A couple unrelated questions... (rentals, credit, house)

[jenocide22]

1. Are the rental listings on the Star Advertiser paid for? Is there still a risk for scams when looking for a rental on the Advertiser, like there is on Craigslist? Can I also put my trust in the vacation rentals, and owners, on VRBO.com?

2. Has anyone on this forum ever personally aided another member in their move/job search to the islands?


Thanks!
Jen

[mdand3boys]

Ads in the local newspapers have to be paid for (such as the Star Advertiser, which is now the only full service newspaper published on Oahu.

I have helped a couple of people with checking out rentals before they made it to the island. I did run across a scam from craigslist - glad I helped them out.

[jenocide22]

On some Craigslist ads it says to drive by the property first before contacting the owner/realtor for a showing. Do they literally mean to "drive by" it to check out the location or is there some other meaning?

[mdand3boys]

Originally Posted by jenocide22

On some Craigslist ads it says to drive by the property first before contacting the owner/realtor for a showing. Do they literally mean to "drive by" it to check out the location or is there some other meaning?

Yes, they would rather you drive by first, and make an initial decision as to whether or not you may be interested in pursuing it further, so as to not waste the time of the agent.

It is a good idea (and easy to do) to check with the county property tax website on a property, to see who the real owner's name/address is.

[jenocide22]

How would I find the county property tax website?

[OpenD]

Originally Posted by jenocide22

How would I find the county property tax website?

One way would be to google Hawaii County (or whatever county you wish) Property Tax.

[KoaKine]

Originally Posted by mdand3boys

Ads in the local newspapers have to be paid for (such as the Star Advertiser, which is now the only full service newspaper published on Oahu.

I have helped a couple of people with checking out rentals before they made it to the island. I did run across a scam from craigslist - glad I helped them out.

What he says
Id rep him but I canʻt

Craigslist will have scams but there are good deals to be found but be careful. You can also go on the realtors web sites some do have rental pages most will charge you a credit fee to let you look at them. The best thing I could recommend would be to rent a place for a month from a site like VRBO and then go look at the property's your self to see which is right for you.

Good luck
Koa

[KonaKat]

Yes, the print ads cost money so little chance of a scam there. My company uses CL all the time to advertise and as I have mentioned before, look for ads that include the name of the realty company - verifying that they are a legitimate company is as easy as just googling the name or phone number, or calling the RE Board.

vrbo ads are pretty much okay however one problem I have seen is absentee owners who do not have an on island property manager (required by law), but only their house keeper or some vague handyman caretaker. If there is a problem with the rental you have little recourse with some owner that's on the mainland.

I have helped a few persons who are re-locating to Hawaii.

[MickeyE]

Is there anyone doing this in Hawaii WeGoLook ? If not, it may be a good part-time business and would be helpful to all of us thinking about moving to Hawaii.

Mickey

[tyvin]

1. yes, yes, don't know.

2. yes.