4 Questions before I move to Maui. Desperate for sound advice :) (Kahului: sales, apartments)

[Peewhita]

I normally say Hola but I can't wait to be saying A~LO~HA!!!

A friend of mine is a nurse and has family in Maui and on the Big Island. She and I have decided that we have had enough of the Bluegrass, Whiskey, and Horses . . . (no we are not rednecks lol however we are right across the bridge from Louisville, KY) . . . we are ready to do what we have be dreaming of since HS.

Maui here we come, or so I hope . . . I have 4Qs listed If anyone can help I'd be sooo grateful. I've read a lot of posts but nothing is cut clear enough to ease my mind. I want to enjoy this and not be stressed ya dig? lol

I had Christmas at my house and prepared traditional Hawaiian fare, my apt already looks like a beach house and has since I was 17. I'm ready!

We are 24 yr old single ladies if that helps with the pricing.

~JOB~
She will be set on a job as an RN making close to 90k and having savings. I on the other hand have no job lined up and not much of a savings.

I have a BA in Communications and have tons of diverse experience in administrative, retail, management, event planning, serving, bar tending, hosting events, public speaking, and life guarding.

I have always dreamed of living close to the beach, working on the water even if it means washing boats, seriously!

QUESTION #1 - What kind of money can I expect to be pulling on let's say a server/bar tender job? (I figure they will be the easiest to come by when I first get there)

~HOUSING~
We have been hunting and have found 2bed 1 bath cottages for $1200/mo around 800sqft that are within biking distances to the beach and surrounding shopping areas in Kihei, Wailuku, and Kahului

QUESTION #2 - How much will we be paying monthly for utilities in these areas? (assuming no utilities are included)

~Transportation~
I'm not bringing my car, nor do I have the money to buy one once there.

QUESTION #3 - Is there public transportation in these areas? And if so, how much? Cab per mile, bus per trip, etc?(assuming I can't bike or walk to where it is I'm going)

~FOOD~
I normally have a small breakfast (2eggs w/toast or cereal w/fruit), average Joe lunch (salad or sandwich with yogurt or fruit and veggies), and a descent dinner nothing fancy.

QUESTION #4 - Can anyone share their weekly food expenses for something similar?

I currently make 30,000 a year and pay out 1600 a month in bills, not including entertainment. I don't have much left over after a month but I'm not tightly budgeted either. So, I'm pretty sure I'll do okay there so long as I can get a job that pays similar. Plus I'll have a roommate to help share expenses.

If anyone has any other tips I'd sure appreciate them!

Also, if anyone knows of any rental properties and/or jobs that may fit from what I've mentioned please share. I'm guessing it will be March before I make it down~over.

[whynot?]

I will answer your questions, but there are other posters here who have moved more recently, and they may have additional ideas and information for you.

1) My guess would be that you could ordinarily earn $30-50K as a bartender/server at a medium/nice beach bar or restaurant. Really high end restaurant waiters often make $60-90K. The problem right now will be finding a job. Maui's economy is tourism-based, and the whole state is reeling from reduced consumer spending.

We had dinner with a chef friend last night who told us that he expects to see several long-established restaurants close in the next six months. A few have already shuttered up. He also said that waiters at several resort restaurants are having a hard time getting enough shifts to pay their bills. (He knows because they are calling him for extra work.)

I'm not saying you won't be able to find a job, I'm just saying it may be harder than it normally would and you may not be able to make as much as you would if the economy and tourism were in full swing. (Recovery here has been estimated to take well into 2010 or later.) Lots of people work multiple jobs, but finding two jobs right now is twice as hard.

2) Utility prices are all over the place and there is a lively discussion about them in this forum. We pay for electricity, water, sewage, trash removal, cooking propane, phone and cable -- all of those except electricity are fairly comparable to urban fees on the mainland.

Electricity is the killer because it costs about .47/kWh here. (You can look up your usage where you are and calculate the difference.) Some areas of Kihei are very hot, and you would be uncomfortable w/o fans or A/C. Some areas of Wailuku are quite breezy and comfortable. Kahului is somewhere in the middle.

