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Well, now places like Amazon are closing down big retail giants like Sports Authority. Everything changes.
When people find they are stuck in and pine for the past they miss out on all the new good.
Of course they were already ignoring all the bad in the past, so, theoretically, they should ignore any bad of the new.
It's amazing how some get stuck in place and time, like elementary school, and wish their lives never changed....
Live in and enjoy, the present.
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I agree that many natives and long-time locals will suffer from the increased COL created by the inherent desirability of our islands and its attraction to millions across the world. It is a sad and depressing byproduct of any evolving/advancing society.
If you read my previous posts (over the last ~decade) you will see that I am a strong advocate of affordable housing and affordable rentals (virtually all of my own rentals are considered affordable). But at the end of the day, these ultra high end condos and houses (mostly acquired by outsiders) are good for the local people. They're not good - they're great. They bring construction and forever ongoing operations and maintenance jobs and massively increase the tax base. The wealthiest are the ones that are actually subsidizing a first world (arguable by some) living standard for the people of Oahu.
People that grumble about the wealthy and the "greed" of the wealthy should focus their hatred toward our wasteful incompetent government. For what they take in (a majority of which comes from the wealthy) they spend it like a bunch of drunken sailors.
Oh definitely I agree about the wasteful spending as an argument against our government on our islands.
But again we the taxpayers also spend a lot of money subsidizing high end condo developments and redevelopments to make our communities more desireable for those with more money from outside of our home.
One of the arguments against real affordable housing on Oahu is developers don't make money on affordable housing here. Which is bogus. Any project unless ran unprofessionally makes money or profit. The key word is not enough profit. In reality we could build affordable housing for middle class and working class people in Kakaako and create the same jobs etc instead of high end and everything would be ok.
I'm assuming your considered local haole PJ? So you know the term "Paradise Tax?" It was created for a reason.
BTW, DHHL had a program where you would get a hui of ten people to build each other's houses so they would be affordable. A contractor would provide oversite, admin and guidance.
Multiple companies went under because the profit was too low, when the profit could keep the company afloat, they houses were too expensive.
What business are you in Kalei?
__________________ ____________________________________________
My posts as a Mod will always be in red.
Be sure to review Terms of Service: TOS
And check this out: FAQ
Moderator: Relationships Forum / Hawaii Forum / Dogs / Pets / Current Events
__________________ ____________________________________________
My posts as a Mod will always be in red.
Be sure to review Terms of Service: TOS
And check this out: FAQ
Moderator: Relationships Forum / Hawaii Forum / Dogs / Pets / Current Events
Well, now places like Amazon are closing down big retail giants like Sports Authority. Everything changes.
When people find they are stuck in and pine for the past they miss out on all the new good.
Of course they were already ignoring all the bad in the past, so, theoretically, they should ignore any bad of the new.
It's amazing how some get stuck in place and time, like elementary school, and wish their lives never changed....
Live in and enjoy, the present.
The past and the present and future are all interconnected. You can't have the present without the past. This is the problem, it's not living in the past that is the issue but people wanting to ingnore the past that defined us so they can make our home their own defined paradise is the issue.I just will never understand the mentality of If your from this place or that one but move to Hawai'i or even another city. Why oh why would you want to make that new place like where you came from? Could you just appreciate the new place where you live with it's own uniqueness? The models our communities are being redevelopment too are not new? You see the same models in all the major cities on the mainland. There is no one model of success or oneness guys. Why can't people just love Hawai'i without seeing money all the time?
I don't see "Yuppies" as the problem, or the stereotype of them being selfish as necessarily accurate. What are they expected to do, besides work and pay their taxes?
Real estate speculation, couple with wealthy, non working folks buying up properties is more likely responsible for the high cost of housing.
Your right I chose Yuppie without really thinking about its meaning. My bad
The past and the present and future are all interconnected. You can't have the present without the past. This is the problem, it's not living in the past that is the issue but people wanting to ingnore the past that defined us so they can make our home their own defined paradise is the issue.I just will never understand the mentality of If your from this place or that one but move to Hawai'i or even another city. Why oh why would you want to make that new place like where you came from? Could you just appreciate the new place where you live with it's own uniqueness? The models our communities are being redevelopment too are not new? You see the same models in all the major cities on the mainland. There is no one model of success or oneness guys. Why can't people just love Hawai'i without seeing money all the time?
I'm not sure why you and those around you are not combining the past with the present.
All my friends and family do. All in different ways, and then we share those ways.
__________________ ____________________________________________
My posts as a Mod will always be in red.
Be sure to review Terms of Service: TOS
And check this out: FAQ
Moderator: Relationships Forum / Hawaii Forum / Dogs / Pets / Current Events
Well, now places like Amazon are closing down big retail giants like Sports Authority. Everything changes.
