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Old 02-04-2013, 10:25 AM
 
152 posts, read 371,371 times
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lots of weather positives, in the islands.
Question: Many here are not living there and post advice as if they were/are
sages of knowledge , and am not being a critic at all. But, if those nice folks LOVE the islands, why are you
elsewhere ? The answer SEEMS to be that life is quite expensive there. Many leave, it seems. My
review of most if not all postings related to a move, point to a shortage of reasonable costs in simple lease-rent of a viable place with routine amenities such as practical ONE car parking at a residence without paying rent for a spot, or on a street which has obstacles to just taking groceries to the residence, or
getting one "open" to park at all. Crazy. High rises that all appear to be NYC on an island in the ocean.
I "get" the lack of property, but, why so many that are middle class markets with upper class costs? And, are too often not updated past late 1970s interiors or worse. Due to the costs, it MAY be that owners are on the mainland and just use the locations as income and forget about the rest. Of course, tourists spots are self evident - come, spend, leave, scenarios that affect service staff lower wages and provide property tax income to the state, from off island owners.

Be honest, what are the incentives to actually LIVE there at such high costs w/o dwelling on the "paradise" fantasy perceived by most not reading about realities there? Being: infrastructure, schools, low and LACK of sufficient jobs paying wages equivalent to the actual COST of life. " Intangible, " life is my daily dose of
aloha, is not the real means to PAY for same. Dreams are one thing, awakening is quite another.
Thanks and I am NOT at all interested in a debate, just seek honesty about reality there.
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Old 02-04-2013, 01:09 PM
 
892 posts, read 2,388,002 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by OKfine View Post
But, if those nice folks LOVE the islands, why are you
elsewhere?
Well I can only speak for myself in that regard...but for our family it's just been a very long process of research and visiting and job hunting. My wife's recently had several very positive interviews though and we're hoping to hear back from one soon, so maybe this user's "status" is about to change? We shall see!

I wouldn't even know how to begin with our "reasons" or whatever, my wife grew up on Oahu and she's wanted to return all her life. Our research (both online and in person) has only made that pull stronger, and fortunately the point she's reached in her career is now making our prospects more immediate for a move. We currently live in our absolute favorite place on the mainland, but that's all it is...our favorite place on the mainland.

We can live here more cheaply, with better public school access, and certain things would be simpler logistically, but that's not our long term goal. Our goal is to move to Oahu, and I guess (for us) all the various "intangibles" add up to quite a lot.

Last edited by khyron; 02-04-2013 at 02:12 PM..
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Old 02-04-2013, 01:41 PM
 
Location: TX
795 posts, read 1,389,017 times
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I like posting here from time to time because while not living in Hawaii, I have spent a few extended times (3-6 months) in Honolulu, and have a feel for life there.

The only reason I don't live there is because 90% of everyone I know and love are in the NYC metro area. I have contacts in Hawaii but they're not as rooted. Someday I will give Honolulu a few permanent months in my calendar.

The higher cost of living in Hawaii gets a lot of airtime, but in all honesty, is overplayed. It is easily comparable to many other parts of the country. The NYC, LA, South FL, Boston, Chicago, Washington DC, San Diego and San Francisco metro areas for example are all just as expensive. As such, I tend to roll my eyes when people dismiss Hawaii on cost alone. So many people will gladly live in NYC but say Hawaii is too expensive... makes no sense.

I think the main differences are availability of high-paying jobs and travel costs. In all the above metro areas, people pay premiums to live because it's understood there are enough career opportunities for them to advance. The same can't be said for Hawaii, even Honolulu. Employers favor locals and locals tend to stay, so there is a high barrier to entry for mainlanders. And if you have a lot of family and friends on the mainland, the travel costs will add up.
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Old 02-04-2013, 02:18 PM
 
Location: Virginia
1,014 posts, read 2,093,281 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by OKfine View Post
Be honest, what are the incentives to actually LIVE there at such high costs w/o dwelling on the "paradise" fantasy perceived by most not reading about realities there?
Incentives to live here? The weather is awesome, the beaches are very nice, the ocean is warm, the hiking is fun, the scenery is gorgeous. In town there are lots of things to do, dining, movies, shopping, etc, and it's only a short drive to get away from all that.

Honolulu is a big town. Waikiki does look like part of NYC with the high-rises, but I like it.

