Hawaii (Hilo) HOUSING

[Justherewhynot]

I'm looking to exchange information regarding housing with other pharmacy students admitted to Hilo for this coming fall. I'm doing research on one-bedroom, off-campus housing....just waiting on some emails regarding availability from some places to come back! Let me know if you have found anything good, or if you've been to Hilo, where clean, well-run places can be found. Monthly rent is not a major concern. Thanks!

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[missnikki]

Yea, I would like to know as well...any info would help

 

[Justherewhynot]

For those interested, I have heard back from two off-campus housing places thus far: Waiakea Lagoon sent me what appears to be a standard email telling me more about it's location, the shuttle service, how to submit an application, and when payments are due. It appears they just want you to submit an application, and if there's no spots available when you do, they send you your money back. I'd be happy to forward a copy of this email to anyone interested.

The second place, University Palms, sent back an email (short and sweet, I guess) which read, "We do have some units available and we have single and dorm style. Go to universitypalmshawaii.com and fill out the app" when I asked them about availability. Keep in mind, however, that this place requires you to share a kitchen and bathroom with another student...I'm not interested in that, but hey, maybe some are.

I was told I would hear back regarding availability at Uncle Billy's tomorrow or Tuesday. I'll keep you posted.

 

[missnikki]

Yea, I think Uncle Billys and Waiakea are my 2 options at this point. I don't like the idea of shared living quarters at Univ. Palms for roughly the same price as being able to have your own room at the 2 mentioned above. Besides that I heard it is really noisy and a lot of partiers. I guess a plus, though, would be that it's right across the street from UHH.

 

[tckc]

has anyone checked into rental homes? i know a lot of students go that route only because waiakea lagoon and uncle billy's (especially) is not that modern (to say it nicely). i know it may be difficult because usually renting a home would be done with roomates but you'd probably get a nicer place that way....just a suggestion...and yeah, i visited the palms once....let's just say i didn't stay very long!

 

[Iamrich]

Yeah, i like the idea of renting a house... anyone wanna rent one too?

 

[missnikki]

Called Uncle Billy's today and they are all full I won't have a car on the island so renting a house would have to be right by the university.

 

[tckc]

has anyone tried tohbi hale? the unit i saw was decent....clean...i heard they're strict on after hours noise and stuff like that...

 

[missnikki]

They are sold out too...called last Friday on them

 

[Justherewhynot]

Housing update: Waiakea Villas has rooms available; you must call to have them mail you an application for consideration. I've also done some work on other places not mentioned on the University website, most of which I found at the website www.hilohawaiitribune.com, Classifieds section, but nothing has yet panned out. This website was given to me by the University.

Financial Aid update: Since no one that I know of can afford $30,000 without help, I asked the F.A. office when we should expect award letters. They stated they are waiting to see how the accreditation process works out before they do anything, and to expect award letters perhaps at the end of the month or during July. That's cool by me....hey, they're not going to not help us pay for crap....if I don't have any money, I'm still going, you know? I'll just tell my landlord and the grocery stores to "put it on my tab" at the University That would be pretty funny if instructors told us none of us are eligible to take their classes since no one paid the bill.

 

[missnikki]

You know that's funny I just called fin aid yesterday too to make sure I can even get financed for tuition and housing. I was told I could get a max of 21,500 in sub and unsub loans.....that doesn't even cover the 30,000 tuition cost BUT then she said I might be eligible for a graduate plus loan than I could get 41,000 total a year.....otherwise, I couldn't go there.

Housing is the crummy part right now.....I guess i'm staying at the Lagoon. I read some reviews on it yesterday....all bad except for one....people mentioned BIG cockroaches there.....who knows??!!! Most places also don't have airconditioning...only ceiling fans.

Let me know how you guys are doing....maybe we could meet up and find all the stuff in Hawaii together... It's going to one heck of an adventure!

 

[intellimouse]

Hey missnikki, do you know if there are any 1 bedroom apartments left at the Lagoon? I haven't applied there yet since you have to send in a big deposit. Yeah, I heard bad things about that place too, but it's probably okay for students. I'm hoping to get into a studio (private entrance attached to a house) near campus. They want to rent now, but I'm arriving in August? Should I waste one month's rent (July) to secure the studio? Thanks.

Well, never mind, I got myself a place to live, so this issue doesn't concern me anymore.

 

[missnikki]

Hey that's awesome....where did are you staying? i'll be at the Lagoon!

 

[Iamrich]

I still need a place to live... ideas where i should live? or anyone from here wanna room together?

 

[intellimouse]

I'll be staying at the University Palms with a roommate who lives near my city. We'll be helping each other study and do activities together in this new adventure. Missnikki, hope we can explore the city as well. We managed to secure the last private bedrooms in one 2-bedroom apt. That means that we'll have our own apt. to ourselves! Rent's not bad since it's over $100 less than living by oneself in a 1-bedroom apt. I'm trusting that it won't be so noisy since they have rules and regulations. It'll be convenient for us to run back and forth to campus when the rains hit and also when we finish classes late. I heard from a woman I talked to at Waiakea Lagoons that the College of Pharmacy is not on campus, but I suppose it's close by.

