Hawaii is a small island that is populated with many people. Referring back to the first official recording in 1990, Hawaii had a population of only 367,074 people. Today, Hawaii is home to 1.404 million people as of 2013 according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The residents on this small island pay more for goods and services than residents of any other state because of its increase in population. The cost of living in Hawaii is expensive because of limited land and resources.
Hawaii residents have to work more because food costs more, housing costs more, and transportation costs more. All their resources are imported from West Coast ports and because Hawaii is 2,500 miles away, it takes a longer time to ship. At 16 percent higher than the national average, Hawaii has the highest cost of living in the nation. The cost of living have worsened with the increase in population, higher taxes and political leaders' special interests. According to the U.S. Commerce Department Bureau of Economic Analysis, a single family home is $683,500 ,Reg. milk is $6 /gallon, and Reg. gas is $4.35 /gallon. On average, mainlanders pay $255,700 for a single family home, $3.60 for Reg. milk per gallon, and $3.64 per gallon for Reg. gas. It’s never been that much cheaper in Hawaii than now, but it has been way more expensive. With the dependency on tourism it has made Hawaii more susceptible to global economic changes.
Hawaii residents have to make the most hourly in order to afford a living. To make ends meet, cabbie Lam Lu drives his cab 12 hours per day, seven days a week. For every $100 he makes in fares, $15 is spent on gas. As we all know, most adults and families have to pay mortgage and rent, transportation, food, electricity, and healthcare. That's a handful which has residents working hard to make ends meet than having fun in the sun.
Land availability is a primary factor to a pricey paradise. There is a set amount of real estate on the islands, and there is a competition on how it is used. There are not only local families, but military and mainland families as well. People from the mainland come to Hawaii because they're successful and they can afford a living and business in paradise. The non locals stay welcomes price increases which result in more hours of work for these expenses. Local residents worry that housing projects are going to contribute to traffic, strain existing infrastructure, and block their views. The law of supply and demand increases the costs of everything causing locals to move out to cheaper homes or even to other states. Those nice empty homes are now bought by mainlanders which contributes to the increase in population.
Although everything is pricey in Hawaii, people are willing to spend more on housing than they might on the mainland in exchange for getting to live in a place they enjoy. The good weather year round, natural beauty, and other amenities that make Hawaii an enviable place to live. The popular demand for paradise results to overpopulation. The increasing numbers of the locals and non locals in Hawaii forces prices to go up for food, housing, transportation, and energy. The excessive demand to stay in Hawaii results in a pricey living because of land and resource limitations forcing locals to work harder and skimp even more.
