We are moving to Hawaii from the Seattle area the summer of 2016.
We're going to rent on Maui until we get our bearings, but I really want to buy a bit of land in a rural area and put down some roots (plants and personal) and connect to the community.

I work online so I can live anywhere I can get 3-5MB Internet access.
The possibility of building a little homestead on Molokai is very appealing to me.

My wife is quick to point out that a trip to Costco is an expensive all-day project, and I don't deny that, but let's set aside logistics for this question.

I've seen mixed information, mostly from tourism discussion boards, about the cultural attitude toward tourists and white people on Molokai.

Are polite white people generally accepted on Molokai or would we feel like we don't belong there even after 10 years?

I'm just curious if it's realistic for me to dream about exploring and settling on Molokai or if I should adjust my perception of the island.

I haven't been to Molokai for many years, over 20 to be more to the point. The last time I went it was great, the people were wonderful. But times have changed a bit and there are a lot of Hawaiian activists there now, or the residents have become activists. I can't say I think you would be well received, but I'm open to being proven wrong. The island is beautiful and incredibly peaceful.

Maui is the island version of CA. I came here from CA 38 years ago and the island has more blonde haired kids than remember from the mainland. Good starting point to ease into the island lifestyle.

I would recommend checking out the Big Island. Plenty of space, home prices that are still reasonable, for the most part, and shopping/services are more accessible than Molokai. Kona reminds me of how Waikiki was back in the day, a bit wild and freewheeling and Hilo is beautiful. You just have to get used to the rain. Then again, if you're coming from Seattle, maybe not.

In any case, get ready to slow way, way down.

Hope this helps!

In any case, get ready to slow way, way down.

This!

I haven't been to Molokai in about 6-7 years.  I used to go there now and then for work, but generally stayed in Kaunakakai.  I still have some family there, but rarely see them.  Mostly only for funeral and wedding type occasions.  From what I've heard, things have changed but many things have stayed the same, like the slow pace of life and small community where everyone knows everyone and everything, etc. 

My cousin had an annual trip to Kalaupapa side to fish and camp with his friends.  I've been meaning to go one day, but just haven't had the chance.  That would definitely be an experience for me.

I lived in Seattle for 11 years (Downtown, Lake City, Lynnwood, Everett).  In Lynnwood and Everett, I was definitely a minority, but I got to know many people that were born and raised there and are still good friends to this day.  There are lots of Hawaii people in Seattle and I think the lifestyles, diverse population, etc are similar enough that I personally enjoyed living there and if I didn't live here, I could see myself moving back there. 

Will you be accepted on Molokai?  I would hope that any reasonable, courteous, respectful person could fit in anywhere in Hawaii, but I also understand that Molokai is just, well, different.  I would suggest that maybe you visit for a long weekend or something if time allows.  As Ed mentioned, I would think that the Big Island might offer many of the things that you are looking for.  Even though I was born and raised here and very much enjoy the laid back lifestyle that Hawaii offers, Molokai is just on another level. 

Bass monkey lived there recently.
Maybe he can chime in here.
Mel Chung the gunsmith lives there.

Thank you edster48.
You are echoing what I've heard...that people are very nice, but the activism has increased.

drck1000, that is exactly the gut feeling I have about Molokai, but needed some confirmation.

I can't fix being a haole, and I'd rather not be treated like an outsider where I live.


I lived in Stanwood most of my life and commuted to Lynnwood for 9 years. It's pretty amazing to grow up between two mountain ranges and see all that amazing beauty, but we want to get out of the gray.

We've been looking at the West side of the big island a lot, but vog, earthquakes and few beaches make it a third choice for us so far. We've been there and liked a lot about it. Hilo is very affordable but I'd like 30-50 inches of rain...not 80+.

We've never been to Kauai, but we want to check that out...there seems to be some affordable property there, low population but still a Costco....must keep my wife's relocation criteria in mind.

Ready to slow down.
We short-sold our house 50 miles North of Seattle in 2013 after loosing our life's savings. We are not `Seattle` people.
We moved to FL for 6 months, bought and 40' diesel RV for $35K and have traveled around the mainland checking a few things off the bucket list and exploring areas for relocation @ http://20fromnow.com
We really wanted to find something we love here on the mainland, and the pro/con evaluation for many places is pretty even so we've had to really distill what we want in life.

- We've lived in 350SF for almost 2 years so we've realized we don't need a lot of stuff or space. A 500-600SF Ohana for a decent price is all we're after.
- I think the economy and the USD is in the process of taking a dump so I want to decrease our dependence on external systems of support for food, water and energy. Growing food year-round and ample solar energy in Hawaii is a big draw.
- I know the cost of living in Hawaii is considered high, but we don't plan to live like mainlanders with a big house and a big lifestyle so I think we can make it work.

We're in our early 40's with a portable income stream so that opens options others don't have.
After suffering a crushing business failure in 1995, I became a web developer and rebuilt my life specifically so we could live wherever we wanted to live.

