I Got the Job and We’re Moving to Oahu

[tompalm]

I didn’t see when you needed to start a rental in Hawaii, but if August 1st works, my neighbor has a two bedroom apartment attached to the front of his house that is around 1000 sq foot and has a view of the ocean. It is really nice and also in an upscale neighborhood. It is walking distance to shopping and Hanauma Bay. $2600 a month includes all utilities. Send me your phone number on a PM and I will tell him to call you. This will be rented the first day he advertises it, so don’t wait too long. Driving time to your work area when there is no traffic is less than 30 minutes.

 

[dioxide45]

There are four Costco's on Oahu. Groceries and gas there are comparable to Mainland pricing.

Except for milk! Milk is still damn expensive in Hawaii. If Costco can get the cost of most other groceries down to close to mainland prices, why can't they do the same for milk?

 

[DaveNV]

Except for milk! Milk is still damn expensive in Hawaii. If Costco can get the cost of most other groceries down to close to mainland prices, why can't they do the same for milk?

Is it? Maybe because it has to be bought locally? I don't buy milk, so I've never noticed. I have noticed a lot of the things I do buy at home are the same, or close to the same price, at Costco in Hawaii.

Dave

 

[dioxide45]

Is it? Maybe because it has to be bought locally? I don't buy milk, so I've never noticed. I have noticed a lot of the things I do buy at home are the same, or close to the same price, at Costco in Hawaii.

Dave

Yeah, for whatever reason milk is still like $5 a gallon in Hawaii when we were paying $0.98 back in Ohio. Found out it is $1.99 here in Florida. Eggs are also double. I suspect these are cheaper in Ohio mainly due to transportation costs.

 

[DaveNV]

Yeah, for whatever reason milk is still like $5 a gallon in Hawaii when we were paying $0.98 back in Ohio. Found out it is $1.99 here in Florida. Eggs are also double. I suspect these are cheaper in Ohio mainly due to transportation costs.

Was that $5 a gallon in Hawaii the Costco price, or local grocery stores? Here in Washington State where I am, literally surrounded by dairy farms, milk is $2 to $4 a gallon. At our Costco it's about $2 a gallon, but you have to buy two gallons at a time. As I say, I don't buy milk, so there is no way I'd be able to go through two gallons before it started going bad.

Dave

 

[dioxide45]

Was that $5 a gallon in Hawaii the Costco price, or local grocery stores? Here in Washington State where I am, literally surrounded by dairy farms, milk is $2 to $4 a gallon. At our Costco it's about $2 a gallon, but you have to buy two gallons at a time. As I say, I don't buy milk, so there is no way I'd be able to go through two gallons before it started going bad.

Dave

It was just as expensive at Costco as the grocery stores. Perhaps a small savings but I have never really found Costco to be competitive on their pricing of milk.

 

[SmithOp]

We buy the organic ultra pastuerized milk at Costco, comes in a 3 pack of half gallon, good for at least 6 weeks. One pack lasts a month so price is not a factor in our purchase decision, prefer not to buy the cheap milk full of bovine hormones. A little on cereal and a splash in coffee is all we use.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Pro

 

[Tamaradarann]

I didn’t see when you needed to start a rental in Hawaii, but if August 1st works, my neighbor has a two bedroom apartment attached to the front of his house that is around 1000 sq foot and has a view of the ocean. It is really nice and also in an upscale neighborhood. It is walking distance to shopping and Hanauma Bay. $2600 a month includes all utilities. Send me your phone number on a PM and I will tell him to call you. This will be rented the first day he advertises it, so don’t wait too long. Driving time to your work area when there is no traffic is less than 30 minutes.

Slip, everything that tompalm mentions about this apartment sounds correct. I am not trying to throw cold water on this location, while it wouldn't work for my husband and I although it may work for you and your wife. Lifestyles are different so I would like to offer my thoughts and questions which may prevent island fever for you: We don't drink and drive, but we do like to drink both in our accommodations and then go out and also when we go out. So walkability is an important and complicated issue. Walking distance is not necessarily safe walking distance. Are there sidewalks? Also, walking during the day is different than walking at night. Are there restaurants and nightlife within walking distance? How far and how easy a walk is the BUS both day and night? What BUS line is it? Where does it go? How often does it run, and what time does it stop at night? Finally, the last sentence states that "Driving time to your work area WHEN THERE IS NO TRAFFIC is less than 30 minutes. Are you going to go to work and come home in the middle of the night? As I mentioned we bought our condo in Waikiki, since all the questions that I asked come with positive answers for our location and that location works perfectly for us. Everyone is different.

