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For instance, did you know that Anderson Cooper (yes I am an Anderson Cooper fan) always takes his bike to work? Well, I am now more determined to move to the BI
Well, I am now more determined to move to the BI as my research proves you are not typical of the fine people of Hawaii. I am thinking you are underestimating how strongwilled we minimalists can be - bullying over the issue just makes you look very small indeed.
I would not recommend that you make the decision to move to the Big Island solely because there are a couple of bullies on this forum who will try to discourage you. They don't even live here, and from what they tell us they live such completely different lives from yours they can't really comprehend what you are talking about. Ignore them.
What I do recommend is that you spend enough time to do thorough research before making any decisions, including at least one exploratory trip to check out all your assumptions in real life. Even if you have been to Hawai'i before on vacation it's not the same at all as looking at everything from the standpoint of living here. There are 1,001 things that are different about living in Hawai'i, out in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, at the end of the longest supply chain on earth, and some of those differences are good and some are not. It pays to stay open minded about both.
OpenD, we will certainly be thorough and will take a good month at a vacation rental to suss things out. I have spent time abroad in the past twenty years including time in Ireland, England, Hungary, Norway and Germany and always enjoyed the new experiences. However, with children in tow my main concern is for their safety and well being so one can only really figure this out with boots on the ground. I understand that Hawaii has a problem with Meth - here in the South they wrestle with Meth but more so with prescription drugs. Our kids are solid and we have no concern over them bothering with drugs but my concern would be with break ins and random drug related violent crimes. We are zooming in on Hilo at the moment - do you have any personal insight into this area as far as criminal activity goes? I think I have established that we will live simply - we have nice quality possessions but too few for any criminal to bother with!
OpenD, we will certainly be thorough and will take a good month at a vacation rental to suss things out. I have spent time abroad in the past twenty years including time in Ireland, England, Hungary, Norway and Germany and always enjoyed the new experiences. However, with children in tow my main concern is for their safety and well being so one can only really figure this out with boots on the ground.
Good, glad you have that in focus. Not everyone who comes here for advice does.
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I understand that Hawaii has a problem with Meth - here in the South they wrestle with Meth but more so with prescription drugs. Our kids are solid and we have no concern over them bothering with drugs but my concern would be with break ins and random drug related violent crimes.
Yes, there is a meth problem in Hawai'i, just as there is in every other state, but overall it's in decline, and it seems to me to be less of an issue on the BI than in quite a few mainland states. Violence is mostly between people who know each other. Property crime tends to be crimes of opportunity. In state rankings by crime stats, Hawai'i tends to come in around the middle.
On a micro level, here's the latest Crime Report from the Volcano community newsletter. The locals consider that we are in the midst of a Crime Wave.
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Volcano Community Crime Stats
4/16/13 - 5/21/13
The following data was obtained from incidents committed within areas spanning from Akatsuka Farms to the Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park, including the Golf Course area.
Criminal - Burglaries 3/Puna 51
4/28 - Lava Rock Cafe/Kilauea General Store, victim reported uknown suspect(s) gained entry into the establishment by cutting the kitchen window screen. Liquor, juice and ipod removed.
5/6 - 9th Street, victim reported that during an incident at his residence that occurred in November 2012, unknown suspect(s) removed tools and other items.
5/10-5/11-Huakai St., victim reported that unknown suspect(s) gained entry into the residence by removing window louvers, jewelry and currency reported removed.
Criminal - Property Damage 1/Puna 36
05/12 - Iiwi Rd., victim reported that her son damaged the windshield of her motor vehicle. Waiver of prosecution form signed.
Robbery 0/Puna 3
Thefts 1/Puna 63
4/19- Anuhea St., suspect removed a costco 5x8 trailer from her property.
On a macro level, looking at the latest Crime in Hawai'i Annual Report for 2011, the State reported that:
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Hawaii County’s total Index Crime rate decreased 9.0% in 2011. Hawaii County’s violent crime rate decreased 3.6%, and the property crime rate decreased 9.5%. Hawaii County’s total Index and property crime rates in 2011 were the lowest in the State of Hawaii, and the lowest on record for Hawaii County since the start of data collection in 1975.
We are zooming in on Hilo at the moment - do you have any personal insight into this area as far as criminal activity goes? I think I have established that we will live simply - we have nice quality possessions but too few for any criminal to bother with!
I'll kick that over to another comment, and we have people here who actually live all around the Big Island who can comment on their respective nabes.
May I offer up a polite suggestion, to help some of us with more temperamental eyesight. Adding some paragraphs or line spaces within your postings will help with the ease of reading your comments.
While I'm offering C-D posting advice, if you find a particular poster giving overly negative or heated advice, you can put that poster on your "ignore list". It is found under "my settings". Putting a poster on that list will prevent their posts from showing on your screen. It can make for a MUCH MORE PEACEFUL time here on C-D.
Good luck with your planning! I'll try to follow this thread a bit closer.
My experience is that I evaluated a move to Maui when I retired. I also sell homes in Las Vegas tp Hawaiians among other people.I could afford it with no further source of income.
First off once on the outer islands and away from the tourist areas Hawaii and particularly the Big Island are rural That says you can live with minimal services and little interaction with others. And many of the support system that exists are family or long term based.
It is expensive. A third or so more than anywhere in the states.
YOu have one alley employment. The outfit he works for folds or gets bought out...your income drops by half until you get off the island.
If you really want to try it go rural for a while. There are aqny number of places where you can live out in the boondocks on your own. If that works well for you you have at least a chance of making it on the Bi
Private schools will cost you $15k to $20K per year per child. If you have 4 children, that could be $80K per year just for education.
Tuition can be that high at some schools. But it can be less also, for example, St. Anthony's in Kailua is a very good school and tuition is under $7K for K-8. St.Francis is $10K for 9-12.
I think the thing to remember is that the OP actually has a rather high yearly income. If they are minimalists and have a high income like that, it's likely they could easily live in a rural off-the-grid Big Island area, in my opinion.
Worst case scenario is they move all their stuff over from Asheville, they make a few losses in airfare and housing and such....than they move on. But, with that kind of high income, I don't see how it can go wrong. If I recall this OP correctly, they homeschool their kids, so a move like that, might be more educational in a multitude of ways as well, even if it went wrong.
The only thing I see is that if the OP and her family move to a potential cheap real estate area in the rainy part of Big Island, they might have their illusion of perpetually sunny vacation-like Hawaii not fitting their preconceptions. If they went to the sunny warm areas vacation-like areas, than their 100K salary might not stretch so far.
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I'll try to follow this thread a bit closer.
