are bills to pay, traffic commutes, imbeciles for government representatives, racial strife, etc., just like the rest of "Amurrica."

[Mar0]

The only time i had been to Hawaii before visiting was to interview for my job (a three day trip from the east coast!). I was in college and figured that the company would be paying for my move, and if I didn't like it here, I could easily transfer through my company (and they would pay for my move again). I had spent time abroad and was in college, so I figured that I'm young, and why not? I am used to having to adjust to new places and Hawaii wouldn't be too much different. I don't regret what I did in the least, and had no real big adjustment problems. However, had my circumstances been different (paying for my move, possibly getting stuck out here, having a family move with me), I would have not acted in the way I did. After having lived in Japan though, Hawaii is a piece of cake!

[Calico Salsa]

People do that with everything. It's like thinking New York is going to be like what they saw in Sex And The City - all great expensive clothes, fine dining, and terrific parties. Jump in a cab, meet your friends,have a fabulous job... of course that's not reality for most in NYC. Maybe all of it for a very few, some of it for some, and none of it for many.

We are, of course, reading and posting in the Hawaii forum. I'll bet other locations also have those who think that moving to that location will solve everything. Or at the very least will resolve whatever they are seeking or leaving.

Still, taking risks is a good thing. If we don't try, we'll never know. Big changes happen to all of us. Some by our choosing, like moving to Hawaii, or starting a new business or job, or trying out a new activity. Other changes happen without our first action, like natural disasters, or layoffs, or health problems. If we think we can survive and thrive should something happen to us like the last examples, we should have confidence to MAKE changes and know we can work it all out.

Choose your direction, do what it takes, and you'll be fine. If you don't like where you end up, do what it takes to change that again.

Staying stuck, whether it's in a place or in a job or in how you view yourself - that's the killer.

[hotzcatz]

Even more intriguing question is: "why do people buy houses in Hawaii without visiting or looking at the property first?" That's one step further along than merely moving without visiting first.

IF one can move with nothing more than a suitcase or get someone else to pick up the tab, then moving to Hawaii without looking first might work out. It is also more likely to work if the folks don't have anywhere else to be, no family ties, employment requirements or other reasons for wanting to be somewhere else. And the third requirement for being able to just pick up and move to Hawaii is not needing a lot of money to survive. So, it is possible and it can be done. Adding kids, pets and multiple cars into the moving equation makes it less likely to work out, though.

[R_Cowgirl]

When I first moved to Hawaii in 1971, I got a job as a Manager. I did a lot of hiring, and because I was taught that we always check references, I made the calls to the mainland to check people's stories. What amazed me then, and still does, is that some people from the mainland were surprised that a prospective employer would check their work history. (Back in 1971, it WAS around a dollar a minute to call, but still better than hiring a bad person.) The resume fiction was often quite entertaining.

All that is to say some folks move to Hawaii to get away from their lives, and they just don't realize that Hawaii IS part of the US, DOES have the internet, and DOES conduct business as professionally as the mainland. So, if you are thinking of "running away to Hawaii to escape your life" -- I've said it before on this forum: YOU are the biggest piece of baggage you carry with you. And with forums, Myspace, Facebook, Yahoo, Google, and all the rest, you really can't hide from the truth. Eventually you will be found out. (Can we say "Bernie Madoff?") The chickens always come home to roost...

[drsmiley06]

Yea, I mean I just flew to hawaii back in november for $700/rt and spent $900 for a one week stay in Waikiki Beach at the Pacific Monarch. That's much easier to do than to completely move. To be honest you with, I could easily move there and not have a problem there, having been in the military and moved around alot. I'm single with no children and nothing holding me back here in Pennsylvania. And I know I could get a job there because I'm a dentist, in fact, I may even think about buying a practice over there in a few years because for one, it's unbelievably easy to get a hawaiian state dental license, and two, I only have one mouth to feed and that's mine. What others have told me in the past is this: stay on the east coast as long as you can and make as much money as you can because, and this really is a statement of fact, you can't make more money anywhere else than on the east coast. And the reason why I'm saying that is because, well, let's face it, there are more jobs up here in the northeast than anywhere else. So that's what I plan on doing, saving up as much as I can and hopefully move to hawaii and live happily ever after. The hard part these days is actually finding a date, lol.

[sfw1979]

Most military people have never been to Hawaii before they get orders and land there.

[Liza54]

I can say that part of what I love about moving is going with the unexpected- I like discovering new cities, new people, etc. I don't need to have a group of friends waiting- I'll make new ones! I simply make sure I'm not in an obviously high crime rate, learn about the general climate, etc. then go! I have yet to regret hopping to a city, even if it does turn out to be a place not to stay. I get up and move again. Expense...yes, but you can work that right, too. And you can't put a price on some of the experiences we've had!

[KoaHawaii]

Originally Posted by sfw1979

Most military people have never been to Hawaii before they get orders and land there.

that is a completely different situation from someone dropping everything to move to an island because they think it sounds pretty or want to live in "paradise", they don't realize how difficult it really is to live there and they dont take everything into account and then are shocked when it's not everything they thought it would be and end up blaming the island or the people rather than taking responsibility for making a poor decision.

it's one thing to have to relocate because of a job or to study abroad somewhere, you know you aren't necessarily going to be there that long, at most a few years before you're transferred again or you can even request to move if it doesn't work out. plus you at least have a job whereas many move to Hawaii thinking it will be easy to find one once they get there. Sorry if this seems like I'm attacking you, I'm not, merely pointing out the faults in such an 'argument'.