Any Chance on a new topic of Moving to Puna?

[BradW]

This topic would be a genuine service; might encourage some folks to take the plunge, others to think twice and decide against. Personally wish I'd had the straight scoop, would have saved a bundle.

[Cagary]

quote:

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Originally posted by BigIslandlovers

I was wondering if there's a chance of making a new topic for People wishing to move to Hawaii and the Puna area. MY wife and I will be moving there soon and it would be great to know more from the wonderful people of the Puna area. And to let others who wish or think of moving to the Puna area..

Mahalo...

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That rather lush forest you see in photos of Puna is actually growing in rock hard lava. If you plan to clear parts of the land you buy and plant something, you will need much more than a shovel! Some people use hand tools, but heavy equipment is often the best answer. Don't let the photos fool you. Come here and actually walk on the land.

[nani1970]

Thank you Otter and Carey for your Positive comments.
Yep, I spent 35 years in a small town, with a lot of the same issues, crime, no jobs,
Lack of medical care.
So I left there, and came here because on the whole the people and the culture are fantastic. It seems very negative on this site to newbies.
Maybe if everyone helped each other out we could change and improve
Our communities.
Just a thought

[jlgerk]

here here nani !! Accentuate The Positive
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m8iUhu968qY&feature=related

[missydog1]

quote:

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Originally posted by nani1970

Thank you Otter and Carey for your Positive comments.
Yep, I spent 35 years in a small town, with a lot of the same issues, crime, no jobs,
Lack of medical care.
So I left there, and came here because on the whole the people and the culture are fantastic. It seems very negative on this site to newbies.
Maybe if everyone helped each other out we could change and improve
Our communities.
Just a thought

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Good point. It matters where you come from. I came here from an area with lots of jobs, state of the art medical care, did have crime but it didn't keep me up at night, and excellent weather. So I am not happy just because there is no snow, for example, as I never lived with that anyway. For others, the weather alone is unbelievably miraculous.

People here are not negative to newbies. People are used to seeing starry-eyed people expecting paradise, and it is the tropics, not paradise. Paradise is a fantasy described in the Old Testament. []

People here who issue warnings just want to keep it real and let people know there is a learning curve. The stats for people leaving in two years or less are daunting. Good prep helps keep people from being in that group. It costs a lot to move here and it's tough to move away when you're now broke and don't have a job on the mainland any more!

[Carey]

For ANYONE moving here... this is a VERY rural area .... the population had a 25% increase from 2000-2010 with a large jump in population of under 18 yr olds... so it is a growing county, BUT the population density of 45.9 people /sq mile is still very rural (1/6 the density of entire state of California) so it is really only pertinent to look at at how you would like to live in a very rural VERY VERY remote area

If you are looking at this as a move because of a magical vacation here... Think of it as similar to a move to Annahiem or Orlando & expecting the Magic of DIsney after vacationing at Disney! This place has a wonderment, one is that there IS snow here (have been able to make a snowman - or watch others!- most winters...) but you should not move here because of a picture, or a vacation, no more than you should move anywhere on that slim a motivation...

and one of the factors you must take into account is that you are VERY VERY far away....the furthest away you can be on earth....and you are moving into an area that is growing, has growing pains, has many rural charms, and many rural idiosyncrasies....

And really nice weather!

[KeaauRich]

...really nice weather except when we're getting torrential rain (see: Oct 31-Dec. 25, 2011)

The best advice you'll get is the advice which is a PunaWeb mantra: Visit here a lot before you decide to move. Rent before you buy. If you expect this to be paradise, you will probably be disappointed; if you come with your eyes and mind wide open, you may find it is your paradise.

[terracore]

quote:

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Originally posted by Carey

For ANYONE moving here... this is a VERY rural area ....

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Puna rural? Try living 14 years in a town unconnected to any road system. I think Puna is quite cosmopolitan.

[riverwolf]

I once had a home that when you left the 2 lane paved road, you drove for about 20 minutes winding through the hills on gravel , than crossed a small wooden bridge, about another 5 miles on dirt roads with numerous turnoff's ( none of them marked of course), than you parked and had to walk down an old washed out logging "road".
Than you crossed a field and onto a small meandering path through some redwoods and there was my casita at the end.
The closest town was about 300 people. That was rural !
...and it was before cell phones.
At times I miss the isolation.
I have never thought of Puna as very rural or remote. There is every need under the sun at your reach.
enjoy.

riverwolf

[mary]

"People here who issue warnings just want to keep it real and let people know there is a learning curve. The stats for people leaving in two years or less are daunting. Good prep helps keep people from being in that group. It costs a lot to move here and it's tough to move away when you're now broke and don't have a job on the mainland any more!"

-yes i thought of leaving the island too when i moved here in the beginning A LOT! small and big things got to me. Roaches for example, i never so that many roaches that big, and they are a fliers too. having to wake up in the middle of the night to go get a glass of water, flipping on light in the kitchen and having your hair stand up on edge because of HUGE, huge roaches all over.... yah thouse were the days... i finally broke down and started spraying chemicals and boric acid on the counters, solved the problem but yes, its the tropics, you gonna have to love to learn to use them chemicals if you don't want the roaches to run you out of hawaii.

coqui frogs, may they all be blasted into the stratosphere. none ending loud shrieking noise under my windows.i have been here 2 years now, and i am not used to it, i doubt i will ever be used to alarm clock screeching noise ever. i do spray them to kill the noise down, but yah, its money, time, inconvenience, aggravation to have to deal with it all. and of course there is the fire ants. make sure you don't bring your pets into a situation like that, they can get blinded, or so i heard from my neighbor, her little dog is blind as a result. again, you can spray ambro, more chemicals, cost, time doing it, ext.

and don't tell too many people you are new, i have been taken advantage of several times as a result, like buying a dishwasher at sears, they delivered it broken, and when i called for replacement, they told me to haul the old one into the store. i said, don't you have some sort of pick up system? they told me they do it island style here, so haul it into the store if you want a replacement.
i did, then when i got to the store, manager almost refused to take it because they have the "pick up" system. in general, if you are trying to fix the house you just bought, or go solar, or do anything on this island, don't tell them you are new, not a good idea.

for all the annoyances of living on this island and the consistent rain, damp house and mold everywhere, its a pretty nice place otherwise. green and beautiful. its a matter of adapting and deciding what is most important to you. at this point the green wins, if the mold gets me too sick, i might just have to move back to the mainland.
thats why you see the turn around that you do. many people think its a lot better then it is.