I strongly suggest that you either visit before you rent anything or that you rent a short-term vacation condo to get your bearings and decide where you want to live. Even if you're familiar with Maui from vacationing, finding a neighborhood that's comfortable for the long haul is very different from staying in the resort areas. A short-term rental also gives you the option of looking for something close to whatever work you find.

3) Maui's public transportation has improved over the past five years, but Maui is fairly rural, so it's not like living near a city with an established system. The buses -- depending upon where you get on and get off -- are $1/trip. Some in the the resort areas are free. Here's a link to the county's transportation site -- there's a link on this page to a PDF bus schedule: Maui County, HI - Official Website - Bus Service & Schedule Information

Taxis are roughly $3/mile, so expensive if you go a long way. They are also not as prevalent as they are around cities, and you usually call them in advance unless you're in an area where there's a stand.

4) This is another topic you can search the forum to find a wealth of info about. There are a couple of recent threads -- one by HankfrmSD that discusses grocery prices and has a link to (at least) one of the grocery store's sites, and another by Think! who posted photos of prices from inside different stores a couple of months ago.

The bottom line here is "it depends." Food is definitely more expensive here because most of it gets shipped in and you're paying for that. But how much you spend also depends on how you eat. Convenience/prepared foods are more expensive than staples. There are great 2-for-1 sales if you have storage space. There are as many variables in grocery expenditures as there are food choices, but unless you're shopping at Whole Foods Market for everything you eat in Kentucky, be prepared to pay more for most things here, significantly more if you are "picky."

Best of luck. There are some great posters here who will have more thoughts for you soon.

[hotzcatz]

Can you room with your friend and get reduced rent in exchange for doing all the house work including cooking and laundry? She has more resources and it will probably be awhile before you will have employment and you won't get anywhere near her level of income.

[Peewhita]

whynot? Thank you for your answers. Its funny that you mention WholeFoods because it is my market of choice However, it is higher than a Kroger or WalMart. Luckily I don't eat alot of meat or dairy. I'm a soy junkie at best. I'm really excited for the move and I'm praying that everything falls into place.

hotzcatz
Thats a really great idea! I'm not sure why I hadn't thought of that.

Are there any local secrets into finding a job, other than networking/knowing the right person?
I really will do almost anything for work, I used to clean houses for a large realestate company, I've nannied, and I use to clean a lumber yard in high shool. lol And yes, like the average college student I've been paid for my plasma donations.

[whynot?]

Originally Posted by Peewhita

Luckily I don't eat alot of meat or dairy. I'm a soy junkie at best.

Yeah, well, a box of six Boca burgers is about $6 when they're not on sale at Safeway. You can do better at Costco, but the big boxes will fill up a small freezer fast. When they are on sale (Boca, Morningstar, other veggie brands), they fly out of the stores, too. Whole Foods is scheduled to open here next year. There are some nice/interesting local markets plus the regular grocery stores in the meantime.

Most people recommend being here in person to do any serious job hunting (unless you're answering a headhunter call or have a unique and marketable skill). People are mostly friendly and helpful, so look around and ask around when you get here. Your past experience shows flexibility and that's a real asset. A lot of employers will mildly "test" you by giving you a lesser job to see how you'll do, then you can move up when you prove yourself. There are just so few jobs, so little money right now that it's hard to predict what you'll find a few months down the road.

Hotzcatz is a genius, BTW.

[Tiki808]

lived in Kihei 3 years with roommate, apartments will be $1200-1500 for 800-1,000 sq ft. Utilities will add up quick, we didnt use anything alot (including no A/C) and we spent $100 mth electricity, basic cable was incl., propane gas was $50 mth, groceries $800 mth, h/w $80 mth. Preparing your own food is essential, you cannot eat out every meal and the less you can purchase of processed goods, the better off you be. Taxis are not an option, youll go broke wiki wiki. go for moped or bicycle, you can bike to anything down s.kihei rd, wailuki, front st, etc. Since you have f&b background, just find a job at anyplace to get some income going. that wont be a problem, benefits are provided across the islands so youll be okay there too. if youre not concerned about image and tings like dat, you be fine. if u are, youll be moving back home by in 3 months. good luck.

[hotzcatz]

Originally Posted by whynot?

