Questions about building a small cabin in Fern Acres Hawaii (Pahoa: new home, construction) - Big Island - (HI) -The Island of Hawaii - Page 7 - City-Data Forum

leilaniguy · 08-26-2010, 05:56 PM

The last time I submitted plans was in '03. I paid the engineer $350 with no revisions. I'm guessing ballpark would still be under $500 unless changes are needed.

fahsky · 08-30-2010, 03:29 AM

Wooow, there's a lot of

in this thread.

I live in Fern Acres, have for the past ten years. I don't state this as a starting point for people to say 'well, you just don't understand because...'. We bought an UNPERMITED (*shockgaspawe*) home on Pikake Street, & 8 acres for $56k back in 2000. It was a shambling pile of mold & rotting wood, & we managed to rip it to it's beams, & practically rebuild it. But, surprise, there's no way in hell to permit it. Anyway.

We bought another lot here in the Acres, & some in Ainaloa, & I've built an UNPERMITED (*stonedflailedwhipped*) cabin on the one here on Plumeria Street. I love (most) my neighbors, & tolerate the ones I don't. The only ones that really draw my ire are the iceheads, & that's because they try & steal #$&% from me, & everyone else. I'm going to school, working from home, raising a baby, living off the land & paying taxes. My cabin was built by licensed, professional carpenters, electricians & plumbers - its what my husband does for a living. Its perfectly safe, & cute, IMO. Anyway!

I came here to post that Fern Acres is one of the very few places a person can come & homestead on their land on the island. The land is affordable, as are the homes. These are the exact words of one of our community association members. We pay road fees here, so we have nice roads & the junk abandon cars get towed off. People jog, ride bikes, walk their dogs, take babies out in strollers, etc. We're a friendly neighborhood. Its not just stupid people from the mainland that build "shacks". A lot of us are living in them while we work our asses off for Uncle Sam & to save for a ~real~ house. We're proud of our unpermited structures, because hey, that's a damn sight better than being homeless or living out of your car.

alaskangrown · 08-30-2010, 10:17 AM

Well, and the point is too, that every unpermitted structure isn't a shack. I've seen the most incredible homes, breathtaking custom homes, that wouldn't be permitted because of materials used (locally harvested koa and eucalypts, used windows!). There are people in tent shacks. There are people in $250K homes, both unpermitted.

I would rather mind my own business and not worry about what everyone else is doing

mproveaux · 08-30-2010, 02:34 PM

Actually, did you know that if you don't specify windows in your building plans, no windows are required by code. And you can use recycled materials so long as they are not structural; a guy in our hood installed used metal roofing that looks like it's rusted beyond the point of use, but his house passed!

Why not just rent or buy and resell a permitted (manufactured to code specs) until you get your permit to occupy? People all over the world compost humanure for a variety of reasons; either they have to or they want to. If you have an acre or more of land you still have to treat your grey water; why not buy the septic tank, have the leach field dug, get it inspected and then sell the tank. I don't know about anyone else, but I can't afford the cost of fertilizer to keep all the fruit trees alive I have on my property; without my greywater and compost, forget about it, I'd be broke or not eating.

Life is short, and not everyone can afford (or wants to) what is now considered a conventional home. A woman inundated our hearts when she approached Obama on one of his trips to tell of her story of homelessness and living in a car with children in a big city. Should she really not be allowed to stack tires 6 feet tall and throw some metal roofing on it?

On compiling information for a huge report I did for the University of Hawaii at Hilo, I contacted the State Housing Department and asked why they think that so many people live in "substandard" housing in the many "substandard" subdivisions on the Big Island. Their quote was that "some people like to live like that". Really? I think that the quote is intriguing and worthy of much contemplation.

Live in peace, life is short but centuries are long.

Balad1 · 08-30-2010, 09:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by alaskangrown

Well, and the point is too, that every unpermitted structure isn't a shack. I've seen the most incredible homes, breathtaking custom homes, that wouldn't be permitted because of materials used (locally harvested koa and eucalypts, used windows!). There are people in tent shacks. There are people in $250K homes, both unpermitted.

I would rather mind my own business and not worry about what everyone else is doing

Who in their right mind would invest $250K in an unpermitted house?

alaskangrown · 08-31-2010, 03:38 PM

Why not? There is a house on my street that is so incredible, all custom- it almost looks like a castle (it has a little tower!) that is unpermitted. If I had $250 to blow, I'd buy it!

Balad1 · 08-31-2010, 05:16 PM

Someday the unpermitted home will have to be sold; whether by the original builder or that person's heirs. An unpermitted home will sell for half or less of a comparable permitted house. Additional prospective buyers can't get insurance, a mortgage or many times grid electricity on the unpermitted house.

So back to my original statement: “Who in their right mind would invest $250K in an unpermitted house?”

mdand3boys · 08-31-2010, 05:50 PM

When, not if, the County realizes the money in fees and fines that they can make off of un-permitted buildings, they will be out in full force.

Since you cannot get electric service without first getting a building permit, that also precludes trying to bypass the permits as well. Sure, you could go solar, but if you want electric, you have to get a permit. Plus, the electric company charges around $0.10+ extra per kwh for temporary power. You get charged the normal rate after you pass the final inspection.

If the electric company started enforcing their own rules about temporary power and when your permit expires - you could end up losing power until you get your building permitted.

poschulte · 09-05-2010, 04:43 PM

EFRCDAK
Hey Alaskans bound for Hawaii!
My girlfriend owns a plot of land and have been researching best methods to build (starting off) a cabin - probably post and beam. Lots of issues to concider and would like to get in contact with
Alaskans building on the Big Island. Think we could share ideas. I talked to a guy from there who
works at Home Depot and he claims a whole kit cabin shipped from a place in Oregon is the best and cheapest way to go. Kind of like building my own thing (but not opposed to his idea) but maybe
like years ago back in New England a group of Alaskans can get together to help each other build -
Like an old time barn raising!

alaskangrown · 09-06-2010, 10:45 AM

Totally. Where foes she have land?

I've looked at some kits (so briefly!), and the ONLY way they'd be cheaper was if you compared it to having to pay for someone to build a home for you. If you provide your own labour, you're just building equity.

I'd be curious to see if they have a website though, as it might be a good idea for some. My main concern too would be that the design would be poorly suited for the tropics, as many of the kits we saw. Yurts are a good fit, when outfitted with screen windows and vents.