I live here, but do not post all that often because...well, I made the move, documented most of it here, and am busy living/thriving here. This forum has lots of good advice and some regulars who caution people on some of the things that are unique to the area. I'll be the first to admit..I may live here, but I'm no sage of knowledge.
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Old 02-04-2013, 04:31 PM
 
Location: North Idaho
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There are a lot of people who do not live in Hawaii who are on this forum because they are fact finding. A major move takes a lot of planning, study, and preparation.
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Old 02-04-2013, 05:08 PM
 
Location: Volcano
12,969 posts, read 28,355,558 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by celcius View Post
The higher cost of living in Hawaii gets a lot of airtime, but in all honesty, is overplayed. It is easily comparable to many other parts of the country. The NYC, LA, South FL, Boston, Chicago, Washington DC, San Diego and San Francisco metro areas for example are all just as expensive.
Sorry, but the monthly Cost of Living surveys say otherwise. The cities you listed represent a very wide spread in actual COL, and only NYC and San Fran are roughly in the same range as Honolulu.

Here's the current tally, from the latest government figures. With an average Consumer Price Index of 100 across the country, here are the relative indexes for each city, and the COL difference from Honolulu.

City..... COL Index.. Comparison to Honolulu

Chicago ....... 105 .... Honolulu is 79% more expensive
Washington...143..... Honolulu is 32% more expensive
San Diego .....143.... Honolulu is 32% more expensive
Boston ..........149.... Honolulu is 26% more expensive
New York .......169.....Honolulu is 11% more expensive
Honolulu.........188
San Francisco..199.....Honolulu is 5% less expensive.


The multiplier, unfortunately, is that Honolulu wages are lower on average than mainland wages, yielding an even bigger loss of buying power than the differences in cost alone might indicate.
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Old 02-04-2013, 05:18 PM
 
Location: Kahala
12,120 posts, read 17,827,729 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by OpenD View Post
San Francisco..199.....Honolulu is 5% less expensive.


The multiplier, unfortunately, is that Honolulu wages are lower on average than mainland wages, yielding an even bigger loss of buying power than the differences in cost alone might indicate.
A typical IT developer making $100,000 in San Francisco will typically make $50,000 to $70,000 for a Honolulu employer.

I moved from San Francisco and indeed, the costs are similar (rent has recently gotten higher in SF than HNL) - but that cut in pay is a huge impact.

Also, many many min wage jobs in Hawaii which is $7.25/hr versus $10.55 in SF, that is a huge difference.
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Old 02-04-2013, 05:48 PM
 
Location: Portland, OR
1,082 posts, read 2,397,838 times
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I've been fascinated by Hawaii since I was 12 years old, I married a Hawaiian woman, I've been to the Islands half a dozen times, I have many Hawaiian friends and in-laws, and I love the culture, climate, and scenery. I post on this forum because I think I have a valuable perspective to offer, and I enjoy reading posts from other people who love Hawaii. The reason my wife and I haven't moved to Hawaii and probably never will is purely financial: we're middle-aged people with good jobs we could never hope to replicate in Hawaii, and we own a nice but modest house that, on Oahu, would cost at least three times what it's worth here in Portland, Oregon. It's sort of a catch-22: we might be able to find decent jobs in Honolulu, but we couldn't afford decent housing. On our current salaries, we could afford a house on the east side of the Big Island (where my wife is from), but there are no jobs in our fields there, so we wouldn't be able to make our current salaries. We might be able to retire on the BI someday, but right now, it looks like it will make more financial sense to stay where we are and just visit Hawaii for longer periods of time than we do now. We live a comfortable but modest lifestyle, and, unlike many people who post here, we're not willing to do "whatever it takes" and cut our standard of living to the bone for the "privilege of living in paradise." Of course, it helps that we love Portland in particular and the PNW in general as much as we love Hawaii (yes, we even like the climate here), so we're not wanting to escape a place we hate.
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Old 02-04-2013, 07:32 PM
 
252 posts, read 517,398 times
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i used to go to school at UH Manoa... for like 3 years.. the last year i did online in california.. It was too expensive to live in hawaii after a while.. Its really crowded for being out in the middle of the ocean. That always bothered me, the isolation of the hawaiian islands. and also the poor , crime ridden neighborhood i lived in too (Kapiolani Blvd/Date Street area).. I got mugged once and I was chased by meth heads with steel pipes once and someone got raped in my apartment complex by a bum that broke in..That was not good. But once i moved out the bad neighborhood things got a lot better... Honolulu metro is kind of seedy with the exception of Waikiki and other rich areas but the rest of Oahu is beautiful , it has nice beaches , mountains. The people are ok i guess... It varies from person to person..

Last edited by 7stringguitarguy; 02-04-2013 at 07:41 PM..
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Old 02-04-2013, 07:42 PM
 
1,730 posts, read 3,800,692 times
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Bad people live everywhere, even Hawaii. Knowing about the safety of a neighborhood before you move in to it is important. Living in a "crime ridden neighborhood" is not going to be any funner just because it is in Hawaii.

Here we go again with the mantra: Never buy sight unseen, or sign a lease sight unseen.
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