Shayla Marie Ma-e, 28, and Matthew Piianaia-Ishii, 33, live in Hilo, Hawaii, and earn a combined $83,000 a year from their jobs as a child-care worker and a concrete foreman. Together they have 3-year-old twins, Sienna and Sierra. According to Ma-e, living in Hawaii "isn't all sunsets and coconuts," as the family has dreams of moving out of state.
This is an installment of CNBC Make It's Millennial Money series, which profiles people across the globe and details how they earn, spend and save their money.
Read more about about their budget breakdown here: cnb.cx/37PFFaj
Shayla Marie Ma-e, 28, has spent her whole life in Hilo, Hawaii.
It’s where she grew up; where she began dating her fiance, Matthew Piianaia-Ishii, nine years ago; and where the two are raising their 3-year-old twin daughters, Sienna Belle and Sierra Jane. The best part of life on the Big Island, Ma-e says, is being close to family, including her mom and four cousins, who she considers as close as siblings.
But she’s also quick to say that life in Hawaii isn’t “all sandy beaches and coconuts.”
“I would not recommend moving to Hawaii,” Ma-e tells CNBC Make It, noting the state’s high cost of living, tourism-dependent job market and exodus of young residents who move away for college and work: “It’s really hard to live here.”
Like many families, 2020 was an especially tough year. Ma-e lost her job and couldn’t find new work because of child-care needs, so the family relied solely on the $50,000 yearly income Piianaia-Ishii, 33, earns as a concrete foreman. Ma-e says the family has always lived paycheck to paycheck and gets by charging essential expenses on a credit card some months, getting help from family from time to time, and with government assistance programs.
The new year is a fresh start for the young family: Ma-e started a job in February working with a child-care subsidy program, where she’ll earn roughly $33,000 a year. With the additional income stream, Ma-e and Piianaia-Ishii are hopeful they’ll have more money to pay off their debts and save for a better future for their daughters - a house, the girls’ schooling and a life with more opportunity beyond the islands.
Here’s how the family of four lives on $83,000 in Hilo, Hawaii.
Living paycheck to paycheck
As a foreman, Piianaia-Ishii earns an average of $25 per hour and up to $80 per hour depending on the project. His earnings fluctuate week to week, which makes budgeting a challenge. Ma-e was a full-time stay-at-home mom for the past year, while Piianaia-Ishii took on as much work as possible.
During months that Piianaia-Ishii’s income alone couldn’t cover everything, Ma-e charged some essential expenses to one of her three credit cards. She accrued roughly $2,300 in credit card debt as of January 2021, which they are currently paying off.
Piianaia-Ishii also has two children from a previous relationship and owes roughly $29,000 in child support back payments, accrued during a three-year period he was out of work and unable to afford payments.
Because of this, Ma-e keeps all financial accounts for the household under her name. It’s also why the couple are engaged but not yet married.
Living paycheck to paycheck is common among friends and family nearby, Ma-e says.
“We make enough to cover our bills and essentials, but we don’t make enough to move forward and [get] ahead in life,” Ma-e says. “It’s hard, the way we live, because we make too much for government assistance, and we don’t make enough to move ahead. We’re like most families here, stuck in the middle.”
The couple currently don’t have retirement savings or other investments. They’re able to save every now and then if there’s money left over after bills are paid - a good month might yield $1,500 to stash away. But they’ve had to dip into savings more than usual lately, between living on one income and paying for unexpected but necessary expenses like car repairs.
At the time of filming, Piianaia-Ishii had about $700 put away, while Ma-e had $20 in her savings account just to keep it open.
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Living On $83K A Year In Hilo, Hawaii | Millennial Money