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Again, all these questions have been answered before, repeatedly, which is probably why you got a rude reception at first. Take the time to do some homework and you'll have a different set of questions to ask.
OpenD, with all due respect it was the OP that was rude. I'm not sure if you were calling whtviper or me or both of us rude but I believe you are wrong. Whtviper merely stated the blunt truth. I based my post on her stringent list of must haves to live in Hawaii. I was helped when I was a newcomer and have tried to pay it forward over 30 years. I don't see the same spirit from the OP.
You really gave a comprehensive reply and I hope the OP appreciates it more than she has the good advice she has been given so far.
CherryKoolaidDrinker
Here is some Werehouse jobs listed for Honolulu, to give you a idea of the wages in and around Honolulu.
werehouse jobs in Honolulu: https://www.google.com/search?q=were...sm=93&ie=UTF-8
As stated about everything is more expensive in the Islands.
The farther away from down town Honolulu, that less expensive,(Central Oahu around Mililani, is where is would look to live good schools in the area) not by a lot, but less. You did not mention where the location of your proposed job so its kinda hard to recommend an area to look into?
Then there is the Traffic if you have to commuit into Honolulu from central Oahu. People do it but is a pain in-the-you-no-what!
US cities with the worst traffic jams 2013 out of the top 10 in the US in a news article that came out a couple of days ago:
1. Los Angeles, CA
According to the 2014 Inrix Traffic Scorecard, drivers in the City of Angels suffer the worst traffic tie-ups in the nation, with commuters wasting an average 64 hours last year sitting in traffic.
2. Honolulu, HI
Average time wasted in traffic annually: 60 hours
Just some insight for you. Best of luck in your search.
Scott
Last edited by ScottStielow; 03-10-2014 at 11:00 PM..
Reason: Added information
OpenD, with all due respect it was the OP that was rude. I'm not sure if you were calling whtviper or me or both of us rude but I believe you are wrong. Whtviper merely stated the blunt truth.
As the Terms of Service here puts it,
Be careful with your words, there is a point where being direct crosses a line into blunt, in-your-face hostility.
In my experience, being unkind or hostile is pretty much the least effective way to communicate with people, as anyone who is an earnest student of human nature, or an effective people-manager will testify.
As we've seen here over and over again, smacking someone down with mean-spirited and unkind responses accomplishes nothing, and nearly always turns the recipient defensive.
Don't tell me you can't tell someone the straight truth without being nasty. I find that to be a hollow excuse for behaving badly towards others.
To hawaiianbyheart, OpenD, hotzcatz and ScottieStielow, thank you very much for your replies. Luckily I have a bit of time to continue my research before I have to make a decision on the job, so thanks again for your helpful and respectful replies. It is because I don't want to make a rash decision and I don't want to be one of the boomerang transplants that I am researching and asking these questions. These are the same types of questions I would be asking if I were moving to any other state, not just Hawai'i. Too bad some of those who responded felt the need to make rude comments and come off appearing sanctimonious and pretentious. But then again, I've been around the interwebs for almost 20 years and know keyboard bullies are everywhere.
Again, thank you for your help and your honest replies. It is one thing to see the "touristy" side of Hawai'i and another to live the real deal. And since I don't know what the "real deal" is, I have to ask questions and try to get as much insight and information as possible. So again, thank you for taking the time to answer my questions.
I will continue to research and try to determine if this next step in my career will be beneficial or not
That poster was trying to help you. It's really common on these boards that folks don't want to accept the advice given them if they WISH to hear something else.
I love the idea of living in Hawai'i but I'm terrified. Right now all moving expenses will be paid for by the company, but if we don't like it or the job doesn't work out, unsure how we'd make it back to the mainland so this is a huge decision for us
The truth of the matter is nobody can really effectively help you with this as everyone has a totally different perspective on what is "nice" or "clean" or "safe" or even "living beyond ones means" and anything else you can come up. My best advice to you is to go with your intuition, if you are feeling terrified about such a big and uncertain move then perhaps it is either not the right time or just not meant to be. Moving out here is nothing at all like moving to another state on the mainland. You are traveling at least 8 hours by air (assuming midwest) to an island where everything is expensive, including shipping/receiving automobiles and personal belongings. If you move everything you own out here on the company tab, then you will have to foot the bill if you end up moving back. Assuming the movers use a pod or storage bin, your shipping, including cars, could be well over $10k and if things do not work out, will you have an extra $10k on hand to get everything back to the mainland? I do not wish to talk you out of moving out here but trying to give a very rudimentary idea of the most basic situations you might have to deal with if it does not work out or Hawaii is not according to your expectations. Best of luck to you in making the decision that is best for you.
CKD, I think the only certain means to determine the feasibility of a move is to examine
the certainties of a move. This holds true regardless if the move is to Hawai'i or Texas.
The only certainty you have at the moment is that you have a job paying $70,000/year.
How much disposable income are you going to be left with after two major outlays
on $70,000 per year? Specifically rent and taxes. Hawai'i has a state tax and you will be
paying federal taxes too. If you are planning on a gross income of $70,000 you will likely
have 20% or more of it going towards taxes. A rental with two bedrooms might cost anywhere
from $1800-$3,000 per month. Let's use $2400 as the average. That yearly rental cost is
$28,800.
You already now have approximately $43,000 in costs which leaves you a balance of
$27,000 (approx. $2,250/month) to pay for necessities such as food and electricity. You
may end up paying close to $1200 per month as a combined total for both of those categories.
A lot of those two costs depend on what and how much you eat as well as how much
hot water and A/C you end up using. That leaves $1,050/month for payments like car
insurance (provided you have a car or two you plan to bring with you), gasoline and
maintenance; cell phone, cable, credit cards, etc., etc.
This doesn't leave you a lot of wiggle room. It may be offset if your husband is able
to find employment that is satisfactory to his needs and your family's financial security.
As others have pointed out, there is risk. Everyone and every family has its own
understanding of what is their tolerance for risk.
Yes. What is decent on Oahu might appear to be ghetto to you. Paradigm shift ahead.
That's really one of the biggest points. I can get a 1000 sq ft apartment her for $1500 and a comparable in San Francisco. But the San Francisco apartment will be much nicer!
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Too bad some of those who responded felt the need to make rude comments and come off appearing sanctimonious and pretentious. But then again, I've been around the interwebs for almost 20 years and know keyboard bullies are everywhere.
Again, thank you for your help and your honest replies.
OP, would you please point out the dishonest and rude comments made to you? I'd let this go but you seem to want to keep the pot stirred. If my BFF came to me saying they wanted to move to Hawaii and they stated they MUST have a house (too good for an apartment/condo) in a safe area with good schools and low teacher/student ratio and weren't sure how they would get back to the mainland if things didn't work out and all they had going for them is a $70,000 job and a husband with no degree and no special skills then I would tell them in words much more direct to NOT come to Hawaii. I stated that the first response to you was "blunt" for lack of a better word on my part. Rereading it I never meant blunt in a negative way. It was honest and probably more helpful than you will ever realize.
In my experience of having Honolulu rentals I talk to a lot of people similar to you who have mainland expectations of Hawaii and hate everything Hawaii instead of adapting to Hawaii. Yes. I talk to people that can't wait to get out of paradise. Fine if you don't like it but your attitude here as others have pointed out does not bode well for your success in Hawaii.
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