Seattle to Maui in 5 years to retire--is it possible? (Honolulu: sales, rent)
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Is it really that more expensive to move to Maui from King County? Really? Does anyone have any first-hand experience? I know they have a Costco, Safeway, etc. and gas is expensive. What about property taxes if you live there compared to King County?
Maui is more expensive than Honolulu and has far less in terms of shopping and grocery stores.
Property taxes tend to be lower if you are a resident, but it might take a year or more to have the taxes adjusted if your home was owned by a non-resident (as mine was).
There is an income tax in HI that WA does not have. There is a 4.x% tax on everything purchased, too.
Definitely consult other threads in this board before making a move and visit at least three times.
I lived in Hawaii for four years, but was a student. Even then, I lived more than comfortably. Most of this comes down to your own individual expenses and what lifestyle you expect/want. Maui is probably the most expensive to live on out of all the islands. Hawaii is the cheapest.
I can't speak for Maui, but Oahu is pretty close in overall cost of living. I have family there, and in general, they spend about as much as I do to "live," with some things being higher and some lower. You'll save money on jackets, heat/cooling and electricity (you really don't need either heat nor a/c there on Oahu, maybe just a cheap window unit in the summer), but will spend more on some grocery items and fuel. Of course if you choose to leave the Seattle city center area then your cost of living can be reduced by quite a bit, and it will suddenly become much cheaper to live there. Still, I'd rather spend a little more on rent or various expenses and live somewhere I am happy, than somewhere miserable (like Seattle, which I am leaving soon!)
Why is Maui more expensive than the other islands?
Very beautiful heavy tourist destination. Wailea and Kaanapali are particularly beautiful but you could live for less in Lahaina. More jobs on Oahu though the Hawaii board would be able to give you more specifics.
I can't speak for Maui, but Oahu is pretty close in overall cost of living. I have family there, and in general, they spend about as much as I do to "live," with some things being higher and some lower. You'll save money on jackets, heat/cooling and electricity (you really don't need either heat nor a/c there on Oahu, maybe just a cheap window unit in the summer), but will spend more on some grocery items and fuel. Of course if you choose to leave the Seattle city center area then your cost of living can be reduced by quite a bit, and it will suddenly become much cheaper to live there. Still, I'd rather spend a little more on rent or various expenses and live somewhere I am happy, than somewhere miserable (like Seattle, which I am leaving soon!)
Oahu and Seattle has a comparable cost of living - all I can say as a resident of Honolulu, LOL - that's nuts.
Oahu and Seattle has a comparable cost of living - all I can say as a resident of Honolulu, LOL - that's nuts.
I lived there for 18 years, moved here, my family is still there, and I'm on my way back... Have you lived in Seattle? Certain things are more expensive there, but here we have nearly 10% sales tax, and insane property taxes. Hell, the property taxes on my grandparent's place near Seattle was 28k PER YEAR. My property taxes are about 10k a year in Seattle, so yes, it's pretty close once everything is figured out (I'm an accountant, we're good with numbers). I know we don't have an income tax, but even then it's not likely it'd come close, and we have TONS of unclaimed taxes here, little nit picking things here and there that technically aren't taxes, but are simply a wolf in sheep's clothing. Go ahead with the obligatory "OMG MILK IS TWICE AS EXPENSIVE HERE" line I've heard a million times, I'll wait...
MichaelinWA, it doesn't matter what you "read," I've lived in both places for years, hell I "read" Seattle was a "great place to live!!" and boy was that a lie...
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
)
). I know we don't have an income tax, but even then it's not likely it'd come close, and we have TONS of unclaimed taxes here, little nit picking things here and there that technically aren't taxes, but are simply a wolf in sheep's clothing. Go ahead with the obligatory "OMG MILK IS TWICE AS EXPENSIVE HERE" line I've heard a million times, I'll wait...
