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We live in Seattle suburbs. Want to move to Hawaii. What are pros and cons of the different islands? Mainly Oahu, Kauai and Maui? Sorry, don't want VOG and I want to be close to beaches. House or condo? Fee simple please. For Oahu people, I don't want to be near Waikiki area...Property taxes vs. HOA fees. Here I pay property taxes of $5000 a year for 2000 sf home. What's the difference in Hawaii? Is each island different for taxes/hoa? Thanks.
Couldn't say for sure pros and cons for which island. It more depends upon you and where you live, which niche you fit into. Won't know until you try it really. What things are you interested in know about for the pros and cons?
VOG is on Oahu and Maui at times, it goes in the tradewinds to those islands. plus from what I read, you get the sugarcane burns on Maui that happen up to 5 times a year.
You will find links to what the property taxes are from here. State Of Hawaii Newcomer's Guidehttp://portal.ehawaii.gov/ Oahu is lower than Maui. I don't keep track of Kauai to know. Each Island county is different from one another. HOA fees vary widely, but from what I read, minimum is $400 on up to the thousands. Plus on Oahu there can be parking fees that add up fast, perhaps $200 per car. Where ever you are looking at living, you should be able to get the fees from them to compare individually.
Don't buy anything until you've lived here six months or so. There are just so many variables that it is impossible to pick the right spot from far away. Have you visited each of the islands you are interested in yet? Might we worthwhile to take a several week trip to each one before deciding to move there.
I've been to Oahu over a dozen times on vacation. I've been to Maui 4 times and Kauai once. If I were to move to Hawaii, I don't want to be in the city. Why move to tropical weather when you are stuck in the city? I want quietness, and if I get lonely, I can always go to my local church and volunteer and make friends that way. I think I would spend more time outdoors hiking, beach walking, swimming, snorkeling, etc., rather than stay indoors like I do now in the Seattle area. However, I'm not retired yet. I'd like to retire in 10 years. I realize when I retire and if we move to Hawaii, I will be downsizing our house, but more than likely pay the same price as what my larger house is worth now.
I do agree, that it would be best for us to live there 6 months prior to buying. I like Kauai, but it seems the temperature is a bit cooler than the other islands and it gets more rain on the north end. When we were there, it rained mostly in the evenings. During the day, if it did rain, it was sporadic and didn't last long. Being from Seattle, it's gray most of the time and drizzles. If Maui is a lot more expensive for whatever reason, perhaps Kauai would be best. But what about accessing health care? When we were in Kauai, I was in the hospital for one week and almost died - the doctor saved my life! For that, I am forever grateful to Wilcox Hospital doctors. Anyway, I've rambled on here, but can you give me your opinion from living there, the preferences, differences, etc. of Oahu (unpopulated areas but not more than 45 minutes away from downtown), Maui and Kauai? And what areas (I think I would like the leeward sides best because of less rain, but I'm used to it here.
Sunaimer, any chance we could trade places, lol, just kidding. I been looking to move to Seattle for about 6 months but no luck finding jobs so I've given up that plan for now. I live on Oahu. You said you don't want to be in the city and don't want vog, then you'd probably have to move to rural Oahu or Maui or Kauai. Naturally Oahu has the most options for doctors and I hear there is a severe shortage of doctors on the other islands. Oahu does get vog a few times a year but it usually only lasts a few days then its gone and it's not as severe as the Big Island vog.
Not sure how unpopulated of an area you want to live in but on Oahu the most unpopulated area is probably the north shore. Otherwise you'd probably want to move to either Maui or Kauai. From what I've heard, things on the other islands are slightly more expensive than on Oahu but I don't think there's a big difference between Kauai and Maui prices. FYI since I was looking to move to Seattle earlier, I've done a lot of comparison on the cost of living difference between Honolulu and Seattle and most websites give about a 25% COL increase in Honolulu compared to Seattle. The biggest increase is for housing.
Vog in Hawaii!!! It depends how the air currents develop. If no tradewinds blowing sulfuric smoke away from the Hawaiian Island chain, it will blanket almost all the islands at one swoop, sometimes lasting a week at best. If you have problems breathing, i.e. asthma etc. Stay indoors with aircon on...the islands are very breathtaking but the Vog will affect your breathing literally...
As one in the midst of planning a move to the Big Island, my advice is first visit the place you are thinking about relocating to.
If that doesn't suit you and you are still thinking about a move, visit another island and check it out.
Without an on the ground detailed look around, you cannot have a reasonable idea as to what to expect.
I suggest a detailed 2 week road trip into every nook and cranny of your target destination checking out thoroughly everything of interest to you if you were to live there.
And, a second trip to verify and expand your knowledge would not be out of order.
When you get back home Google, Google, Google [or what ever your favorite search engine is], ... everything you can think of and that you might find in your online searching that might affect your decision ... dig, dig, dig.
You will get hours upon hours of monitor face time.
Check and cross check everything.
Verify every bit of information.
Don't be lazy about it.
Check out forums that are general and specific to where you are thinking about.
Some info gleaned through forums can be very helpful.
Other things offered can be misleading, or simply not applicable and a waste of your time.
You will need to verify everything to see if it applies to you and your situation.
It is your decision to make.
You are responsible to find out everything you need to know in order to make an informed decision.
In the end if you decide to make the move, no matter how much you research, you will still find surprises to be dealt with.
Remain flexible and deal with them as they come up.
With a formula similar to that, life should remain happy after you make the transition.
It always has for me.
Best of luck with your new adventure.
But what about accessing health care? When we were in Kauai, I was in the hospital for one week and almost died - the doctor saved my life! For that, I am forever grateful to Wilcox Hospital doctors. .
Consider yourself extremely lucky.
Patients are routinely airlifted over to Oahu for care that is simply unavailable on the outer islands. Wilcox Hospital does the best it can but it absolutely does not offer access to treatment for complicated medical or surgical issues.
IME this is a big shock to some who move here. They end up in a hospital on Oahu, their family members incur the costs of having to stay on Oahu (loss of income, hotel room, etc) and they are very upset. Not quite what they envisioned when they moved here (tropical paradise, life is good...).
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