 

[slip]

I didn’t see when you needed to start a rental in Hawaii, but if August 1st works, my neighbor has a two bedroom apartment attached to the front of his house that is around 1000 sq foot and has a view of the ocean. It is really nice and also in an upscale neighborhood. It is walking distance to shopping and Hanauma Bay. $2600 a month includes all utilities. Send me your phone number on a PM and I will tell him to call you. This will be rented the first day he advertises it, so don’t wait too long. Driving time to your work area when there is no traffic is less than 30 minutes.

Thank You, timeframe is about right but I have to get there to see about commutes and good neighborhoods. I definitely want to be closer but I also don’t know if it is realistic. I would rather not spend that much but again I don’t know if it’s realistic.

We are definitely downsizing and can get away with less than a 1,000 sq/ft so hopefully we can save some money because of that. One bedroom preferred but would consider a studio. A parking spot is a must also.

 

[slip]

Slip, everything that tompalm mentions about this apartment sounds correct. I am not trying to throw cold water on this location, while it wouldn't work for my husband and I although it may work for you and your wife. Lifestyles are different so I would like to offer my thoughts and questions which may prevent island fever for you: We don't drink and drive, but we do like to drink both in our accommodations and then go out and also when we go out. So walkability is an important and complicated issue. Walking distance is not necessarily safe walking distance. Are there sidewalks? Also, walking during the day is different than walking at night. Are there restaurants and nightlife within walking distance? How far and how easy a walk is the BUS both day and night? What BUS line is it? Where does it go? How often does it run, and what time does it stop at night? Finally, the last sentence states that "Driving time to your work area WHEN THERE IS NO TRAFFIC is less than 30 minutes. Are you going to go to work and come home in the middle of the night? As I mentioned we bought our condo in Waikiki, since all the questions that I asked come with positive answers for our location and that location works perfectly for us. Everyone is different.

You are correct, everyone is different and as long as I’m in a relatively safe neighborhood close to grocery and a few restaurants, We’re fine. I will have to drive a little there and see about the commute times and makes sure I’m in a pretty good neighborhood.

We are not nightlife people but will enjoy a drink or two at home and usually only drink one or maybe two away from home.

We hope to get out more because of the weather but it in reality it will be on The weekend, Friday Saturday and Sunday.

 

[slip]

I had to catch up on this thread since we have been really busy.

We decided to get a dumpster so we can just throw stuff when we are going through it. We have the lady who does auctions coming Monday to go through everything and buy what she wants to sell. After that we can start to go through what’s left.

My son came over today and took what he wanted. He helped me with a little drywall patch I had to do also. We did a little outside work too. Just some trimming of the grass and bushes. We have a guy coming this week to pressure wash the house and deck. The outside should be in good shape after that.

Tomorrow I just have to put some trim back on and then I’ll start going through some areas and throw away stuff that I know needs to go.

We’ll have to move things to the garage this week also because we are putting in new carpet. Hopefully some of this stuff will be taken by the auction lady.

We had to take a little time today because we found new homes for our cat and dog. This was the roughest thing. With our six year plan our dog was going to be 15 and possibly even not around so we would only have to find a home for the cat but because of how fast this all is going we had to find them new homes. I didn’t want to put them through that long plane ride and it also would make things much tougher to find a rental. My wife cried about the cat. She handled that one and I cried about the dog. When we got the dog it was hers but she quickly became mine and that was tough on me today but the lady who took her bright her grand kids with her and Molly was playing with them right off the bat and she went right over by there car. It made it easier on me seeing she was happy.

One problem I have is that there were no cars available to rent at our only rental car place in town for Monday and that’s when my car is being picked up. They may have something that afternoon but I don’t know the time my car is being picked up at. Hope the timing works out. I tried to get a car on Saturday but they didn’t have anything.
I’ll make it work somehow.

We’re moving along.

 

[DaveNV]

I’ll make it work somehow.

We’re moving along.

Eyes on the prize, Jeff. Eyes on the prize. And don't forget to breathe. It will ALL be fine.

When we finally meet next year, first round is on me. Maybe the second round, too.

Dave

 

[slip]

Eyes on the prize, Jeff. Eyes on the prize. And don't forget to breathe. It will ALL be fine.

When we finally meet next year, first round is on me. Maybe the second round, too.

Dave

Now we’re talkin.

 

[Tamaradarann]

You are correct, everyone is different and as long as I’m in a relatively safe neighborhood close to grocery and a few restaurants, We’re fine. I will have to drive a little there and see about the commute times and makes sure I’m in a pretty good neighborhood.

