An Update From Amy and Billy

The saying “the only constant in life is change” rings true for essentially everyone on planet earth at the moment. While the world around us changes and adapts daily to Covid-19, we wanted to take an opportunity to shed a little light on what is happening in our little community out here in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Hopefully this message will be something we can look back at down the line and have a little chuckle about the unprecedented times that 2020 brought us. In the meantime, here is a little rundown on what life on Kauai has been like the last month both personally, professionally, and for the community as a whole. The situation remains fluid, so please know that the community based “rules” change from day to day under the guidance of our Mayor, Derek Kawakami, and could be obsolete by the time you read this.

Personally and Professionally

The slow down on the real estate front has certainly allowed us to hyper-focus on our family, our community, and our clients that are currently in the midst of transactions or listing their properties. Morning meetings shortly after the sun rises have been temporarily replaced with morning walks/runs/swims with the family. Home-schooling teenagers is a new challenge that has done nothing but increase our already utmost respect for our children’s teachers. Our houses and home gardens are extra tidy and well planted. Amy welcomed a new four-legged french bulldog puppy named Prince Rhino into their family, and Billy has been able to spend quality time with his 4-month-old daughter, Hunter Mae. The same nurturing we have implemented in our households has also been carried over into the business aspect of our lives as well. With new systems in place to adapt our Real Estate practice to meet the needs of clients in this ever-changing environment, we remain confident in our ability to navigate these uncharted waters for Buyers and Seller alike.

Current State of Affairs on Kauai

We are currently still under a “stay at home” mandate from the Mayor until April 30, 2020. Mayor Kawakami has been ahead of the game in his response with other islands following his lead. His proactive approach has been appreciated and well communicated with daily briefings that can be found at: www.kauai.gov/COVID-19. We are fortunate to have had only 21 cases of Covid 19 (4 active cases as of today) with only 1 hospitalization on an island of approximately 72,000 residents. All non-essential travel is discouraged, and a mandatory 14-day quarantine is in effect for incoming visitors and residents alike. Fortunately, exercise is encouraged, and the use of our ocean for swimming and surfing has been a vital relief to our ocean-going community. Masks in public are mandatory (not when exercising), and the nightly curfew remains at 9PM. The Kauai Police Department is actively enforcing these rules, and for the most part, the community and our few visitors alike have been cooperative with very few citations issued. While we know these precautions are necessary to “flatten the curve,” we look forward to the days when our visitors are able to return to Kauai and the new normal takes hold.

While we all wait this out we hope you enjoy this video of Hanalei and we look forward to returning to days like this.