 

[Iamrich]

Well, They don't have a separate building for the college of pharmacy... all the classes and labs are going to be on campus, in the regular class rooms

 

[missnikki]

I've secured a spot at the Lagoon....they have 2 units left now. You better send in your app. to them by the end of the week to get one of them. They are a mile away but do provide shuttle. I'm going to try to buy a bike when I get to the island.

 

[Jenzie]

I'll be starting the new pharmacy program in August at UH-Hilo. Haven't secured housing yet. Thanks for the info so far, feel free to contact me with ideas or thoughts, see you all soon!

 

[Jenzie]

Update:

The Waiakea Villas said they're accepting applications still. I sent one in. They are all private units so it could be okay, but the prices are a bit higher, 700-900 per month.

University Palms says they only have dorm style left. That's two people per bedroom, not just shared common areas. That's only around 450 a month though.

Good luck all

 

[missnikki]

I sent in my appl. to W. Lagoon on Tues. and they said they had 2 units left at that point. Good luck!

 

[Jenzie]

Has anyone heard back from the University about housing at the Hale Ikena? I was told they had 16 beds for pharmacy students, but I applied, and have not since heard anything. Someone told me that they would look into the process for pharmacy students applying for housing and get back to me, and has never responded. It's frustrating, and it just occurred to me that if I secure housing elsewhere and then hear back from the University later, I will be upset.

But it looks like I'm leaning towards University Palms. It is the cheapest of all, and right across the street from the university itself. It will be cohabitation of rooms, but it will be a good experience I believe, and they only require one semester commitment (in case it isn't working out!) They include all utilities and high speed internet in the rent of $450 per month.

When are you guys arriving in Hilo? It would be fun to meet some folks and not be 100% bombarded with new faces at orientation.

See you all there

 

[missnikki]

I would apply there but they said the 16 spots are going to be decided on a lottery type basis. I don't want to gamble with that so I went ahead and secured a spot at the W. Lagoon. I like the idea that it is cheaper and close to campus, though!

 

[Justherewhynot]

As I know Miss Nikki has mentioned, I wanted to reiterate that there are very few (if any) spots remaining at the Waikea Lagoon. I believe I took one of those two spots that she mentioned were available last week. If you are still looking for housing and are interested in living there, you may want to call them first, and send your application in express mail!

Having looked into a couple of private realtors, I can tell you that the three or four I have emailed (these are ones I got off of the University's website at the bottom of the "Off-campus housing" section) regarding student housing have not returned emails in over a week. I believe that it is best for you to call them instead if you want more immediate action. It's a moot point for me, but hope this helps someone.

 

[Justherewhynot]

P.S. In answer to your question, Jenzie, I will be arriving in Hilo the first week of August (between the 1st and the 4th). I wanted to do some sightseeing, etc., and meet some of the faculty ahead of time, if possible.

 

[missnikki]

I'm arriving on Aug. 11th....my parents are going to fly in with me and we are going to fly to Maui for a few days as soon as oreintation is over before school starts. I'm soo excited but yet so scared...I've never lived away from my hometown.

 

[avalos]

Hi everyone.. i was just seeing if anyone was looking for a roommate still. i have been looking for housing but haven't really found anything for sure. thanks for all the info that you guys posted it has been a lot of help. let me know if anyone is looking for a roommate!

 

[Jenzie]

Well I solidified my plan to go with University Palms. It's dorm style, so I'll just get my meningococcal vaccine and be good to go

They were very very prompt getting back to emails, like within minutes on Saturday and within hours on Sunday even! They emailed me my room number along with the rental agreement, with just a note to fill it out as soon as I could and don't worry about paying anything until I arrive in town. That was great service, so I'm going for it. They also have parking, as I'm planning on getting my car shipped over the same time I leave here, so it will be arriving a few weeks or a month into the semester but will be handy at that point. I just need it to drive to work up until I leave!

It sounded like they had a fair amount of dorm style housing left, avalos, just google it and send them an email. If you want, only commit for a semester to get a chance to meet some potential room mates. Its what I've decided is the best bet. Its real tough to figure out living when you live an ocean away!

I'll probably be getting in between the 10th and 12th, haven't booked it yet. Anyway, good luck with preparations everyone, see you there!

 

[Justherewhynot]

Just a quick word on those still looking for flights....

If you're like me and looking to get just a one-way for right now, I found it cheaper to do a multiple city trip when I searched sites like Expedia and Orbitz. For example, because I'm stopping to visit a friend in Seattle for a few days before going to Hilo, I saved about $150 over telling the search engine to fly me just to Hilo. This is because I had access to a lot more airlines, like US Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines. Most search engines I found used Continental almost exclusively when searching for a one-way to Hilo (from the east side of the US)...and Continental is sometimes more expensive than say US Airlines.

So you may see if it's cheaper to stop in L.A., Seattle, or Salt Lake City as a two-city stop, rather than just searching for your city to Hilo.