Bunch of questions, if y'all don't mind.
Aside from rent and specific foods, are there other costs that potential newcomers aren't thinking of? Health insurance looks very reasonable (thanks, Obama), and I don't buy things in general. There was a thread on /r/hawaii the other day and people were aghast at living on 80k/year. Not applicable to Mustachians not doing the 9-5 dance, right?
The biggest challenge is hacking housing. Whether it’s multigenerational families, or roommates, or rehab sweat equity, or living tiny in an accessory dwelling unit on the same lot alongside a bigger home... it’s a challenge. But once you’ve solved that challenge, the rest of the island’s expenses are reasonable.
Oahu is building a light-rail system to connect Kapolei to Ala Moana (via the airport). There’s explosive growth planning along the half-mile of land on either side of this rail corridor, and most of the buildings will be high-rise apartments or condos. The light rail is reasonably expected to be operating by 2026.
We don’t “winterize”. Our house doesn’t have air conditioning or heating (just ceiling fans). If there’s something in a Mainland budget to deal with cold or heat, we might not spend that money here.
Gas is more expensive than the Mainland, but we drive less so our gasoline budget is smaller. A 30x40-mile island is tailor-made for electric vehicles and (depending on the commute) bicycles. During my working years here I commuted more miles by bicycle than car.
Clothing costs are a lot lower. I no longer own a suit, a blazer, or even a necktie... let alone a vest. My pair of dress shoes are over 30 years old because I only wear them 10-12 times per year.
Big-box stores have really brought prices down over the last 25 years. Farmer’s markets (and generally eating local foods) can close the gap even further.
Kiplingers just ranked Hawaii #2 for retirees. Even their editors seem surprised.
https://www.yahoo.com/amphtml/finance/news/hawaii-2-best-state-retire-162832080.htmlHowever for those old enough to remember “Worth” magazine, Hawaii has been in the top-ten of retirement rankings for at least 15 years.
Oahu's Leeward coast: racially charged dump, or best place on earth?
Yes.
That sounds snarky but it’s factual. Much of the racism is directed at new people (“new” meaning “less than 10 years here”) and as an excuse for most conflicts. Too many people move into a rental for a couple years and bring Mainland behavior to old-Hawaii traditional culture. When the malihini don’t acculturate then suddenly it’s racial conflict, but that interpretation is more often coming from the newcomers than the locals.
I could go on for several paragraphs about people who are not emotionally or socially sensitive to the cultural signals of group dynamics and then label the result as “racism” or “discrimination”.
Meanwhile the hills, the valleys, and the coast are beautiful.
Who lives in those 2-4 million houses on the North Shore? Is it all owned by the various surf industry brands?
Many of them are people who’ve been living in them since the 1970s (I know some of them). They rent those houses to the surf brands during the winter because the corporations pay stupidly high sums of money. Most of the professional surfers are packed into those places like submarine crew berthing. Most of the visitors pay ridiculous prices for a 10’x10’ bedroom with a shared bathroom, but they’re surfing 4-6 hours/day and hardly spending anytime in their lodging.
Those $2M-$4M homes are the first to be impacted by coastal erosion-- and by tsunami coming from Japan or Alaska earthquakes.
What's up with stores having Korean subtitles?
The Hawaii state courts recognize over 250 separate languages, and they’ll provide interpreters as needed.
Stores have long ago accommodated Japanese visitors, especially with QR codes for smartphone scans. The latest waves of new visitor dollars are coming from South Korea and the People’s Republic of China. Those signs are more visible because they want to attract visitors who are currently spending more than the Japanese demographic.
Most of the multilingual signage is in heavily-trafficked visitor areas like Waikiki, Ala Moana, or Haleiwa. Otherwise you’ll only see hangul in Korean BBQ restaurants.