We are not nightlife people but will enjoy a drink or two at home and usually only drink one or maybe two away from home.

We hope to get out more because of the weather but it in reality it will be on The weekend, Friday Saturday and Sunday.

You have your priorities straight as far as a safe neighborhood and the daily commute being the most important.

At our age we no longer are nightlife people either, but we will drink at home with a salad before we go out to dinner to save money, (It could save 1/2 of the restaurant bill) and we also may have a couple at a microbrew or discount happy hour; but even one or two and you are impaired and we don't want to drive impaired.

However, the details that I brought up about walkability and the BUS is not just so you don't have to avoid drinking and driving. You mention your wife will not have a car. Therefore, the walkability and Bus service will be critical for her to enjoy being here and hopefully not get ISLAND FEVER. You did say that she could drive you to work and have the car for the day. Unless you live pretty close to where you work that is going to cost her a lot of time making 2 trips to your job(dropping off and picking up) each day she wants the car. Keep in mind that even if you live somewhat East of your job, which I recommend, so the main rush hour traffic is in the opposite direction, if she drops you off the return trip home and the evening trip to pick you up will be in the middle of rush hour traffic. That can get old very quickly as well as gas costly. I don't know your wife, but I know that I would not want to sit home all day without a car and not be able to get out and walk or take a bus easily to everything I wanted to do in Honolulu while my husband was at work! It would be a shame if your wife got ISLAND FEVER, like I would, for lack of a car or the ability to get where she would like to go to have an enjoyable stay.

 

[slip]

You have your priorities straight as far as a safe neighborhood and the daily commute being the most important.

At our age we no longer are nightlife people either, but we will drink at home with a salad before we go out to dinner to save money, (It could save 1/2 of the restaurant bill) and we also may have a couple at a microbrew or discount happy hour; but even one or two and you are impaired and we don't want to drive impaired.

However, the details that I brought up about walkability and the BUS is not just so you don't have to avoid drinking and driving. You mention your wife will not have a car. Therefore, the walkability and Bus service will be critical for her to enjoy being here and hopefully not get ISLAND FEVER. You did say that she could drive you to work and have the car for the day. Unless you live pretty close to where you work that is going to cost her a lot of time making 2 trips to your job(dropping off and picking up) each day she wants the car. Keep in mind that even if you live somewhat East of your job, which I recommend, so the main rush hour traffic is in the opposite direction, if she drops you off the return trip home and the evening trip to pick you up will be in the middle of rush hour traffic. That can get old very quickly as well as gas costly. I don't know your wife, but I know that I would not want to sit home all day without a car and not be able to get out and walk or take a bus easily to everything I wanted to do in Honolulu while my husband was at work! It would be a shame if your wife got ISLAND FEVER, like I would, for lack of a car or the ability to get where she would like to go to have an enjoyable stay.

The bus is definitely the other option for that. Most of the places I have seen, that had parking, we’re close to the bus. I don’t see her going into Honolulu by herself. That may change while we’re there but we’ll see. She will go to more neighborhood places while I’m at work if needed.

Time will tell with all this. I’m leaning toward a six month. That way, after that time we can see if we are happy with the area.

 

[Tamaradarann]

The bus is definitely the other option for that. Most of the places I have seen, that had parking, we’re close to the bus. I don’t see her going into Honolulu by herself. That may change while we’re there but we’ll see. She will go to more neighborhood places while I’m at work if needed.

Time will tell with all this. I’m leaning toward a six month. That way, after that time we can see if we are happy with the area.

During the daytime I go into Downtown Honolulu all the time by myself. If I do go with my husband I will wander around by myself while he is getting a haircut. It also depends on what your definition of Honolulu is. My definition is much broader than Chinatown and the Business District: Waikiki is Honolulu, Ala Moana Shopping Center is Honolulu, The Honolulu Museum of Art is Honolulu, The Hawaii State Art Museum is Honolulu, The Blaisdell Concert Hall, Arena and Meeting Rooms are Honolulu, the Hawaii Convention Center is Honolulu, the New Upscale Ward Village is Honolulu, the University of Hawaii at Manoa is Honolulu. I don't know what "neighborhood places" you are talking about but if it doesn't have lots of stimulating activities, (if your wife needs and desires stimulating activities), she will not be happy and perhaps she will get ISLAND FEVER. Furthermore, if you want to meet up with her for an event in Honolulu after your work day, say on Friday night, it would be great if she could meet you there rather than spending the time traveling home to pick her up fighting Friday night traffic. Honolulu has lots to offer. But one needs to take advantage of what is has to offer.

