It’s super expensive to live in Hawaii, but you’re more likely than not to have health insurance and will probably find a way to beat the cost by living with relatives, according to U.S. Census data released Thursday.
Residents in the islands are far more prone to live in multigenerational households, with 7.9 percent of people in Hawaii doing so compared to 3.8 percent nationally.

Not surprising, the median housing value here is nearly three times the national average of $181,200. Hawaii ranked first with a median housing value of $500,000.
And renters in Hawaii pay a median monthly housing cost of $1,448, compared to $934 on the mainland.
Also no shocker, the Census data found that Hawaii has the highest percentage of Asian race population (37.6 percent here compared to 5.2 percent nationally), and mixed populations (23.3 percent compared to 3 percent), according to data the state Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism compiled.
DBEDT said the percent of people living in poverty in Hawaii increased from 10.8 percent in 2013 to 11.4 percent in 2014, but that’s still the 45th lowest in the country.
Hawaii is also (almost) winning when it comes to the percent of the population with health insurance coverage. Only 5.3 percent of the state’s civilian population lacked coverage in 2014, down from 6.7 percent in 2013, making Hawaii tied with D.C. for the third lowest, according to DBEDT.
Check out DBEDT’s analysis of the American Community Survey data here.
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About the Author
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Nathan Eagle is the assistant managing editor for Civil Beat. You can reach him by email at neagle@civilbeat.org or follow him on Twitter at @nathaneagle, Facebook here and Instagram here.