<SNIP>
Hotzcatz is a genius, BTW.

*BLUSH* Not! Just used to living on nothing! It is much easier to live on nothing and not have to have much income than finding a job that pays to keep me in the fashion I'd like to become accustomed to!

[R_Cowgirl]

Originally Posted by Peewhita

I normally say Hola but I can't wait to be saying A~LO~HA!!!

~JOB~
She will be set on a job as an RN making close to 90k and having savings. I on the other hand have no job lined up and not much of a savings.

Ok - you want sound advice? Wait a bit before making your move. Several have commented that you may want to go there first and spend a month before moving. Excellent advice. This is a very, very hairy time in Hawaii. There have been several recessions there in the past 2 decades: When the Japan bubble burst; the first Gulf War; the SARS virus scare (minor, but felt); 9/11, the Iraq war, and now this meltdown. Hawaii has been up and down quite a few times. As a completely tourist-based economy, when people stop traveling, the islands struggle.

I understand and completely empathize with your love of the islands. I lived there 30 years, and now live a 6-hour flight from there (in Phoenix.) I have family and friends there, and because of my business, i go 'home' often.

If I were you, I'd fly out -- get a Southwest flight to Phoenix and then take the Hawaiian air direct flight out of here. Better pricing. Arrange for a Bed and Breakfast on both Maui and the big island, or stay with family. REALLY look with eyes wide open. Look beyond the beauty and the wonderful people. Look at reality. All is not magical and rosy in paradise. There are real challenges. If your friend has a contract for $90K as a nurse, that's a good thing. If she's just saying she thinks she can make that in Hi because she's making that where you live now, you need to check that assumption out before moving. The health care situation in Hawaii is nearing a crisis. Especially on the neighbor islands. (of course, that may be why she is seeing those numbers if she has a contract.)

If you DO decide to move, do NOT move all your belongings with you right away. Arrange to keep them in storage on the mainland. You can always ship them out later when you know what you need/want. Prepare to live simply and without a lot of stuff. "He who travels lightest, travels fastest." That way, if things don't work out on one island and you decide to move to another, you won't have extreme costs in moving. Right now, I believe it's about $1.60 a pound to move your things from PHX to HI. Buy a motor scooter or something small when you get there for transportation.

Once you are there, look in the papers for garage sales. There's some turnover in the population -- people who decided they couldn't hack it, military getting relocated, people moving to different islands. You can find some good deals if you know where to look.

Do NOT expect that you can 'live off the land." Fruit hanging from trees on the side of the road has been sprayed. People don't take kindly to strangers wandering onto their property to take fruit from their trees (although, if you are nice to them, they may offer it.) You can't just 'fish' for food. Health food stores are very different from what you are used to. I'm used to Sprouts, Whole foods, sunflower, Safeway, and all those selling organic food at a reasonable price. I almost fell over last month in Down to Earth on Oahu -- something I buy for $1.67 here was $6 there. Occasionally you will find fruit stands and the like. Those are good and reasonable. Farmers markets are also good.

This isn't like moving to Kansas. This is a big move for you. Don't rush it. My sense is we will get out of this recession faster than the doomsayers are telling us. But you don't want to be stuck and not be able to get out of Hawaii if things don't work out.

So - go visit. Check things out for yourself. Have a strategy. Spending a little money up front to scout things out will save you a lot of grief later.
I absolutely LOVE the people of Hawaii and If you are kind and gentle and patient, you will make a lot of friends. It will definitely be a learning experience for you! It was for me!

Good luck!

[Dreaming of Hawaii]

Excellent post, Cowgirl! PLEASE save it because you could probably repost it every week with some newby asking the same question. I think your answers were very realistic and gave good advise.

[Jungjohann]

If Hotcatz is a "genius", which Hotcatz obviously is, then I think Cowgirl has "pushed the envelope" a bit. I've been here 33 years, couldn't have said it better myself, so, I won't even try. But VERY sound advice!!!! I can't begin to count the number of people I've seen, all starry eyed and totally in love with Hawaii, move here, only to be begging for a ride to the airport 8 or 12 months later.......................

Aoha and okolemaluna