Looking for land

[Alohaalex]

Aloha

[rainyjim]

You could get a lot of acreage in H.O.V.E. for $80,000.00 USD. However, it is in K'au district neighboring kona. H.O.V.E. is however much closer to kona than any of the puna areas.

I guess it depends more on what you are looking for?

How much acreage? A house lot? Enough for hooved beasts? (Lol) etc etc
Permited house?
Neighbors? - roosters - meth heads - ??
Paved road?
Mailbox?
County water?
Electric poles?


Etc etc etc

[Cagary]

Here's 3 acres not too far from Kona (30 miles) for $28,000.

http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/Prince...8270_zpid/

Have you been to the Big Island before?

-Veritas odium parit”(Terence 195–159 BC))-"Truth begets hatred".

[KeaauRich]

Alex, with all due respect, you're going about this whole endeavor backwards... Life on the Big Island is different from life on the mainland, and each community on the Island is different-- different culturally, different attitudes, different climates, different landscapes, etc. You really need to come here for an extended visit, rent a property and see how you like it, and then if you like it, move here to a rental house. It will be difficult to get a job here, and almost impossible if you're not already living here. After a year or two, you may find that Island life doesn't suit you (or that the neighborhood you've picked doesn't meet your definition of "paradise"), and it will be easier to relocate if you're not already tied to a property here. If you do land a job and find you love it, there will always be property to build on and/or homes to buy. And you'll be buying based on personal knowledge of which areas, climates, etc. are right for you. Putting it bluntly, until you've been here and lived here, you don't know the right questions to ask, and the advice you receive now may not guide you to the best result for your move in the long run.

[unknownjulie]

I have a different opinion than Keaaurich. If the land is cheap enough, you can buy it and just hold it, or do what you want later on. However, I'd only buy one cheap acre in HPP or something. If you landscape a square acre right, then you won't have to deal with neighbors much. I know what you mean about HOA's. I lived briefly someplace like that in Texas, and it was awful. I think the east side is where you'll see more vegetation. I wouldn't pay more than 20 or 25k for raw land. Hotels and banking might be difficult here. You may have to switch careers, but plenty of people do this also. I think coming here and renting could use up your entire 20k pretty easily. Just buy it and make sure it's not a huge drainage ditch or infested with Albezia's. GL!

[terracore]

I recommend signing up for Harry Pritikin's comprehensive Big Island daily real estate email at http://www.konarealestateagent.com/newsletter.htm

It is the quickest way to learn values etc. We originally intended to use him as our realtor but we decided that Puna would be home and he is based out of Kona. His emails do cover the entire island but after you have made your choice, I recommend choosing a realtor that lives in the area you are interested in.

Last I checked, an acre near Kona was going for $250,000.00. But that depends on what your definition of "near" is. You said you wanted vegetation. You are not going to find that near Kona in your price range.

[unknownjulie]

Terracore and I both own land in Orchidland. That's a nice area also, with bigger lots. It does get a bit more rain there, but it's great for gardening. I got some kind of computer list when I bought my lot and also when I bought my house in Hilo. It gave me the new listings immediately as they came out. Donna Duyrea put me on the one for Hilo. She's really good and I'm very picky. Anyhow, it was because of the lists that I got both my lot and house. I bought the lot without even really knowing where it was, and I put in an offer on the house without ever walking onto the property, so it all depends on what your risk tolerance is. You'll have to figure out how you want to do things.

[csgray]

People either live and work on the Hilo side, or live and work on the Kona side. The only people who drive back and forth for work are people who have deep roots on one side (such as family land and child care) and a good job on the other. Puna is about as far from Kona as you can get and would make for a horribly long commute.

I highly recommend that you spend time using google earth, especially the drive times feature before you think too hard about exactly where you will buy or work. Why are you assuming you will work in Kona? There isn't that much work there unless you are in the hospitality industry, which doesn't pay very well for a job that is 2-3 hours from home. We rented for several years before buying, and I am so glad we did. The area we thought we would want to live before moving here turned out to be the worst place we lived while renting. It would have been a real issue if we had already had land there from before we moved here.

Carol

[DanielP]

Listen to Rich, don't let that $ burn a hole. Your questions and comments show how much more you need to learn first hand.

[unknownjulie]

You couldn't commute to Kona from Orchidland or HPP, but Hilo is not very far. You'll just have to research and decide. I like the East Side and it's cold here now, so you do get the 4 seasons. Just a milder version. After living in New Mexico and Texas I really enjoy the rain also, and being able to plant stuff and not worry much. Anyhow, I've spent time in Vegas and looked into moving there at one point also, so I know the area there. The job situation here is very very limited. You may get work, but it may be part-time and low paying. If your bills are low, then it may not matter. Actually, 80k towards a house in our area would probably go pretty far. You'll just have to weigh it all out. Start looking at job listings now though to give you and idea of whether moving would work or not.