davidd's A DOLL A DAY 2023

[davidd]

...Well, there's always da Big Island... property is cheap there!    Heck, despite the exchange rate, even I could get a few acres of lava in Ka'u. 

That is SO seriously tempting!

Some friends of my dad are living their retirement dream on da Big Island. They are retired teachers. They purchased their place probably ten years ago now, when Big Island property was really cheap. They live up in the mountains on a few acres, essentially a small farm, with a distant ocean view. Being at altitude, they are not troubled by excessive heat. They drive down in to Kona when they need supplies from civilization. They live there full time and love it -- doing art, playing music, visiting with a constant stream of friends who come to Hawaii from the mainland. It sounds idyllic.

Then there are some people I know who had a farm in Hawaii, near Kurtistown on da Hilo side. The house was unfinished, and as the guy was a carpenter, the house remained in an eternal state of unfinishedness as he would start one project, then move on to another and another. Finally his wife asked him, begged him, to please finish JUST ONE ROOM! Just one! They were trying to maintain two places, the one in Hawaii and one on the mainland in Oregon. He couldn't bear to give up the "family homestead" in Oregon, but he wanted to keep Hawaii. One season while they were in Oregon thieves broke in to the Hawaii house and stripped all the copper wiring out of the walls. They broke in to the steel shipping container storage unit and stole all of his tools. They trashed his truck for good measure. The Big Island is a rough place, with a lot of poverty and a lot of drugs, so you have to be careful where you move to. 

I'd go, if I thought I could afford to. Except... Hawaii was super draconian when it came to COVID lockdowns. You know, you went through that on your island. The government in Hawaii is, from what I continue to read, ragingly out of control, which contributes, I suspect, to people continuing to leave.

On Oahu, marine life artist Wyland's car was recently stolen out of his locked garage. Thieves broke in to his house on the North Shore when nobody was home, found the car keys, and took the car. The car was recovered after having been stripped and set on fire. No arrests, of course. You quickly learn when living in Hawaii that most of the thieves are "cousins" of cops or other authority figures, so they are rarely identified or charged.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CnmtZsiPqiE/

I haven't looked at Big Island property prices in a while. There used to be a lot in the $200k to $300k range, but the last time I looked... much like on your little island... the prices had gone up considerably.

I don't even want to think about what my house cost when I first moved there. I don't even want to think about what I got for it when I sold it. I couldn't even begin to touch a place in the same location today, not without a budget in the millions. Millions. Yes, millions.

So at one time in my life I lived in a million dollar home. Only, it wasn't a million dollar home when I lived there. But it is now. 700 square feet (65 sq m), and the current Zillow estimate is $1.2 million.

Looks like the house last sold in 2018 for $998k. The people who bought it from me added a bathroom, remodeled the kitchen, and flipped it. Here are some pics of the upgraded version:

https://www.hawaii.house/home/67-231a-ka...201803679/

I see that the beach erosion stopped. I planted those palm trees you see in the front yard, except for the really tall one. The tall one is the last of the four that were there when I moved in. Three were claimed by erosion during my time there. 

I keep purchasing lottery tickets, but they have yet to pay off.

Oh well....

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20 January - A Doll A Day 2023:

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