Today, we’re starting a new series on our YouTube channel and our Podcast about relocating to Hawaii. What’s it like to relocate to Hawaii? Everybody’s thought of it. They say, “Wouldn’t it be great if we could just sell our business, quit our jobs, whatever the case may be, throw caution to the wind and move to Hawaii and the island life that we’ve always wanted.” What’s that like? What are all the factors? What are all the things you have to consider?
Today is part one, which is really just the basics. Let’s start with employment. I’m guessing that if you’ve made the decision to move to Hawaii, you’ve nailed down the employment part of this. And you know, the options are A) “I’m going to keep my job on the mainland because I can work remotely from anywhere and that’s why I’m going to come to Hawaii” or B) “I’m leaving my job. And I’ve been offered a new job at a company in Hawaii” or C) maybe there’s some different type of variation like you’re starting a business, you’re retiring, you don’t know exactly what you’re doing, but you’re coming anyway. So I’m going to trust that you’ve nailed down the employment part of this.
Now, keep in mind, one of the things that happens quite often is people think they can work remotely from anywhere and they really fail to take in the time difference. A friend of mine was an accountant from North Carolina and his client was in North Carolina, his primary client, and so there was a six hour difference and getting up very, very early in the morning to work the hours of this particular company was very hard to do. And after about two years, it became too much and was very draining. And that happened also with the pandemic. By the way, there was a bunch of people who came here from New York and rented houses and stayed here during the pandemic, and they worked on Wall Street and they were getting up at three in the morning and they found that didn’t work all that well. So again, I’m leaving the employment part up to you.
The next thing to do is to figure out which side of the Big Island do you want to live on? Do you want to live on the Hilo side, which is the east side of the island? Or do you want to live on the Kona (west) side, which is the dry side of the island? The Hilo side is one of the rainiest places on the planet, but it is very beautiful. I mean, people email us all the time and say, well, look at this home. Look how beautiful and green and lush it is. Well, there’s a reason for that. There’s a lot of rain. So you’ve got to like rain if you’re going over to Hilo.
The next step is to decide what your residency is going to be here. Are you moving here full time? Are you going to be here part time? You’re just going to come here to a vacation home and stay when you want and then lock it up when you leave? Or are you looking for an income property such as a short term vacation rental that you can rent when you’re not here? Figure out what type of residency you’re thinking about. And the reason why I tell you that is it’s going to dictate what type of property you buy, right? Short term vacation rentals are only in the short term vacation rental zones, and so that limits us on where we can look. But if you’re coming here as a full time resident and it’s going to be your primary residence, then we’re going to look at primary subdivisions, like the one I live in. If you’re going to be here some of the time, well, that opens up possibilities across this whole west side of the island. So figure out what type of residency that you’re looking for
Next, find a good realtor like us at The Hawaii Team! Find somebody who really knows the island and all of the subdivisions. They know all of the resorts, they know all of the nooks and crannies, and they can advise you on what it’s like to buy here. Because the Hawaii contract is unique and there’s things specific to the state of Hawaii, taxes and fees that you’re going to need to know. And the process is different here. I’ve got to be honest with you. I was in Denver 23 years, and the buying and selling process here is vastly different. So find somebody who’s really good, who knows what they’re doing and can be a good advisor for you.
Let’s talk about budget wants and needs. There are “wants” and “needs” and then there’s what you can afford. So make sure you’re really clear about what’s your max number. Up to 2 million? Up to 2.5 million? Whatever the case may be. Then tell us what your wants and needs are and let’s see if those two things match up. Let’s find out if there are properties that match that criteria and that budget.
Then there’s financing, of course. How are you financing this purchase? Most people say, “well, I’m getting a loan”, but what you need to know is that a lot of mainland lenders do not lend in Hawaii. And that’s okay because we’ve got lenders here that we can refer you to. But, you know, people say, well, I want to leverage my relationship on the mainland with my bank — you can do that, but just make sure a couple of things. Number one, make sure that they’ll loan in Hawaii. Number two, will they loan on a condo in Hawaii? And will they loan on a condo with transient accommodations? If you’re looking to buy an income property a lot of banks don’t like that combination. They don’t like Hawaii, they don’t like condos, and they don’t like it to be used as an short term vacation rental (STVR). So be sure. Otherwise, we can connect you with a local lender here.
Next, are you comfortable with buying virtually, because that’s probably what’s going to have to happen. You’ll see something that comes up on email that we send you. We’ll put you on FaceTime, Zoom — we’ll give you a virtual tour and then you’ll most likely have to make a decision or get on a plane real fast to come out and see it. But that’s okay. You can buy it virtually and then get on a plane because we usually have at least a two week due diligence period where during that period, you can come out and take a look at the house finally closing. Don’t worry, if you’re back on the mainland, closings are all done remotely these days. And so we’ll send a notary to you or you can go to one of the closing offices nearby. And most of the time we send a notary right to your house and you sign all of the papers and FedEx them back. The seller here does the same. Closings are done what we call “in escrow”. Hawaii is not a table funding state. People don’t sit at a table and swap keys and sign papers all on the same day. This is an escrow state, which means you sign your documents, at your place, then the other person signs their documents, they send them into the title company. They send money in two days later and then two days after that, the property records show you’re an owner.
If you have any questions and you want to know about buying, selling, or investing in real estate here in Hawaii, contact us here at The Hawaii Team. 808-913-0899.
For a podcast version: https://spotifyanchor-web.app.link/e/EkVOiz41Eub
For the YouTube version: https://youtu.be/AoscX6mKhTA
