Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Well, I realize that places like San Francisco and New York are way different than Atlanta - but I also know that wages in those places are a heck of a lot higher than here, which at least offsets some of the higher cost of living. The thing that makes Hawaii "uniquely" different is that not only the cost of living is sky-high (and I know this is due to Hawaii's remote location), but wages are just as low as they are in the rural south - that's the part that doesn't make sense. To me, a high COL should equal higher wages, and in most places, that's true. Another thing that sucks for the poorer people in Hawaii is that there are no true low-cost neighborhoods to live anywhere in the islands - even New York City has cheaper neighborhoods that don't cost an arm and leg to live in, and just about all major cities have their high and low-cost areas - so that the lower-income people can still live decent lives, most especially in a place like Atlanta, where housing is cheap and getting cheaper all the time, especially so in the poorer areas.
I'm not sure after looking it up that Georgia is such a great place to live - in the period 2006-2010, Georgia median household income: $49,347. Percentage of people below poverty 15.7%. Hawaii median household income $66,420 - percentage of people below poverty 9.6%.
So - we have a higer median income and less people as a percentage of population in poverty. I think I'll stay here in Hawaii.
I'm not sure after looking it up that Georgia is such a great place to live - in the period 2006-2010, Georgia median household income: $49,347. Percentage of people below poverty 15.7%. Hawaii median household income $66,420 - percentage of people below poverty 9.6%.
So - we have a higer median income and less people as a percentage of population in poverty. I think I'll stay here in Hawaii.
This: Median value of owner-occupied housing units, 2006-2010 $537,400 $188,400 (Atlanta, $110,000)
You do the math - you gotta be rich to live in Hawaii to equal what a poor person gets by with here - Atlanta is probably the No 1 place in the country to be poor, simply because you get so much more for your money here.
I'm not sure after looking it up that Georgia is such a great place to live - in the period 2006-2010, Georgia median household income: $49,347. Percentage of people below poverty 15.7%. Hawaii median household income $66,420 - percentage of people below poverty 9.6%.
So - we have a higer median income and less people as a percentage of population in poverty. I think I'll stay here in Hawaii.
For the cost of living, that $50k in GA is way higher than the $66k in Hawaii. The % in poverty is based on a flat income number, regardless of COL, so it means nothing.
I don't know about Georgia, but there are plenty of nice places in the country where wages are high and cost of living is low. And if you're union, you can bet you're making at least a living wage.
I guess the problems with Hawaii are what NorthStarDelight said, plus people who were born and raised here are likely to stay because this is where their family is. They also aren't aware of all their options because their only trips out of HI are to Vegas or maybe California. Of course there's also a brain drain, but it seems to be made up for by suckers like me who move here to take jobs that they can't fill locally. Then we leave after a few years and more people come. It's like a large scale version of the business that pays crappy wages and treats its workers badly, but gets by with a high turnover rate.
For the cost of living, that $50k in GA is way higher than the $66k in Hawaii. The % in poverty is based on a flat income number, regardless of COL, so it means nothing.
Let's ask the almost 16% of people living in poverty in Georgia if it means nothing. Georgia has about as many people in poverty as the entire population of Hawaii.
Let's ask the almost 16% of people living in poverty in Georgia if it means nothing. Georgia has about as many people in poverty as the entire population of Hawaii.
You aren't understanding my point. I'm saying it means nothing that the poverty % is lower in Hawaii. The % does not take into account the higher COL here. It's based on the same "poverty line".
Let's ask the almost 16% of people living in poverty in Georgia if it means nothing. Georgia has about as many people in poverty as the entire population of Hawaii.
I used to work with some of these "poor" people when i did my Americorps service a few years back - one lady who was a Katrina refugee who was relocated to Atlanta with nothing but her clothes on her back, and here she was at my place of work in a job training program boosting about the 2000 sq-foot house she lived in, the nice clothes she wore with the price tags attached (an odd fashion trend among certain african-americans around here), and with her job training program, she was able to land a $14 an hour job at the local Wal-Mart...hey, that's doing pretty good for a welfare mom, huh? I find it truly amazing at how well the "poor" people live around here, what with Section 8, food stamps, WIC and all those other guvvie programs, most of which are geared towards people living in high cost areas, so it works out really well around here for them...lol.
If I had to be poor, I'd MUCH rather be poor here and live the "good life" than be poor in Hawaii, where you're lucky to have your own bedroom in a substandard apartment, even if you do have a job.
Last edited by NorthStarDelight; 04-07-2012 at 03:33 PM..
Those of you who are fed up with the rapacious cost of living in Hawaii + absurdly low wages, maybe you oughta come to Atlanta and see how life is meant to be lived...lol.
I have been to Atlanta Georgia. I have friends that have lived in Atlanta Georgia. NorthStarDelight, Atlanta Georgia is no Hawai'i.
But I am glad you like it!
I think you and Wink should jump in the car - get off the beaten path between Chattanooga Atlanta and Valdosta and Atlanta and take a little tour. If you want to see some of the poorest of the poor in the nation you won't have to look very hard. Wink may feel all bent out shape in Maui - but it isn't anything compared to how poorly many people live in Georgia. Georgia is not the paradise you are trying to make it out to be.
I think you and Wink should jump in the car - get off the beaten path between Chattanooga Atlanta and Valdosta and Atlanta and take a little tour. If you want to see some of the poorest of the poor in the nation you won't have to look very hard. Wink may feel all bent out shape in Maui - but it isn't anything compared to how poorly many people live in Georgia. Georgia is not the paradise you are trying to make it out to be.
What? I definitely don't want to live in Georgia or anywhere in the deep south. I know how much it sucks.
But I think his point, and I agree, is that jobs that are supposed to be good union jobs, that would pay decently anywhere else, don't in Hawaii.
You aren't understanding my point. I'm saying it means nothing that the poverty % is lower in Hawaii. The % does not take into account the higher COL here. It's based on the same "poverty line".
Actually, it does take higher COL into account... current federal poverty levels:
IOW, the minimum income to be above the poverty line is 15% higher in Hawai'i than the mainland, due to the higher COL in Hawai'i.
Last edited by OpenD; 04-07-2012 at 05:47 PM..
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
To me, a high COL should equal higher wages, and in most places, that's true. Another thing that sucks for the poorer people in Hawaii is that there are no true low-cost neighborhoods to live anywhere in the islands - even New York City has cheaper neighborhoods that don't cost an arm and leg to live in, and just about all major cities have their high and low-cost areas - so that the lower-income people can still live decent lives, most especially in a place like Atlanta, where housing is cheap and getting cheaper all the time, especially so in the poorer areas.
