Isles have nation’s
most ‘crowded’ homesAlmost 16% of homes here
have more than one person per
room, a Census study says
Hawaii tops the nation in the percentage of homes that have more than one person per room, according to a U.S. Census Bureau study released yesterday.
Almost 16 percent -- or 62,099 -- Hawaii homes are "crowded," with more than one occupant per room. Nationally, fewer than 6 percent of homes have more than one person per room.
"We just have housing with a lot of people in it," said Nicholas Ordway, a real estate investment professor at the University of Hawaii. "It would surprise me if that were not the case."
California is the only state that nears the Hawaii figures, with 15.2 percent of homes deemed "crowded," compared with 10 percent or fewer in the rest of the country.
Meanwhile, about 8 percent of Hawaii homes are "severely crowded," with more than 1.5 people per room, according to Census 2000 estimates.
The bureau study also reported that native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders were more likely to live in "crowded" or "severely crowded" homes than other races.
Of the almost 100,000 native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders who participated in the 2000 census, about 26 percent lived in homes with more than one person per room.
Housing analysts say the figures reflect Hawaii's high number of multigenerational households and the state's high cost of living.
"Generations take care of each other, and that is a positive aspect of the Hawaii culture," Ordway said. Jacqueline Chong, of the grandparent's advocacy group Na Tutu, said she "feels comfortable" living in the same home with her daughter and two of her adult grandchildren.
Her grandchildren "can't afford to get out there and rent, and they don't need to at the moment," she said. "We're all comfortable and comfortable with each other, or else they'd move out."
Julia Duarte, of Kahuluu, a member of Na Tutu, said she has four generations -- a total of 10 people -- living under her roof.
"Sometimes it gets pretty noisy. But there's always someone around," she said. "It's good for children. There's a bonding of loving each other and working together."
Hawaii leads the nation in the percentage of households where grandparents and grandchildren live in the same home, according to Census statistics released last month.
Also, real estate experts say the state's demand for new homes exceeds its supply, which has driven up home prices.
"Our housing inventory is extremely limited," said Gordan Furutani, field director of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development office in Hawaii. "It's a real difficult housing market. The cost of housing here is really high."
According to the Census figures, the least "crowded" homes can be found in West Virginia and Maine, where only 1.3 percent of homes have more than one person per room.