When people find they are stuck in and pine for the past they miss out on all the new good.
Of course they were already ignoring all the bad in the past, so, theoretically, they should ignore any bad of the new.
It's amazing how some get stuck in place and time, like elementary school, and wish their lives never changed....
Live in and enjoy, the present.
Exactly! Sports Authority went out of business because somebody came up with a better business model...
20 years ago internet was dialup, mostly AOL and Netscape. and a lot of people didn't have it. Should it have been banned then? Smartphones? Ha! Does anyone remember what long distance cost in the 90's...
Driverless cars will be common in 20 years - should we ban them as they'll put taxi's out of business?
The world in 20 years will look nothing like it is today except everyone complaining about how they wish it was 20 years ago.
the 70's were no picnic - try buying a house with double digit interest rates and oil embargos - anyone remember inflation? Vietnam?
the 80's - nobody remebers the Japanese running up the real estate market on Oahu?
the 90's - nobody remembers things like the first persian gulf war?
We can go on and on about the past - I don't live in the 70's, 80's, 90's etc - I choose to live in the here and now
Oh definitely I agree about the wasteful spending as an argument against our government on our islands.
But again we the taxpayers also spend a lot of money subsidizing high end condo developments and redevelopments to make our communities more desireable for those with more money from outside of our home.
One of the arguments against real affordable housing on Oahu is developers don't make money on affordable housing here. Which is bogus. Any project unless ran unprofessionally makes money or profit. The key word is not enough profit. In reality we could build affordable housing for middle class and working class people in Kakaako and create the same jobs etc instead of high end and everything would be ok.
I'm assuming your considered local haole PJ? So you know the term "Paradise Tax?" It was created for a reason.
Taxpayers don't subsidize high end condos. It's actually the opposite. Developers subsidize all the infrastructure improvements in the immediate area of development. During construction, hundreds of jobs are created and those jobs bring solid incomes to our local construction workers which are then taxed by the govt. Property taxes increase and fees are levied as improvements are made and construction is completed. After completion, the real property tax base skyrockets up to 50 times or more what the original land was worth (or aggregate value of land and aging structures). This provides a massive tax base which flows to the govt coffers. The buildings require significant ongoing operations and maintenance that can run in the millions per year for one single condo project. This all goes back to the community as income for our locals and ultimately... more taxes for our govt to collect.
I don't think you are aware of the fees the city and state impose on developers. If I wanted to develop an affordable 20 studio unit apartment on a 10,000 SF lot in town, I would be paying nearly $25,000 in fees FOR EACH AND EVERY STUDIO UNIT to the city and state before I even receive a building permit to put a shovel in the ground. Never mind the cost of the land. Never mind the cost to design and engineer the project. And definitely never mind the cost of labor and construction. $25,000 is just a fee to pay the government to have the RIGHT to build what you want to build. There are parts of this country where you can actually buy and own a fee simple studio for $25,000. Here, you just cover the fees. Does that not make your head spin?
The cost of development and housing on Oahu is staggering and it has very little to do with outsiders coming here. In fact, I'd say that with LESS development, housing would cost even more. Scarcity of housing commodity will alone drive up prices but the lack of strong demand for building material (and other home-building resources) will drive up costs. Generally speaking, the higher the volume of a good imported to our island, the lower its cost. It's simply economies of scale. Affordable developments will only exist if taxpayers are willing to pay for them through increased taxes. No developer can build a 100% market (no subsidies) condo project and sell 1,000 SF units for $400,000 (the most locals feel they should pay). You could strip them down to bare bones cheap finishes and have zero amenities... they would still lose money, hands down no argument whatsoever. Not just lose money, they will lose A LOT of money.
The only way to make housing affordable is to drastically cut the pay of all construction workers. By half or more. Remove the DPP entirely and the park dedication, sewer, water, grubbing, building permit fees they impose. No more 6-12 month waiting process for permits where developers burn massive cash sitting and waiting. Remove the forever more stringent building code requirements, OSHA and the EPA. Repeal the Biggert-Waters Flood Insurance Reform Act. Civil engineers? Cut them out completely. Cut shipping costs by 70%. Structural/mechanical/geotech engineers and architects, cut their pay by half. Material suppliers and warehousing costs all take a 50% pay cut. Remove all parking requirements - people can park on the street.
If you don't want to do ALL of that then you're going to have to take a much larger chunk of your paycheck and give it to the government so they can (very wastefully and inefficiently) build these affordable units for your fellow citizens. Are you OK with that? Because there is no other way.
And yes, I'm local, born and raised. Went exclusively to public school here and attended UH... but I am a mixed breed mutt with a bit of haole mixed in.
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