11-05-2006, 05:21 AM
Aloha Kspeed,
Renting for a year before buying a house would be a much smarter move. Right now the housing market is either in a decline or "correcting" itself, whatever you want to call it and it will take awhile for it to shake itself out. Buying a house a year or two from now is probably economically a much better idea than right now. While you are renting, you can watch the housing market because it takes awhile for the prices to go up once they start heading that way. You can use that time to find the place you really like.
Moving may not be all that bad, you don't need anywhere near as much "stuff" here as you do on the mainland. Throw away all but your summer clothes and a light jacket or two. Forget about "dressy" clothes since you probably won't use those either. You can toss those nasty nylon hose out the window, too. Bleah! Very few folks wear them here. Pick out the stuff you can't replace and can't live without and then sell or give away the rest. Forget "colonial" or "modern chrome", think bamboo, wicker, rattan, big "aloha" floral prints and pineapple motifs. If you have a nice barbeque and great lanai furniture, you will need those. If you have nice cookware, you may want to bring that since our cookware shops are limited. Actually, most of our shops are limited, but we don't need that much stuff anyway.
Even though someone else is paying to relocate you, having too much stuff is a liability. You spend too much time keeping it clean and organized (or living with it messy) and you have less time for the beach or having fun. Hilo is slow and simple and nobody cares if you are driving a new car or have the newest fashion (whatever that is!) - they all look alike in the rain, anyway.
Your hubby can ride the motorcycle if he doesn't mind getting wet. Put some really good rain tires on it, maybe some Metzlers or ask the tire guys what they would recommend. A good rainsuit and an employer who didn't mind dripping wet employees and you're all set. Won't you also have a car he can drive to work when it rains? Or maybe a co-worker can give him a lift.
In Hilo, I'd worry more about coqui frogs than mosquitoes. You can keep most of the mosquitoes at bay with Avon's Skin-so-soft and mosquito smoke coils, but nothing other than sheer eradication works on keeping those frogs quiet.
Crime in Hilo depends on which street you live on although I'm just guessing at that. If you see a subdivision that has a lot of security screen doors, then I'd be more careful about locking stuff up.
When you have kids at that young of an age, it seems a pretty brutal time to move away from your support systems. You will really miss having aunties, uncles and tutu's (grandparents) around to help take care of the little ones. Maybe you can rent a big enough house that you can have someone move along with you to help take care of the little ones? An auntie who gets to get away from the mainland winters and you get help in taking care of the kids?
Arrange it so you have lots of options, pare away the stuff you don't need and it will all work out.
A hui hou,
Cathy
Renting for a year before buying a house would be a much smarter move. Right now the housing market is either in a decline or "correcting" itself, whatever you want to call it and it will take awhile for it to shake itself out. Buying a house a year or two from now is probably economically a much better idea than right now. While you are renting, you can watch the housing market because it takes awhile for the prices to go up once they start heading that way. You can use that time to find the place you really like.
Moving may not be all that bad, you don't need anywhere near as much "stuff" here as you do on the mainland. Throw away all but your summer clothes and a light jacket or two. Forget about "dressy" clothes since you probably won't use those either. You can toss those nasty nylon hose out the window, too. Bleah! Very few folks wear them here. Pick out the stuff you can't replace and can't live without and then sell or give away the rest. Forget "colonial" or "modern chrome", think bamboo, wicker, rattan, big "aloha" floral prints and pineapple motifs. If you have a nice barbeque and great lanai furniture, you will need those. If you have nice cookware, you may want to bring that since our cookware shops are limited. Actually, most of our shops are limited, but we don't need that much stuff anyway.
Even though someone else is paying to relocate you, having too much stuff is a liability. You spend too much time keeping it clean and organized (or living with it messy) and you have less time for the beach or having fun. Hilo is slow and simple and nobody cares if you are driving a new car or have the newest fashion (whatever that is!) - they all look alike in the rain, anyway.
Your hubby can ride the motorcycle if he doesn't mind getting wet. Put some really good rain tires on it, maybe some Metzlers or ask the tire guys what they would recommend. A good rainsuit and an employer who didn't mind dripping wet employees and you're all set. Won't you also have a car he can drive to work when it rains? Or maybe a co-worker can give him a lift.
In Hilo, I'd worry more about coqui frogs than mosquitoes. You can keep most of the mosquitoes at bay with Avon's Skin-so-soft and mosquito smoke coils, but nothing other than sheer eradication works on keeping those frogs quiet.
Crime in Hilo depends on which street you live on although I'm just guessing at that. If you see a subdivision that has a lot of security screen doors, then I'd be more careful about locking stuff up.
When you have kids at that young of an age, it seems a pretty brutal time to move away from your support systems. You will really miss having aunties, uncles and tutu's (grandparents) around to help take care of the little ones. Maybe you can rent a big enough house that you can have someone move along with you to help take care of the little ones? An auntie who gets to get away from the mainland winters and you get help in taking care of the kids?
Arrange it so you have lots of options, pare away the stuff you don't need and it will all work out.
A hui hou,
Cathy
Kurt Wilson