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I would suspect that listening to the boots on the ground would encourage peace of mind? Just because someone isn't telling you what you want to hear, doesn't make it not true.
In any case, if possible, rent before buying. It saves ever so much work when you want to live somewhere other than where you originally landed.
As you mentioned, what works for one person may not work for another. We don't know all the things you find important, all we can do is try to help you with impressions of the different areas from folks who either have been to or live in the areas you're interested in.
Wise counsel. Too many dreamers with their one-way ticket to tent-city. Saddest thing, they drag their kids into the already-bad scene.
"Rent before buying"... experiencing it now! I could not agree more as my taste in neighborhoods, more specific streets within neighborhoods, will change. It takes me months in a new city to nail down the ideal location and I don't regret the rental cost. If only we all had $400k to put down... working on that part. In the meantime, and I may be the only one that thinks this way, the rental market is actually very reasonable compared to the cost of buying at the moment. I couldn't get the same deal in my experience on the mainland in comparable real estate markets. Someone correct me here if I'm off but I had a great experience in the rental market once you get past the sticker shock depending on the market you are used to.
Why would you recommend against the middle or high schools? They seem to have good ratings and other threads about the schools say that they are of the better public school districts on the island...
If you are still looking and are set on being in Kapolei Middle and HS district, I would suggest homes in Makakilo (which is a part of Kapolei district).
Both are newer schools, so they are nice complexes and may have decent scores. However I have not heard good things about either school, in terms of bullying and fights at both schools.
Thanks so much for the feedback, but I realize that I didn't provide enough information, so let me add to what I initially wrote, since there seems to be a discrepancy with my income situation, and so hopefully providing some further detail will help those offering advice, a more clear representation of my situation and needs.
So, yes - my wife is a homemaker and hasn't needed to work, but that's largely in part to my income. I don't know where the one commenter got his information about the income of an Internet Security Engineer, but when I was working, I was earning $225k/year. Now that I'm retired, my wife and I take home approximately $10k a month after taxes. So, with a 10k monthly income and a $400k downpayment, we're looking for a home in the $700-$900k range.
With regards to medical facilities and needs, I have no ongoing medical needs, so I don't need an abundance of local resources, but would like to be on an island that has the resources just available for the "just in case" situation. And regarding my daughter and her Aspergers/Autism, while I'm not looking for best-in-the-country offerings, I'm looking for some kind of accommodations, which in my mind means a school district with services for special needs. Nothing extravagant or extraordinary as my daughter is high-functioning and extremely intelligent, just lacking in social skills. Sure she has special needs, but thats primarly why my wife is a stay-at-home mom.
So, that being said, where are there good public schools with friendly neighborhoods and homes in the $700-$900k range where a net income of ~$140k/year AFTER TAXES would be sufficient? My net income is comparable to what I was earning when I was salaried at $225k/yr so I am using a home income of $175k/yr as a basis for my criteria.
Bear in mind that I will have no commuting expense, no travel expenses, no work expenses, no clothing expenses for business attire, no daily lunches, no tolls or parking expenses, and generally no monthly costs other than living costs. My fuel costs will be for leisure driving and errands, or bringing kids to school if bussing isn't an option.
So, with these factors also as considerations, would the same areas still be the best recommendations? (so far the recommendations made were: Nuuanu, Kaneohe, Kailua, Kaimuki, Waipio, Waipahu, Mililani, Ewa Beach, Kapolei)
I'm determined to make Hawaii my home eventually as I've grown tired of mainland living, and with a "wake-up call" like cancer to really put life and quality of living squarely in focus, I want to do this as much for myself as for my kids, and the few friends that I've known to have moved to Oahu, I am ready for the lifestyle changes and welcome them.
Thanks so much! I'm blessed to be alive and will consider myself to be blessed beyond my wildest imagination to make Hawaii mine and my family's home.
Sincerely,
Jesse
I was pretty sure this was the case. I don't think a lot of people who had posted realize that if you're already able to afford to live in affluent section of New Jersey, you can probably afford Hawaii.
Go for it my brother...life is SHORT, as you know, and it's not a practice round. Take it by the nuts and don't look back. A hater's gonna hate. F*** 'em and do you.
From what I gather, your income is from your retirement savings plus disability payments. And I’m assuming the $400k downpayment is from equity in your current home. If that is the case and the bulk of your ‘income’ is from your own retirement savings, I don’t know that it is a safe financial bet to take on a $400-500K mortgage? It would take some research, but there are some places on the mainland (while not as beautiful as Hawaii) that have a more temperate climate and you could purchase a house in the $400-500K range. Maybe parts of Oregon, Washington (not Seattle area), South Carolina, Georgia Barrier Islands...
Here is some experience - other people's experience:
For almost 30 years, my wife and I have been spending six months on Oahu, and the other six months in San Diego. In order to do that, we have rented our house in Kailua for the six months we are back on the mainland, every year. Almost all of the tenants have been moving from the mainland to Hawaii. We rent the house furnished, with utilities paid, so all the tenants have to bring is their clothes.
We have watched with great interest what our tenants have done at the end of those six months of "getting acquainted". Most have stayed, most have bought, and most have bought in Kailua. But not all. One lady saw a centipede one day, and left for the mainland immediately. One family rented for another six months after us, in a completely different part of the island, eventually bought in another, on the north shore, lived there for two or three years, and finally moved back to Minnesota. There are many other stories, and we don't know them all, by far.
If it's not too late, PLEASE rent before you buy. Different neighborhoods on Oahu are DIFFERENT. You won't know how you and your family will react to a given part of the island until you actually live there. Ethnicity, culture, and financial norms vary from town to town, and from neighborhood to neighborhood. You can look up most of that on City Data town pages, but you won't know what it really means to you, your wife and your kids until you live it.
HankDfrmSD - do you ever have a lag in renters? We've thought about doing half the year on Oahu and half the year on the mainland. You guys seem to have the best of both worlds, the good weather year round, and Kailua is the best!
Don't know what you mean by a "lag". If you mean do we ever not find someone for the six months we want, the answer is almost never. Once, in 30 years, we had to stay in Hawaii for an extra month.
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