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Aloha all!! My wife, partner and I are relocating from the desert southwest to the east side of the BI next week.
We arrive on Monday. Currently searching for a home to buy, and also a place to rent. Looks
like hotel life will be the order of the day for a week or two.
I'm doing a job transfer, so will hit the ground solidly at least. My wife is finishing up
her Masters degree and will be starting her internship early next year.
Our partner will be starting class for her business degree as well.
We're incredibly excited, and incredibly nervous. This was a leap of faith when the opportunity
came up. I've never been to Hawaii before at all, but am really ready for the change of lifestyle/pace.
I'm 45, lived in Arizona the vast majority of my life.
The added difficulty in renting a house caught me off guard, but we'll manage!
I've been reading the Punaweb pages for the last few days, and like what I see... lots of diversity!
This site is a wealth of knowledge for someone like ourselves!! Thank you!
Mahalo!!!
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welcome! prepare for cultural shock and you will do fine
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Congrats,
We made the leap 9 years ago, also my mid forties (lifetime Midwesterners) so I could study at UH-H.
The big worry for us also was the housing, but after a week (and a few thousand miles on our rental car, and many weird experiences with realty companies) we found what was the perfect transition into island life house rental for us.
For this reason, I would advise anyone making this leap to take the first one to two weeks as an odd vacation. Get a hotel so that you have a base, but plan to spend as much of your time snooping about the areas you think you are interested in. Travel the subdivision & 'private' roads (esp with a rental vehicle...)
Get involved in community activities, maybe something odd like a road or beach cleanup (we met the greatest group of people that helped us, including the community policeman that took us around & showed off the community, you would be surprised at the outreach you will receive if you reach out first!)
Even if you are not really religious, visit some of the religious communities in the areas you are interested, after all, some of these people may live in the areas you are interested...
and remember, in the great scheme of things, your first few weeks here may be only a few weeks, getting to know people & your new community may assist you for years!
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quote:
Originally posted by IslandTrio
Aloha all!! My wife, partner and I are relocating from the desert southwest to the east side of the BI next week.
We arrive on Monday. Currently searching for a home to buy, and also a place to rent.
The best advice on this that I have seen for new arrivals is: rent first, buy later... Give yourself time to really understand the pros and cons of living in any area or region of the island before you commit to buy. As one example, Hawaii is a land of micro-climates unlike anything you have seen on the continent: rainfall rates can change by 50% over distances of a few miles, average day/night temperatures not quite so drastic, but still enough to make the difference between comfort and not so comfortable. Sad to say, the same is true of all the other challenges of modern society including internet access, commute times and crime rates.
And, if you don't know what a FIRM map is or where Lava Flow Zone 1 is, probably a good idea to find out...
Good luck with your transition to life in Paradise....
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You're coming from the desert, so did I. This is a whole other world. Be prepared for everything metal to rust, everything leather to mold, fiberboard will sag and eventually collapse, solid wood will swell and dresser drawers and cabinet doors will become frozen shut. Salt will solidify then liquify, spices will become rock hard overnight. Electronics will fail prematurely for no apparent reason. Be ready for frequent power failures but ridiculously expensive electricity. If you want internet, your housing choices will be limited. Gasoline costs more, groceries cost more and shelves are often empty, awaiting the next container. If you want to order something from the mainland, shipping costs can be shocking, or, "they" won't ship to Hawaii at all. And yet, most of us wouldn't trade it for the world. I've found a home here, but it took some getting used to. [8D]
A friend saw my post and told me I had left out the most important warning - photographs. If you have any photos you want to preserve, find a way to keep them dry ... a dry room, vacuum packed, something. Probably best to just transfer them to DVDs, which (so far) seem unaffected by the climate. The same goes for VHS or cassette tapes, if you still have any of those that you want to save. [  ]
I am so much more like I am today than I ever was before!
I don't know how I got over the hill without getting to the top.
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Get a copy of the "Ready Map Book" for East Hawaii. It will be invaluable in trying to figure out where places you are looking for are, and save you a lot of driving in circles. They sell them at KTA at the checkout stand, right next to the booklet you need to study to get your Hawaii drivers license.
Carol
Carol
Every time you feel yourself getting pulled into other people's nonsense, repeat these words: Not my circus, not my monkeys.
Polish Proverb
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Let me add to the chorus of people saying to explore thoroughly before buying anything.
I think back to our exploration, and that feeling of "yeah, this is where we want to be".
You have a wonderful adventure ahead of you. What's that old saying? "The worst day in Hawaii is still better than the best day...."
Aloha.
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"The worst day in Hawaii is still better than the best day...."
fishing anyplace else.
"I'm at that stage in life where I stay out of discussions. Even if you say 1+1=5, you're right - have fun." - Keanu Reeves
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Well I've been here two weeks now in some weird Puna way I feel qualified to say welcome.
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