I truly appreciate connecting with a few people via 2AHawaii.

awesome plan I think you will do well especially with the portable mainland income.  that is the key I think as you've picked 2 of the most expensive islands to land on.  homesteading is quite the dream and I wish you GL!!!

costco and other stores is a big consideration for me too but above that is medical services (esp. as my wife and I age) and ultimately access to LifeFlight as well. 

I was born and raised on Molokai, graduated from Molokai High School.  They generally don't like "outsiders" and you got these "Hawaiian" activists who are mostly 3/4 Caucasian.  I would say if you are friendly, don't act like you are better than the locals,  you will be accepted.  Everything is very expensive.  87 octane gas is still over $4 a gallon.  Never needed to lock the house or car when I was growing up there, but times have changed.   No such thing as a Hawaiian activist when I was living there.

My dad grew up on Molokai.  He and a couple of his brothers moved to Oahu after high school.  Growing up, we would visit Molokai here and there, but never felt like going back home.  I'd bet that if I asked my dad and uncles, that they'd feel like outsiders if we were to visit Molokai today. 

Thank you guys for putting things in perspective for me.
Though we are very low-key and play nice with our neighbors, it clearly isn't a very good bet for us.

We LOVE Oahu and have spent a lot of time near Makaha and the North Shore.
However, I believe there's too many people on the island for our "grand plan" to own a little land.

Thank you guys for putting things in perspective for me.
Though we are very low-key and play nice with our neighbors, it clearly isn't a very good bet for us.

We LOVE Oahu and have spent a lot of time near Makaha and the North Shore.
However, I believe there's too many people on the island for our "grand plan" to own a little land.

If you are looking to stay low key and own land that isn't too over populated, consider big island.

You can still get parcels for a decent amount according to Hawaii standards, and depending how far away from the 'modern world' you want to get, it gets cheaper.

Be prepared to rough it though, if you decide to move farther from civilization.

If you are looking to stay low key and own land that isn't too over populated, consider big island.

You can still get parcels for a decent amount according to Hawaii standards, and depending how far away from the 'modern world' you want to get, it gets cheaper.

Be prepared to rough it though, if you decide to move farther from civilization.

"inspector" is a member here and is a real estate agent on the big island

I moved to the Big Island 18 months ago from Oahu and my whole family loves it here.  We have made several new close friends and love the sparsely populated subdivision I live in.  12.5 Sq miles and 580 people.  All of Kailua, where I used to live, including the marsh is only a little over 10 Sq mi with about 45,000 people.  Try the Big Island, you will love it here.

I'm from Molokai . Moved away for work but go back very often . The hunting is good . The fishing awesome and living is low key . Everyone has a different prospective of there . Yes it has changed a tiny bit . Yet you still see the same people at the same places 15yrs ago . I mean I could tell you right now what my family is doing without calling them . That's what I love about it and also hatted the most . Lifestyle is simple . People are friendly and will treat you like family of you treat them the same . Met a lot of new "white " people that moved there recently and really enjoyed there company . It dosent matter where you go you'll find so called activist Hawaiians in Hawaii . Molokai is strong to there roots and believe in the care of the land . I'll say yes go visit rent a beach home and see the life style .

Go visit Molokai and rent a house for 6 months to see how you like it before writing it off.  Most of the people you meet will be friendly.  There are just a handful of activists that make a lot of noise.  My cousin is one of them.  I told him they were stupid when they went to Kaunakakai dock several years ago to drive away a cruise ship that wanted to have passengers visit the island for a day.  He told me they didn't want outsiders coming in.  I told him these outsiders would be there for less than 10 hours and be spending a lot of money at the local stores and restaurants, and then they will leave.  That kind of mentality is why unemployment is over 20% there and a lot of people are on welfare, including a lot of these activist types who think they will be better off under a HAWAIIAN monarchy.

As far as Oahu goes, real estate is very expensive.  I was paying $4000 a month mortgage for my home in Kailua, which was not a problem when I was self-employed.  After I retired my monthly income dropped to $4000 a month and could no longer afford to live on Oahu.  Sold my house and moved to the Puna area of the Big Island and I love it here.  No close neighbors and everybody has guns,

If you are looking to stay low key and own land that isn't too over populated, consider big island.
You can still get parcels for a decent amount according to Hawaii standards, and depending how far away from the 'modern world' you want to get, it gets cheaper.
Be prepared to rough it though, if you decide to move farther from civilization.

We spend quite a bit of time these days considering all possible locations...thus this thought detour to Molokai.

My work is web-based so I can move to the bleeding edge of reliable 3-5MB service.
Living otherwise off-grid is actually very appealing to us.

I'd like to live near a beach (<30min) where we can get in the water, but it seems like most of the South-end beach are not great for swimming/boogie boarding.
We're definitely going to check it out in depth though.

