The lure of the Islands - it's calling to you. Even if just in your dreams, it’s out there, softly nudging you under the surface. Should you listen to your heart and move to Hawaii?

Hawaii appeals to all the senses. It’s in the velvety feel of the trade winds, the crystalline blue of the sky, the aroma of plumeria blossoms, the haunting melodies of the ukulele, and the tangy sweet taste of a Mai Tai.  Who doesn’t want to move to Hawaii?

Don’t let the dream wither like a week-old lei! There are two ways to go about it. You can just jump into it headfirst, and see where you land. Grab a one-way ticket, pack your carry-on bag, and see if you land on your feet. When you are young and/or adventurous, this might work.

There is a second way for people who have families, jobs, and a less flexible lifestyle. You need to set your goal, research the details, and carefully plan your landing in Paradise. This is less spontaneous, but increases your chances of waking up where you want to be - with a roof over your head. That’s where I can help.

Finding the right Hawaii home is the basis for creating your life in paradise, so these ideas are geared mostly towards finding the right home base for your Island adventures. Here are some pointers to smooth out your path to a soft landing in Hawaii:

1. Pre-Arrival Visit: Make a special “Feasibility Study” visit in advance of your final move. You can research neighborhoods and prices from just about anywhere, including rentals and homes to purchase, but you need to have your feet on the ground to understand how Waialae is different from Waianae or Waikele. Most people need at least 2 weeks to devote to this important planning trip.

2. Price of Paradise: Figure out what it will cost you to live the lifestyle you expect. Try this Cost of Living Calculator. http://www.bankrate.com/calculators/savings/moving-cost-of-living-calculator.aspx as a rough estimate, and do your own research to fine-tune things. Unless you are moving from another expensive area, such as San Francisco or Manhattan, you will find that many things are more expensive. Many people adjust their lifestyle to make Hawaii affordable. After all, the beach is free, and you won’t be needing  in Hawaii coats and gloves.

3. Leave Your Iguana: If you are bringing animals, be sure to check on our quarantine requirements well in advance, as it takes at least 4 months. Be aware that hotels, condos, and some communities have restrictions – especially rentals. Exotic pets are prohibited entirely, you know who you are. Learn more at http://hawaii.gov/hdoa/ai/aqs. 

4. Rent vs. Own: If you plan on purchasing a home, get pre-qualified with a Hawaii-based lender before starting to look at homes. Out-of-state mortgages create more complications than I can explain here. If you need to rent, my condolences, as it is not an easy task. Homes and condos are expensive and in short supply, so be patient and flexible whether you rent or buy. For further details and advice, check out my Rent or Buy article from July 2011 or click here http://www.aroundhawaii.com/business/real_estate/2011-07-rent-or-buy.html.

5. Mauka or Makai? Choose your preferred neighborhoods, and then select between condos, town homes, and single family homes based on your price range. You may need to brush up on Hawaiian names and pronunciation to make sense of it. You can learn about neighborhoods of Oahu, and search for homes on my primary web site, http://www.hawaiihomehelp.com/. Or ask me to set you up with automatic updates whenever a home fitting your needs goes onto the market.

6. Ditch the Appliances: Over 95% of Hawaii homes come with all major appliances including refrigerators, washers & dryers etc. Don’t plan to bring yours unless your company is paying for the move, and even then, you will probably end up with an extra set. The same applies to big bulky furniture so decide carefully what furniture and personal items to bring.  See #9 below.

7. Reality Check: If you can afford a home in the $1,000,000 plus range, skip items 8, 9, and 10. Otherwise, read them carefully! Oahu median prices for a single family home are relatively stable, and hovering  around $600,000.  For details, click on http://www.tghawaii.com/learning/stats/monthlystats.html . If you want a copy of my Oahu Price Map with both rental and home prices, please email me directly at stephanieg@remax.net. 

8. Furniture or Family? Our homes tend to be smaller, since we live outdoors much of the time. A covered patio, known as a lanai, is where you may want to spend much of your time, so consider that as added living space. Consider and measure carefully before you bring large pieces of furniture, such as a large dining room set.  Most homes have a small dining area, not a separate dining room.

Your master bedroom may be much smaller than you are used to.  Large bedroom sets will be very difficult to accommodate. Bottom line: buy a home for your family, not for your furniture.

9. They Will Come: Guest rooms are great, but if your Hawaii home does not have one, don’t panic, do what the locals do. Put a pune’e – a large Hawaiian daybed - in the living, family, or lanai. This doubles as a guest bed and is a favorite place for the family to read, snooze, or just hang out. Any bed will do, just outfit it with bolsters and pillows, and place it sideways against a wall.  Trust me, when guests come to Hawaii, they are thrilled just to be here and happy to tuck into a nook in your home. If that won't work for you, an alternative is to put your guests up in a hotel. The hotel will cost you much less than buying or renting a larger home to accommodate the occasional visitor.

10. Ship Your Car? Hawaii has a wide range of new and used cars to choose from.  Rental car companies sell late-model vehicles, and others are sold when residents leave the islands.  We also have dealerships for all the makes of cars you could want. Why pay for the shipping expense unless you have something quite unusual and not available here?

11. Moving Survival Skills: After you pack up your household, you will not be able to access anything in your shipment for weeks.  Bring all your necessities with you. And if you don’t want to be in a hotel for an extended stay, consider renting a furnished condo. There are plenty of small short-term condos, mostly in Waikiki. Want more options?

If you are flexible in every sense of the word, pack up a big suitcase of “survival gear” so you can “camp out” in an unfurnished place while waiting for your stuff to arrive by boat.  Useful items to have at hand are basic kitchen items, computer, iron, bedding & towels, telephone, and anything that you can’t live without for a couple of weeks until your shipment arrives.

After you arrive, you can buy an AirBed and a few beach chairs for less than the cost of one night in a hotel, If you have kids, they will love the idea of “indoor camping”.

12. NO-NOs: DO NOT pack your important financial papers with your household goods.  Bring them with you, otherwise you may find it impossible to apply for a mortgage while your documentation is tied up in transit. This includes 2 years W-2s and tax returns, property ownership records, a closing statement if you sold another home, 3 months bank statements, latest statement for all creditors, and 3 months pay or other income statements.

13. Watch your movers! They'll pack anything that they come across - and I mean anything. We know of movers packing up an odd assortment of items including the following, no kidding:

• Owner’s purse and car keys
• The kitchen trash
• Pizza box with pizza leftovers inside
• The cat (accidentally, and with a happy ending fortunately)
• The plane tickets

For this reason, some folks designate one room entirely off limits to the movers. It creates a safe haven and avoids misunderstandings, also eliminates the surprise of 3 week old pizza packed next to your photo albums!

Embrace the Change: Everything is charmingly different here, from the way we drive (slowly, without honking our horns) to the shops and neighborhoods.  Don’t expect Hawaii homes to resemble the homes on the Mainland US or elsewhere. Compare homes you see to other Hawaii homes, not those elsewhere. Don’t expect huge yards(small islands), home heating and air conditioning (nature takes care of that in most places), or Trader Joe’s(but we can always hope).

Please email me if you need help with your Hawaii relocation, stephanieg@remax.net.

E Komo Mai – Welcome!

© 2012 Stephanie Gieseler, Honolulu, Hawaii. All rights reserved.