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it seems obvious to me why people would want to live in hawaii. with that being said, come with as much money as you can. hawaii will either work out for you or not, all you can do is try. you are young and that's the time to do it. best of luck
Yes I gather that much about the money part...lol I plan to...I am just ready for new challenges and new adventures and I want my sons to have experiences I didn't have and now I have that chance.
Uh, original poster is 42 with a 12 year old, definitely not young - and potentially not recoverable financially if it doesn't work out.
I would kill to be 42 again! that is 20 plus more working years left. jobs are not impossible to get. do they pay like the mainland? no. however many people live in the islands so obviously it is doable. it is better to try something you want to do then to always wonder about the what if the rest of your life.
Torric, I wish you the best of luck whatever you decide to do, but I would highly suggest waiting a bit to move. My nieces are about the same age as your child. Private school can be upward to $20k/year here. I do not disagree with whtviper1's assertion that 48 years old is not so long to wait either. Your college kid can always visit you on the islands.
I moved because I wanted a change when I was 22 years old and with no kids; and it was tough then! I suggest you come stay for a few weeks or a month to check out the job scene and the housing opportunities. I am not sure of your financial situation, but I pay over $3000/month to rent a house. Although I know there are cheaper rents out there, it can be quite competitive to find a decent place.
Torric, I wish you the best of luck whatever you decide to do, but I would highly suggest waiting a bit to move. My nieces are about the same age as your child. Private school can be upward to $20k/year here. I do not disagree with whtviper1's assertion that 48 years old is not so long to wait either. Your college kid can always visit you on the islands.
I moved because I wanted a change when I was 22 years old and with no kids; and it was tough then! I suggest you come stay for a few weeks or a month to check out the job scene and the housing opportunities. I am not sure of your financial situation, but I pay over $3000/month to rent a house. Although I know there are cheaper rents out there, it can be quite competitive to find a decent place.
Hello and thank you for the advice. I am moving in June 2013. I have visited the island several times. This move has been in the works since March 2012 so I have given it time and consideration. My sons and I are looking forward to this new horizon in our lives.....
wow i think thats exciting Torri, and i hope it all works out for you. I also did not disagree with whtviper, but if you said you've given this a lot of thought and consideration, then we are happy for you! i am not living in Hawaii, btw, just stopping by the forum lol
Hello and thank you for the advice. I am moving in June 2013. I have visited the island several times. This move has been in the works since March 2012 so I have given it time and consideration. My sons and I are looking forward to this new horizon in our lives.....
Thank you so much for your insight
TJC
That's good info to know and I'm a good believer in planning things out. I will state that two of my three sons that moved with me were not happy with the move initially. Even though I gave them info to read, not to mention the internet, they didn't bother to to check up on the island. They actually believed I was taking them to a grass shacked prevalent island; when the plane was making it's final approach around 10pm (with all the glorious night lights blazing), there were "high fives" all around - silly gooses!!
I also had quite a bit saved as a back stop in case my Navy connections didn't come through with a job- yes, I moved without a job!
It did take a few months, but I did end up with a very good position with a Navy Contractor. That savings did come in handy.
Sometimes you plan and then it just comes down to having faith in yourself as well as a higher being and just make the leap.
I hope I'll be joining you in Hawaii next June. I'm headed back to Oahu, not sure which Island you're headed to; but I have my story board working and plans are underway.
I think every board has them....TROLLS...people who have no value to add to a discussion but just want to inject negativity when and where they can because they have no real intellect to add. Shhhhh maybe if we ignore "it" it will go away.....lmao
I strongly suggest you use OpenD's recommendation of using the search feature. By doing so, you'll note that Viper is consistently the voice of reason.
My opinion is that you get off the "grass is greener" bandwagon and start looking at things objectively. So far, you only have a utopian view of Hawai'i based on two visits solely to Waikiki.
My questions for you are:
1) How much money are you coming to the Islands with?
2) What Island do you want to settle?
3) Prove that you have done your research to have a sustainable budget for rent, food, utilities, etc.
4) What makes you think a secretary from Alabama is going to get a job in Hawai'i, especially since it's who-you-know and not what-you-know?
5) Remember what it was/is like working part-time at minimum wage living to paycheque-to-paycheque? Now...do that in Hawai'i but working two of those jobs and paying 3-4 times the rent as Alabama.
6) I see no benefit to your child coming to Hawai'i's poor education system as a haole and having to raise themselves at the age of 12 because their mother was so self-focussed on moving to Hawai'i that she forgot to think about what it would take to live there and is forced to work 2-3 part time jobs to make ends meet.
Retirement is 15 years away - start saving for that. In the event that you fail, you won't drag your kids down with you.
Torri, please step back and take a deep breath. LISTEN fully and wisely to what the very well informed posters are trying to tell you. They are NOT trolls! They are NOT trying to scare you away with their negativity!
Please spend some time reading through the threads on moving to Hawaii with children. Spend some time reading through the threads that warn about how hard it is to find work here (and why so many people work 2-3 jobs to try to cobble together a minimum wage). Read through the threads that warn against deciding to make such a big move based on a couple of visits to a resort. These discussions offer a lot of very valuable, experience-based, real-time advice.
My husband and I moved to the Big Island at the end of a seven-year plan. Our kids are grown and we are retired and could afford to buy our house here. I would welcome more people to come live here, but after living here for almost three years I think that I understand a lot better about why living in Hawaii in such a challenge.
Good luck with your planning. Hope that you find your dream.
Perhaps it might be helpful if you were able to get a "sabbatical" from your current workplace, stash a lot of your household stuff at a relative's or friend's house and get round trip airfare with a really long time before the return flights? Just in case things don't work out you would still have an escape route. Just in case. Hawaii is about 2,500 miles away from just about anywhere else and it doesn't sound like you will have family around to help if it would be needed.
Why are you choosing to move to Hawaii? Is there another less expensive option available or is there a reason that only Hawaii will do? Most folks have to make some fairly hefty compromises in order to live here but usually there is something that Hawaii gives them in return, although that something is usually different and fairly personal for each person. Sometimes it is just the lovely weather, sometimes it is year round gardening, sometimes it is the ocean, sometimes it's a feeling that they finally have found home, it's different for each person. Hopefully there will be something you will get in return for the compromises you'll end up making in order to move here.
You do realize Waikiki is not exactly a typical representation of Hawaii?
It is sometimes hard for folks when they have the "dream of moving to Hawaii", but a few reality checks are tossed their direction.
OP, I think you are experiencing what could be perceived as negativity to your move because you are planning on bring along a child. If you give us a better feel for your preparedness for your move, we might be able to be more supportive. Such as:
Do you have 6 months backup savings in hand in case you cannot find a job?
Have you researched the educational situation, that many areas have under performing public schools, and that private schools can be competitive to get in to as well as expensive?
Do you have a general an idea of where you want to live, and how that area will work out for your child (school, safety, after school activities, transportation, etc)
What will you do for medical insurance for your child until you get a job?
It is not that we don't want to see you move to Hawaii. "Welcome!". It is that we don't want to see you put your child in an unhappy situation. This is where YOUR research comes in, so that you make decisions based upon realities and not a dream.
Good luck.
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