We'd like to stay with 30-50 inches of rain, not 80+ on the windward side of the big island.
Moving out of the Seattle sogginess is a big part of this life change.

I moved to the Big Island 18 months ago from Oahu and my whole family loves it here.  We have made several new close friends and love the sparsely populated subdivision I live in.  12.5 Sq miles and 580 people.  All of Kailua, where I used to live, including the marsh is only a little over 10 Sq mi with about 45,000 people.  Try the Big Island, you will love it here.

That's a great endorsement. Generally, where are you?
We've only spent a couple weeks on the Big Island, and we know it offers the best bang for the real estate buck.
We'd prefer anywhere with less than 80 inches of rain.

I really want to avoid an HOA if I can.
Not saying I will, but I'd like to have the freedom to build an unconventional structure if that's what we choose i.e. earth sheltered house or even something crazy like a container house.
Odds are we'll stick with conventional construction, but the idea of submitting to yet another layer of hyper-local HOA government is not appealing to me.

I'm from Molokai . Moved away for work but go back very often . The hunting is good . The fishing awesome and living is low key . Everyone has a different prospective of there . Yes it has changed a tiny bit . Yet you still see the same people at the same places 15yrs ago . I mean I could tell you right now what my family is doing without calling them . That's what I love about it and also hatted the most . Lifestyle is simple . People are friendly and will treat you like family of you treat them the same . Met a lot of new "white " people that moved there recently and really enjoyed there company . It dosent matter where you go you'll find so called activist Hawaiians in Hawaii . Molokai is strong to there roots and believe in the care of the land . I'll say yes go visit rent a beach home and see the life style .

Thank you for providing this first-hand perspective. I definitely want to check it out. The simplicity and sustainability is appealing.

The short version is, I believe the people who have made a mess of our economy are in charge of "fixing" it so the trajectory of the system in which we operate isn't great.
In rural areas, when times get tough, there is inconvenience, but life goes on pretty much as normal because people are already living a self-reliant and simple life.
That's the kind of life we'd like to build within the next 3 years or so.

I think no matter where you are, if "outsiders" catch crap if they come in an act like they are better than the people that already live there or worse yet try to remake it in their image.
I saw that a lot with Californians moving to Washington and city people moving to our nice town and "fixing" it until is was just as jacked up as the place they left.

That's not us. We are of the "live and let live" philosophy and we believe in taking care of ourselves and looking out for our neighbors.

Go visit Molokai and rent a house for 6 months to see how you like it before writing it off.  Most of the people you meet will be friendly.  There are just a handful of activists that make a lot of noise.  My cousin is one of them.  I told him they were stupid when they went to Kaunakakai dock several years ago to drive away a cruise ship that wanted to have passengers visit the island for a day.  He told me they didn't want outsiders coming in.  I told him these outsiders would be there for less than 10 hours and be spending a lot of money at the local stores and restaurants, and then they will leave.  That kind of mentality is why unemployment is over 20% there and a lot of people are on welfare, including a lot of these activist types who think they will be better off under a HAWAIIAN monarchy.

Sold my house and moved to the Puna area of the Big Island and I love it here.  No close neighbors and everybody has guns,

Wise words.
Does your Puna area rainfall come in surges then go away leaving lots of dry sunny-ish days or do you get a lot of rainy days?
Hilo is the wetest place in the country so DW is like "hell no" after growing up in Western Washington.

It's hard to beat the property prices there.
What about things like home owners insurance near the lava areas?
Earthquakes?
Vog?

I live in Fern Forest.  People mind their own business here and  most of the roads are gravel, but you can easily drive 25 mph on them with a SUV or pickup.  Roads in Hawaiian Acres are really bad and more busy body types there.  Fern Acres with 2 acre lots and Eden Roc with 1 acre lots also have good roads.

It rained all day every day for the last 10 days of Dec.  Since then we only had 3 days of rain and I had to order water for my catchment tank twice.  My next project will be adding another 10 thousand  gallon tank so I can have both full during the rainy season.  It is not as rainy as many make it out to be.  Everybody is praying for rain right now.

I haven't been to Molokai so I cannot speak specifically about Molokai but there are a lot of places around the state where you could face similar situations. Many of the smaller more isolated areas will have that sort of small town nature where they tend to be a little more suspicious of outsiders. This is human nature to some extent and usually goes away with time as they get to know you.

Having said that, take it slow and understand that the culture is different. If you look white people will likely look at you with certain conceptions about you some of which they may not like. Your accent might also give you away. Local people here often complain about arrogant mainlanders so when you come here and become acclimatized a healthy dose of humility couldn't hurt.

Things generally move slower, including the traffic and people rarely honk their horns. If someone lets you merge you waive. If you are going to Molokai though, I wouldn't expect traffic though.  There is way more to it than I can type but if you have any specific sort of lifestyle or culture questions feel free to ask. I wouldn't insult local food either. The actor on Hawaii 50 did that and caught a big backlash.