What's life in Puna like now? Economy? (Hilo, Keaau: real estate market, foreclosures)

[wanttobeinpuna]

My husband and I have visited Puna a few times in 2004 & 2005 and have been dreaming of being semi-retired there. Our home/business finally has an offer and now we are looking more seriously at making the move to the Big Island. We loved the Puna area, stayed in some B&B's there and like the Orchidland area....if we could live in a small house, even off grid would be good. What we have seen on line is the prices have really dropped, which means we could afford a place, but would want/need to work part-time. What is the the economy like? How bad is the vog? What else has changed in the past few years?

[leilaniguy]

The economy is bad, hence the drop in RE prices. The Vog isn't bad when the trades blow (most of the time), but it can be bad at times. I don't think many or any people have left, judging from the traffic jam every day at the Keaau bottleneck. There is a small new shopping center being built in Pahoa, but there is already a line of people waiting for those Mcjobs.

[mdand3boys]

Look at foreclosures. You would not believe what the pricing on these is. Even so, you can still make an offer for even less. Nothing to lose.

[kani-lehua]

quite true about the real estate market. our friend bought a brand new, never lived in, bank-owned property for $125k. granite counter tops, all new appliances (except for the microwave that was stolen) with marble and laminate flooring.

if you needed to work part-time, what kind of work would you be looking for? future state layoffs and the furlough programs will definitely put those workers into the unemployed pool. i know of a few who have had to become creative and devlop their own type of employment.

[mdand3boys]

I have recently been quite surprised to see several new restaurants open up along the Pahoa "boardwalk area". There seems to be decent amounts of customers in them as well.

[wanttobeinpuna]

Good question....My husband has been in law enforcement for 34 years, but would like a change at this time in life, actually gardening/landscaping would be of interest. Of course having his background working as TSA at the airport might be okay or loss prevention with a business. My background is working with Special Education as a para; specifically assisiting children with Asperbergers Syndrome. The home with granite counters for $125K is very encouraging!

[wanttobeinpuna]

Is Nings still in Pahoa? That was our favorite place to eat!

[ainakeeper]

Originally Posted by wanttobeinpuna

Good question....My husband has been in law enforcement for 34 years, but would like a change at this time in life, actually gardening/landscaping would be of interest. Of course having his background working as TSA at the airport might be okay or loss prevention with a business. My background is working with Special Education as a para; specifically assisiting children with Asperbergers Syndrome. The home with granite counters for $125K is very encouraging!

TSA for your husband may not be a realistic option at this time in the Big Island economy, but Loss Prevention certainly is (theft is on the rise). Several retail companies (Macy's, Wal-Mart, Sears, etc.) have advertised for LP managers and personnel in both Hilo and Kona over the past few months. As far as DD parapros, opportunities still exist, despite much of their program budgets being cut due to direct dependence on diminishing state funds. I happen to be continuing my 20-year tenure in the DD field to supplement my retail management job. Somehow, funding for Autistic children in both school and community settings has managed to elude the bulk of serious budgetary amputations. Here are a few of the agencies offering services to this population through contracts with the DOE and DOH: The Institute for Family Enrichment (TIFFE), Kona Krafts, Nursefinders (BCP, Inc.), The Arc of Hilo, The Arc of Kona, and more. I work with two autistic children on separate days. Both receive 24/7/365 care of which I play a small part. The estimated average expense to tax payers for each is $500 per diem, based on the enormity of simultaneous service involvement from various specialized entities: direct care workers(community-based), skills trainers (school-based), occupational therapists, speech therapists, physical therapists, music/fine arts therapists, psychiatrists, medical specialists, etc., etc. The Return on Investment ratio here begs the question: "Couldn't this money be more efficiently used?"... especially in such a depressed economy where most everyone is struggling and having to sacrifice their way through it in hopes of light at the end of a long, dark tunnel. But hey... although my conscience bothers me to be a party to what seems to be gross fiscal irresponsibility, the extra few thousand a year helps me to keep my head above water!!! The $125,000 home sounds too good to be true; more like something only a savvy and ambitious realtor would be able to gobble up before anyone else could. Just a note about "criminal opportunists": Having spent my first 42 years in mostly rural areas of Texas (the largest city I lived in was Corpus Christi), I had never ever been a victim of theft or vandalism, or even blatant prejudice for that matter. Not so here. Although I'm very dark complected, I've been the target of "locals" on a few occasions for nothing more than my level of literacy. Unrelated to prejudice - our home was burglarized in Dec 2008; my shorts, keys, and watch were stolen while swimming at the Pahoa pool; my tires were slashed while surfing at Isaac Hale Beach Park in Pohoiki (others were too). But these incidences are but a fraction of the countless experiences associated with a fulfilled sense of what Paradise on Earth could be. It's just an "essential," and in my estimation, small price to pay (for Paradise).
Aloha and best of luck to you and yours, wanttobeinpuna!
Ainakeeper,
A bona fide "Punatic"

[wanttobeinpuna]

Your insight is greatly appreciated!

[Afishwithabike]

Originally Posted by ainakeeper

I work with two autistic children on separate days. Both receive 24/7/365 care of which I play a small part. The estimated average expense to tax payers for each is $500 per diem, based on the enormity of simultaneous service involvement from various specialized entities: direct care workers(community-based), skills trainers (school-based), occupational therapists, speech therapists, physical therapists, music/fine arts therapists, psychiatrists, medical specialists, etc., etc. The Return on Investment ratio here begs the question: "Couldn't this money be more efficiently used?"... especially in such a depressed economy where most everyone is struggling and having to sacrifice their way through it in hopes of light at the end of a long, dark tunnel. But hey... although my conscience bothers me to be a party to what seems to be gross fiscal irresponsibility, the extra few thousand a year helps me to keep my head above water!!!

Maybe I misunderstood your post but you seem to be saying these two children shouldn't be having the services you listed. Is that what you meant? If so, I have to say I'm really taken aback by that.

The two children are getting those services thanks to a Federal law - the IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act). If their multidisciplinary IEP teams agreed to provide those services then the children are entitled to those services. It's as simple as that. The team comes up with the various treatment modalities, therapies, and interventions for the children. A team agrees to those services if they believe those services provide fair and appropriate educational benefit. I don't think those parents are gouging the government. Many autistic children in this state and in other states do not benefit from the array of services you've mentioned. Those children are lucky their IEPs are even giving them that much. I don't begrudge them or their families those services.

It's not accurate to think that somehow by trimming services to disabled children the money saved would be spent somewhere else in Puna or on the Big Island or the State. It doesn't work that way. Under the IDEA, the State receives money from the Federal government to provide special education programs. There are a lot of problems with money mismanagement in this state but I don't think trimming services to disabled children is the way to go about things. Families of autistic children face so many difficulties as I'm sure you know. If the children can benefit from speech therapy, OT, music therapy, and whatnot, I say give them those services.

The portions of your post that I bolded really don't sit well with me.