 

[rapmarks]

Yeah, for whatever reason milk is still like $5 a gallon in Hawaii when we were paying $0.98 back in Ohio. Found out it is $1.99 here in Florida. Eggs are also double. I suspect these are cheaper in Ohio mainly due to transportation costs.

Where do you find milk for that price in Florida? About 2.49 at Costco and 4.29 at publix and eggs high too.

 

[rapmarks]

I had to catch up on this thread since we have been really busy.

We decided to get a dumpster so we can just throw stuff when we are going through it. We have the lady who does auctions coming Monday to go through everything and buy what she wants to sell. After that we can start to go through what’s left.

My son came over today and took what he wanted. He helped me with a little drywall patch I had to do also. We did a little outside work too. Just some trimming of the grass and bushes. We have a guy coming this week to pressure wash the house and deck. The outside should be in good shape after that.

Tomorrow I just have to put some trim back on and then I’ll start going through some areas and throw away stuff that I know needs to go.

We’ll have to move things to the garage this week also because we are putting in new carpet. Hopefully some of this stuff will be taken by the auction lady.

We had to take a little time today because we found new homes for our cat and dog. This was the roughest thing. With our six year plan our dog was going to be 15 and possibly even not around so we would only have to find a home for the cat but because of how fast this all is going we had to find them new homes. I didn’t want to put them through that long plane ride and it also would make things much tougher to find a rental. My wife cried about the cat. She handled that one and I cried about the dog. When we got the dog it was hers but she quickly became mine and that was tough on me today but the lady who took her bright her grand kids with her and Molly was playing with them right off the bat and she went right over by there car. It made it easier on me seeing she was happy.

One problem I have is that there were no cars available to rent at our only rental car place in town for Monday and that’s when my car is being picked up. They may have something that afternoon but I don’t know the time my car is being picked up at. Hope the timing works out. I tried to get a car on Saturday but they didn’t have anything.
I’ll make it work somehow.

We’re moving along.

If you have a garage sale, let me know.

 

[TheTimeTraveler]

Where do you find milk for that price in Florida? About 2.49 at Costco and 4.29 at publix and eggs high too.

Even the gas at Costco is about 50 to 75 cents more per gallon at any of the locations in Hawaii versus that of the other states (don't count California or Alaska). Nothing against California but they seem to beat to their own drum when it comes to gasoline prices in the USA.

Anyone know WHY California gas prices are so high? I understand why Hawaii gas prices are high but never understood the issue with California.





.

 

[dioxide45]

Where do you find milk for that price in Florida? About 2.49 at Costco and 4.29 at publix and eggs high too.

Aldi around here has milk for $1.99. Just bought a gallon today!

 

[dioxide45]

Anyone know WHY California gas prices are so high? I understand why Hawaii gas prices are high but never understood the issue with California.

Mostly taxes and emissions requirements? Don't they refine gasoline a little different for California?

 

[slip]

During the daytime I go into Downtown Honolulu all the time by myself. If I do go with my husband I will wander around by myself while he is getting a haircut. It also depends on what your definition of Honolulu is. My definition is much broader than Chinatown and the Business District: Waikiki is Honolulu, Ala Moana Shopping Center is Honolulu, The Honolulu Museum of Art is Honolulu, The Hawaii State Art Museum is Honolulu, The Blaisdell Concert Hall, Arena and Meeting Rooms are Honolulu, the Hawaii Convention Center is Honolulu, the New Upscale Ward Village is Honolulu, the University of Hawaii at Manoa is Honolulu. I don't know what "neighborhood places" you are talking about but if it doesn't have lots of stimulating activities, (if your wife needs and desires stimulating activities), she will not be happy and perhaps she will get ISLAND FEVER. Furthermore, if you want to meet up with her for an event in Honolulu after your work day, say on Friday night, it would be great if she could meet you there rather than spending the time traveling home to pick her up fighting Friday night traffic. Honolulu has lots to offer. But one needs to take advantage of what is has to offer.

My wife gets around but she does have some difficulties. She is more comfortable getting around with me there. She also has many hobbies that she does around the house. Even here In Wisconsin there are many things to get out and do but don’t do them a lot. That may change when we’re there we’ll see.

 

[DaveNV]

My wife gets around but she does have some difficulties. She is more comfortable getting around with me there. She also has many hobbies that she does around the house. Even here In Wisconsin there are many things to get out and do but don’t do them a lot. That may change when we’re there we’ll see.

