Thinking about moving to Maui (Currently in Los Angeles) (Hilo: rent, find a job)

[hanana123]

Hi All,

My husband and I are thinking about moving to Maui. We visited there a few times. Currently we live in Los Angeles.

Our situation :
1. We don't have to find a job there.
2. We are an interracial married couple with no kids. (We want to have one though)
3. We are in late 30's
4. We are very liberal and not religious.

The reasons we want to live in Maui...
1. We both love physical activities (hiking, biking, snorkeling, SUP...)
2. We love nature.
3. Nice weather.
4. We felt people there were a lot more friendly than people in Los Angeles.

The reasons we don't want to keep on living in Los Angeles...
1. Materialistic culture
2. Expensive housing (probably as expensive as Maui)
3. Too much traffic.
4. People are not very friendly. It's very difficult to make new friends here.

If anyone can give us any advice, that would be very helpful.
Thanks!

[whtviper1]

what kind of advice are you looking for, if you don't have to work, go for it.

[hanana123]

Hi whtviper1,
We will work, but we can work from home, and we don't have to be in Los Angeles. All we need are phones and an internet connection. Moving to Maui will cost a lot of money, and I don't want to regret.

[FallenIntoGreatness]

I tend to regret the things I didn't do more than anything I've done. That said, if money is not an issue for you and you don't have anything on the mainland to pull you back, by all means try it. If nothing else call it an extended vacation.

[whtviper1]

If you are on the fence about moving and can work at home, why not rent a vacation property for 2-3 months and see how you like it first?

[wheresdaaloha]

I moved to Maui from the L.A. area and had no regret sexcept moving back to the mainland 2 yrs ago but we leave to go back in 2 weeks! I hated the traffic and life of So Cal and I lived near the beaches where it is not as crazy. You will not regret it. If your not sure put your stuff in storage for a year and then ship it out or go back. That is what I did and I will never move off island again. People are so friendly and do not judge you as they do in L.A I don't have to get dressed up to go to the grocery store or work out. Best of luck! Want to chat more drop me a line!

[hotzcatz]

If you are already used to living in an expensive area and don't have to find a job in Maui, then moving there would make sense. Especially with the inter-racial thing, in the islands that's a topic of friendly interest and that's about as far as it goes.

Usually, in the islands, it's not about race, it's about community. Once you find your place, join the groups in your area and become part of the community. Go to the parades, the bon dances, the festivals, the farmer's markets, take time to chat to your neighbors, share what you have excess of and become part of the community. Then you will be part of the ohana.

Parts of Maui can be a bit dress up, though. If you really want to be relaxed, try a place like Hilo. You can wear your rubber boots to the grocery store and nobody looks twice. Welll, to the KTA grocery store, anyway. Perhaps if you go to the new Safeway they may think rubber boots are less than elegant.

[winkosmosis]

Honestly it sounds like Maui is ideal for you. Once you have a kid and he reaches school age you might want to consider moving back to the mainland.

The Big Island would only be better if you want to farm vegetables and live in a volcano.

[MicZ58]

And when you get here, send me a message...we seems to have some things in common, and it's always nice to make friends in a new place.

[whynot?]

If you can do without easy access to unlimited shopping (not just boutique shopping, but also limited big box stores, etc.), you should be fine. If you've never lived in a small (or rural or remote) community, you may have some difficulty adjusting to making do with what's available on-island, but everything else sounds like you'll love it.

We have friends visiting right now who moved from Santa Monica to Oahu in the past year for similar reasons. A little older, but also child-free and did not need to find jobs. They absolutely love it v. So Cal, have made friends, and are just generally enjoying life a lot more.

Best of luck.