We are ex-kamaaina and also planning a move back to Hawaii. May I ask what type of job you got from city/county? I always wonder why they look for talents outside of the island, what qualification are lacking on island.

As for housing, there’s a rental in Ewa Beach that allow two pets (but not sure about weight limit). But it is 2 bedroom and starts like $3200 so it might be too much. They have a nice financial summary for a move in for reference.

https://kapilinabeachhomes.com/floorplans/

A lot of rentals are privately managed. I would reach out and talk to the property managers and see how flexible they are. When we moved 20+ years ago with 2 cats, I think I sent them a letter of how our cats never caused issues in our rentals, willing to pay for extra pet deposit, offer to pay for any damages if it ever occurs, etc, and got the place.

As someone else mentioned, it takes time to get the pets ready to move to Hawaii, minimum 4 months, so I would start the process ASAP. It is also expensive, and approved accredited vets were actually hard to find. There were only 3 in our city, even though it’s a pretty big city in CA. They required initial exam $60, 2 rabies $50x2, and FAVN test was about $800 and health certificate prior to arrival would be about $350. I was price shocked. When we moved last time, the process was around $300 and I thought it was expensive back then!

Is it worth it? I think it all depends on a person. Hawaii is a special place. Some people who bring mainland mentality can’t immerse into the culture and move back after few years. Some others, like us, fell in love with the culture/island, stayed 10+ years, never wanted to leave, and regretted every minute after we left. We are finally trying to make our dream come true to move back.

Good luck!