You'll find once you're on island that you'll develop a new perspective about your time in Hawaii. When you're on vacation, you have to go and do something most every day, before the vacation ends. Once you live there, you'll find you can plan for events that might be weeks away. What you do "on the day" quickly boils down to how you feel, what the weather is doing, how crowded it will be, and so forth. It'll take time to adjust, but after that, it's all good. Give yourselves time.

As for neighborhoods, we've discussed that. Your "15 minute drive" thing may require some adjustment. That's more of a Mainlander attitude. You may find, once you're there, that certain parts of the island are more appealing places to live, but to live in those areas, the tradeoff is a longer commute. Note that working hours in Hawaii tend to start earlier in the day than on the Mainland, so quitting time also comes earlier. Being closer to the Equator, days and nights tend to be about the same length of time, year round. Hawaii also doesn't recognize Daylight Saving Time, so days and nights are pretty steady year round.

I'd suggest you explore the Windward side of the island. Kaneohe is a nice community at the end of the Likelike Highway, which dumps out very close in Honolulu ("Town") to where you'll be working. Kaneohe has a lot of condos and such, so might be simpler to find a place to live. Weather tends to be a bit cooler and rainier on the Windward side, compared to the Leeward side, which is drier and warmer. Easy beaches, good community shopping, and a more relaxing environment than Honolulu. (If you want big-city urban life, Honolulu is great. But if you want a somewhat slower pace, the Windward side might be a good place to look into.) Kailua is a nice option, too, but it may be a longer commute to get to where you work.

Dave

 

[slip]

You'll find once you're on island that you'll develop a new perspective about your time in Hawaii. When you're on vacation, you have to go and do something most every day, before the vacation ends. Once you live there, you'll find you can plan for events that might be weeks away. What you do "on the day" quickly boils down to how you feel, what the weather is doing, how crowded it will be, and so forth. It'll take time to adjust, but after that, it's all good. Give yourselves time.

As for neighborhoods, we've discussed that. Your "15 minute drive" thing may require some adjustment. That's more of a Mainlander attitude. You may find, once you're there, that certain parts of the island are more appealing places to live, but to live in those areas, the tradeoff is a longer commute. Note that working hours in Hawaii tend to start earlier in the day than on the Mainland, so quitting time also comes earlier. Being closer to the Equator, days and nights tend to be about the same length of time, year round. Hawaii also doesn't recognize Daylight Saving Time, so days and nights are pretty steady year round.

I'd suggest you explore the Windward side of the island. Kaneohe is a nice community at the end of the Likelike Highway, which dumps out very close in Honolulu ("Town") to where you'll be working. Kaneohe has a lot of condos and such, so might be simpler to find a place to live. Weather tends to be a bit cooler and rainier on the Windward side, compared to the Leeward side, which is drier and warmer. Easy beaches, good community shopping, and a more relaxing environment than Honolulu. (If you want big-city urban life, Honolulu is great. But if you want a somewhat slower pace, the Windward side might be a good place to look into.) Kailua is a nice option, too, but it may be a longer commute to get to where you work.

Dave

That’s what I’m thinking. It will be different working there and I’m thinking during the week it will be similar to what we do here. And like you said there will be no hurry to get to do or see things. I will definitely learn more when I’m there.

My hours will probably be similar to what I have here, 7am to 5pm. Sometimes a little later and sometimes a little early. It will be a flexible, a little anyway.

 

[DaveNV]

That’s what I’m thinking. It will be different working there and I’m thinking during the week it will be similar to what we do here. And like you said there will be no hurry to get to do or see things. I will definitely learn more when I’m there.

My hours will probably be similar to what I have here, 7am to 5pm. Sometimes a little later and sometimes a little early. It will be a flexible, a little anyway.

If you're expecting to work 7-5, you may be able to skip a certain amount of rush hour traffic on Oahu. Most people would be more like 8-4 or so. Traffic near the military bases might back up during those early hours, but if you're at your desk an hour before anyone else needs to be at work, traffic may not be so bad.

Due to flexible working hours, afternoon rush hour tends to be longer than in the morning. Five o'clock may still leave some traffic to contend with. If you're living in the Punchbowl area, as we originally discussed, you can drive surface streets and avoid the freeway, which will help you get around better during high traffic times. No matter what, I'd strongly recommend you avoid living anywhere from around the airport to the west end of the island. So anything around Pearl Harbor out to Kapolei should be avoided. That's where rush hour traffic is the worst.

Dave