Hawaii by the numbers - unemployment (Honolulu: sale, real estate, apartment)

[whtviper1]

I've been reading lately what seems to be a very high number of people stating they are in the process or are moving to the Big Island....

Just saw a story on the news:

Unemployment Rates for January

Honolulu: 5.7%

Hawaii Co: 9.4%

Maui Co: 7.1%

Kauai Co: 8.3%

I can't stress enough - you can't just pack up and move here thinking there are plentiful jobs. It can be a real uphill battle especially to those who think they can pop over to the hotels and get hired on the spot.

[mdand3boys]

whtviper1 - This is what some of us have been telling people for several years...
Unfortunately, we will be described as "being negative" instead of thanked for telling the truth.

[Jeepers Creepers]

Originally Posted by whtviper1

I've been reading lately what seems to be a very high number of people stating they are in the process or are moving to the Big Island....

Just saw a story on the news:

Unemployment Rates for January

Honolulu: 5.7%

Hawaii Co: 9.4%

Maui Co: 7.1%

Kauai Co: 8.3%

I can't stress enough - you can't just pack up and move here thinking there are plentiful jobs. It can be a real uphill battle especially to those who think they can pop over to the hotels and get hired on the spot.

I have a twice retired military friend, that is a single widower, and believes he can move there and live Ok on a net $3800 monthly , and find a 1/1 apt w/inside washer/dryer, and ship a older car, food shopping only at base commissaries/exchanges, and use the bus , as an older senior dude. Is it feasible? Sounds iffy to me.

[hotzcatz]

Your friend will probably do okay, Jeeps, although he will have a lower standard of living than if he chose a spot with a lower cost of living. As long as he's not expecting to find employment (which with two retirements he probably won't need to) then it should be okay. As Whtviper1's post indicated, the unemployment numbers are different on different islands.

[whtviper1]

Originally Posted by Jeepers Creepers

I have a twice retired military friend, that is a single widower, and believes he can move there and live Ok on a net $3800 monthly , and find a 1/1 apt w/inside washer/dryer, and ship a older car, food shopping only at base commissaries/exchanges, and use the bus , as an older senior dude. Is it feasible? Sounds iffy to me.

I don't get why someone would want to just get by in Hawaii versus having a nice buffer on the Southern Atlantic coast or Gulf Coast.

The cost to move to Hawaii isn't small - and the southeast US is in somewhat of a fire sale in terms of real estate. I can't believe how low the rents are in South Florida - $1200 for 2 bedrooms with pool. Jeez.

[Jeepers Creepers]

Originally Posted by whtviper1

I don't get why someone would want to just get by in Hawaii versus having a nice buffer on the Southern Atlantic coast or Gulf Coast.

The cost to move to Hawaii isn't small - and the southeast US is in somewhat of a fire sale in terms of real estate. I can't believe how low the rents are in South Florida - $1200 for 2 bedrooms with pool. Jeez.

Thanks to both of you, and I agree, and have suggested he review the potential of Ecuador. This recent link shows some of why it may be good for those wanting many things. Ecuador Seen as New Retirement Hot Spot - Yahoo! Finance (http://finance.yahoo.com/news/ecuador-seen-retirement-hot-spot-162643839.html - broken link)
Self explanatory, and although there are no military facilities, the low cost MAY negate that need. However, a foreign nation is what it is, and may require deeper reality checks. Thanks !

[Tiger Beer]

Originally Posted by Jeepers Creepers

Thanks to both of you, and I agree, and have suggested he review the potential of Ecuador. This recent link shows some of why it may be good for those wanting many things. Ecuador Seen as New Retirement Hot Spot - Yahoo! Finance (http://finance.yahoo.com/news/ecuador-seen-retirement-hot-spot-162643839.html - broken link)
Self explanatory, and although there are no military facilities, the low cost MAY negate that need. However, a foreign nation is what it is, and may require deeper reality checks. Thanks !

I spent a month in Quito, and paid $80/month for an apartment. It was a pleasant place. Not sure what it's like now though.

Amazing climate, and Ecuador is a microcosm of South America. You can be in the pleasant eternal-spring climate of Quito or Cuenca, and drift down the mountains into either the Amazon on one side, or the Pacific Coast on the other side.

[CyberCity]

Originally Posted by whtviper1

I can't stress enough - you can't just pack up and move here thinking there are plentiful jobs. It can be a real uphill battle especially to those who think they can pop over to the hotels and get hired on the spot.

And those stats do not even include those workers who have exhausted their unemployment benefits (at which point they drop off the tracking list), and those workers who are self-employed without a job to do. In other words, it is even worse than the government stats say.

Originally Posted by whtviper1

I don't get why someone would want to just get by in Hawaii versus having a nice buffer on the Southern Atlantic coast or Gulf Coast.

Well, 'cuz many of us would rather be pay-check-to-pay-check in Hawaii than have some extra bucks in the bank anywhere on the mainland.