Kind of F#$ked

[leilanidude]

Rent a room at one of the cheaper Hilo hotels, like Reed's Bay. They do weekly and monthly rentals.
How do you know it is a "live" wire?

[Carey]

Actually, technically YOU cannot do anything (esp things like calling an electrician & hiring anybody to work on the property), as this is still the sellers property.

There is one thing you MUST do, and that is make sure you protect your contract in the event this extends beyond the limit time (unless you want the contract to lapse, in which case it is the seller who is F'd)

[Rob Tucker]

Carey is right.

[missydog1]

True, a standard purchase contract includes at least one extension without a reason and another opportunity to extend with mutual agreement of the parties. A good agent will get that done.

I understand it sucks to have to draw out the contract, but I've had at least one that took an extra month to close due to the bank, and it still closed.

There are so many vacation rentals. Have you looked on VRBO? Tons, and. You can negotiate the rate for a longer stay. Or go visit a different part of the island while you're waiting, as you need to relocate. Make it fun.

About ten years ago, I had to wait a month between selling and closing in the new house, and I realized for the price of a rental I could go to the South Pacific for three weeks. So I did, and it was awesome. Make lemonade out of your lemons.

[Andrew]

If you don't want to move all your household items around while you wait maybe rent a storage unit till your house closes. That would make staying in a cheap hotel or other accommodation easier. There's a storage rental company right in Pahoa.

[missydog1]

Please pardon me for not remembering your whole saga. Your stuff is all here and unpacked.

What I did may not be an option, but here it is.

I moved out of the house and used an island moving company. They put all my stuff in a container and took it to their yard. The stuff was stored in the container for over a month. It didn't cost me as much as a storage unit, and the big plus was I didn't need to pack and unpack twice.

Actually I did this twice. Four years later I had the same deal where I had to move before my house closed. This time I was the seller and the buyers had almost endless problems with their closing contingent on THEIR buyer getting her cash funds.

You think yours is bad; it is nothing. Our closing was delayed 90 days.

The drawback with this method is a) you have to pay a moving company, but the good news is you don't kill your back. b) you have to be somewhat concerned with mildew and make sure everything is dry. (There is stuff you can buy to suck the moisture out of the air, and the mildew dampness is just as much an issue in a typical storage place here.)

So, the first time I did this I went to the Cook Islands and stayed in a little rental on the beach in Rarotonga for half the cost of staying in Hawai'i, but the second time I sublet a furnished duplex in Kapoho Vacationland.

I did close my escrow before leaving the country, but the house needed work done, a lot of it, including a new roof, so I couldn't move in for a month.

There are affordable vacation rentals here in various parts of the island.
You could also do a staycation and go to Kaua'i or something. You can still close an escrow if you are in the state (and even from out of state).

[terracore]

Seems to me like the seller should be the motivated one in making this work. We were selling a house and the buyers wanted in before it closed and there was a simple procedure to rent it to them (the only complex part of it had something to do with insurance but the realtors had a process for it). Is renting it until closing an option?

We were also on the opposite side- we were buyers who wanted in early (before closing) but in our instance it wasn't allowed because it was a foreclosure, and the bank rules wouldn't allow it.

[freespirit]

Did you say your lease expires in 3 weeks? I would think HELCO should have it repaired by that time frame. Also maybe the owners of the place you are renting would be a little understanding due to the situation and all, thats if they did not have it booked for other guest after your lease expires. If they cannot extend for you then looks like you may have to find some other short term lodging. Craiglist might have some sublet ones available. Good luck and understand how this could be very frutstrating.

[Guest]

So we do not have many things, we shipped only what we could fit in a 5x7x7 crate.

My agent talked with HELCO this morning to let them know we could be "homeless" if this isn't rectified shortly.

They told her they will try to send someone out to assess it within a few days.

We could do a early occupancy and move into the house, albeit with no power again.

The seller cant really do anything because it is HELCOs property since out meter is on the house. Kindof at the mercy of HELCO.

Hoping for the best, I just wanted to complain I guess, the virtual "hugs" and advice are appreciated!

[shave_ice]

Just saw on Damon Tucker's blog that free storage for 60 days is being offered to those who were affected by the storm. Could be an option if you need to put your stuff in storage.