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Most families live together with grandparents, aunts, uncles, etc. due to high cost of housing; maintenance on a condo can be $1K per month; work at least two jobs. It is an island, which means everything has to be flown or brought in via water therefore the cost of food, building supplies, etc. are high and passed on to the consumers living in HI.
This is so true. Most are dual income families, and it's not uncommon to for at least one of those adults to have an additional job too. Those who can afford it, opt for private schools which is an added expense as well. Taxes are charged for all items and services. Most of all, like it was said on the previous post, the cost to transport everything to the islands are passed on to the consumer.
There is also an across the board 4% state tax on everything. Food, medicine, etc. That may chew a few holes in your numbers. Your wife's relatives may be living multi-generation in a house they've had for decades, that would keep their living costs significantly lower than most new arrivals.
Everywhere you go and everything you do on Oahu takes a small bite out of you. Parking fees, bus fees, entrance fees, etcetera and there are loads of shopping opportunities and for some folks shopping seems to be their hobby.
You are transferring with a fairly high level job. Many folks in Hawaii have a "good" paying job at half that amount and share rent or mortgage with three or four other "good" paying job folks in order to make ends meet.
A lot of times things will look really good on paper but when you get out in the field you may notice the big cliff someone forgot to mention in the planning stage.
just from what i can see, there can be unexpected expenses, because of the island situation. for example, we are doing in vitro, it is not covered by insurance completely, like here in NY, plus i would have to fly from Maui to Oahu for procedures, it all adds up, going from island to island, going to mainland, etc.
For the house prices, yes, I dont think that I would want to live in some of the houses I have seen for $263K, but I have seen some pretty decent pricing in Ewa....... but not interested in that unbearable commute. A lot of the house prices there too seem pretty equivellent to what I see in Massachusettes. We definitely have some thing easys in NH.
It's good to hear that, yes, just as in the mainland, sensible shopping is the only way to go. Cost of living is going higher everywhere, not just Hawaii. The general goods are truly very comparable in pricing to here in NH
What are utility costs like ? Electric Bills ?? Water Bills ?
Maui08, how much money do you think a family of 4 would need to survive on Maui?
we are moving there, and i am very concerned.
Well, we are a family that enjoys life...probably too much! We don't have any toys (jet skis, atvs, dirtbikes, etc) but we do enjoy exploring the islands. While exploring is free here, the cost of gas is reaching close to $5.00 per gal! People think that just because the islands are small that you do not go through gas...but we do just from doing basic life things (shopping, work, groceries, taking the kids to and from school, sports, etc...)
-We also have medical needs that thank God have not required us to leave Maui yet for but the simple fact is Maui does not have extensive medical treatment available and anyone needing serious treatments or surgery is basically forced to fly to Oahu or back to the main land. This can become quite costly depending on ones situation.
-Schooling is horrible. Basically forced to have kids in private (which to are questionable) at about $600 to $1,000 per kid a month depending on which school. Seabury is closer to $1,700 per month and is considered the best school on Maui which no one can afford.
-So, to answer your initial question......it is hard for us to stretch 100k. Rent runs around 2,000 for a SMALL 3 bedroom, running the a/c adds another 450 per month (if you can stand the heat then this cost will not apply but we hate a hot house), basic bills (cell phone, cable, vehicle, gas, insurance, co-pays, misc adds another 1500 per month, groceries/eating out/misc 2000 per month....this all totals around 6000 per month give or take. So, do the math from here. -We are basically breaking even on about 100k per year.
-Granted, some people will have lower figures then we do...but we are just a basic family of 4 not dining on filet mignon each night!
What are utility costs like ? Electric Bills ?? Water Bills ?
On Maui, we pay about $175/month for water (2 people, small pool, small yard), $600-800/month for electricity (a/c, hot water, lights, fans, oven, etc.), and a negligible amount, say $50, for propane for our cooktop. (We disconnected the propane pool heater because I thought that was preposterous in the tropics.) Cable here is about $100/month, phones (with DSL) $79.
In Virginia, we pay zero for water (well), avg. $200/month for electricity (heat and a/c with considerable weather extremes, lights, fans, cooking, etc.), and about $100/month (average) for propane for grills and fireplaces.
Cable is about $100 (with high speed internet service), land-line phones $29.
The houses are almost identical in square footage. The yard here is tiny; the yard there quite large, but landscaping fees, oddly, are not as disparate as utilities.
Well, we are a family that enjoys life...probably too much! We don't have any toys (jet skis, atvs, dirtbikes, etc) but we do enjoy exploring the islands. While exploring is free here, the cost of gas is reaching close to $5.00 per gal! People think that just because the islands are small that you do not go through gas...but we do just from doing basic life things (shopping, work, groceries, taking the kids to and from school, sports, etc...)
Gas prices are out of control..... NH prices are at $4 a gallon, Oahu is $4.22. For my 45 mile commute to work (each way) I am downhill on the way to work and all uphill on the way home going up to the mountains.... that sucks down the fuel. In the flatlands of MA, very different, higher gas prices, but since it's all flat..... better gas mileage. At least in Oahu, I can use a motorcycle 12 months a year,..... NH..... only 5 months worth of motorcycle weather, the rest is 4x4 truck through the snow.
I see an equall wash or maybe even some gas savings there.
For the house prices, yes, I dont think that I would want to live in some of the houses I have seen for $263K, but I have seen some pretty decent pricing in Ewa....... but not interested in that unbearable commute. A lot of the house prices there too seem pretty equivellent to what I see in Massachusettes. We definitely have some thing easys in NH.
It's good to hear that, yes, just as in the mainland, sensible shopping is the only way to go. Cost of living is going higher everywhere, not just Hawaii. The general goods are truly very comparable in pricing to here in NH
What are utility costs like ? Electric Bills ?? Water Bills ?
the cost of living calculator that i used showed you what areas are more expensive than the area where you currently live in... in my case, Hawaii was cheaper than the utilities I pay in Illinois. The only diff. was that Housing cost were higher by 30%
On Maui, we pay about $175/month for water (2 people, small pool, small yard), $600-800/month for electricity (a/c, hot water, lights, fans, oven, etc.), and a negligible amount, say $50, for propane for our cooktop. (We disconnected the propane pool heater because I thought that was preposterous in the tropics.) Cable here is about $100/month, phones (with DSL) $79.
In Virginia, we pay zero for water (well), avg. $200/month for electricity (heat and a/c with considerable weather extremes, lights, fans, cooking, etc.), and about $100/month (average) for propane for grills and fireplaces.
Cable is about $100 (with high speed internet service), land-line phones $29.
The houses are almost identical in square footage. The yard here is tiny; the yard there quite large, but landscaping fees, oddly, are not as disparate as utilities.
Are you kidding me? $600-$800 per month on electricity? C'mon now... how big is your place?
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East Coast Comparison
