Where will you live in Oahu?

You're moving to Oahu, but where in Oahu?
For a tourist, Hawaii often means staying within the gates of a resort, never seeing the neighborhoods where residents live. So when a person is transferred here, (usually it's Oahu) often they have no idea where on Oahu they will live. Where you live on Oahu will determine your lifestyle.

Even though Oahu is only 65 miles across, each region and neighborhood has it's own personality, far more unique than most little neighborhoods on the mainland. So choose carefully where you live or you might find yourself somewhere you really don't like.

The commute around Oahu can be brutal, so talk to a local and find out the best place for you to live based on where you will be driving to. There are several ways to break down the island, but here's a general overview from a real estate perspective:

Town / Metro (Waikiki, Honolulu (core), St. Louis hts, Nuuanu, Manoa, Makiki, Kalihi, Punchbowl, University, etc) ~ People here in Oahu call it "Town." What we mean is the downtown area of Honolulu, the business districts, and and the above mentioned neighborhoods.

When start driving toward Damond head (east) from the airport, after a few minutes you are in town. "Town" could be Waikiki, Kaimuki, even Manoa, depending on where you are when you say "town". Living in Town is a lot like living in L.A. It's crowded, sort of dirty, and there are about 1000 condo buildings everywhere. If you look around and all you see are high rises, you are in Town.

Windward side (Kailua, Kaneohe, Laie, Punaluu, Hauula, Kaaawa) ~ The Windward side is like paradise within paradise, with the best beaches and the nicest weather. For this reason the Windward side of Oahu has some of the most expensive real estate on the island, and in Hawaii. Some people think it's too rainy side, because it rains almost every day in the winter, and most nights in the summer. But thanks to all that rain, Kailua and Kaneohe have the most lush, green, forests and mountains on Oahu.

A lot of the Windward side looks a lot like Kauai's north shore, with tall green mountains and thick foliage everywhere you look. And Kailua has recently been updated with new storefront renovations, which has made the little town into a very nice place to live, shop, walk, and hang out. America's best beach is Kailua beachpark, it's easy to see why real estate prices here have skyrocketed well over a million dollars.

Kaneohe has now received a great upgrade also. Over the last few years it has been renovated, starting with the Windward mall, and so the town feels new again. There are some wonderful homes down near Kaneohe bay, which is a giant body of water where many sharks like to breed. If you're going to live in Kaneohe, you need to know that it is a highly military influenced town. That's because of the huge number of soldiers that live at Kaneohe marine corp base.

Up beyond Kaneohe is Laie, Ka'aawa (not a typo), Hauula, and a few other little towns that are very small, and very far from anything except the ocean. When I drive through those areas I always wonder where those people work, because it would take them well over an hour to get into Town. Buying real estate up here is primarily for people who want a second home or vacation rental.

East Oahu (Hawaii Kai, Kahala, Aiana Haina, Kaimuki) ~ This is where I live. Just east of Diamond Head on H1, the scenery starts to change. That's because just about everything east of Diamond Head is zoned as residential real estate. There are more nice homes, less high rises, less condos, and a more upscale feel to the area. Hawaii Kai was the first planned community in Hawaii, and it's clear as you look around that things are more orderly than in Town. The buildings are nicer, the houses are farther apart than in Town, and the traffic is lighter.

A lot of people that work in Town live in East Oahu, so sometimes the morning commute is kind of long, but it's nothing like the commute from the Ewa side. Starting in Kahala, H1 turns into a minor 3 lane highway with stoplights. As you drive down the coast, you see multi million dollar homes perched on Hawaii Loa ridge and Aiana Haina. I think it's the best part of the island, perhaps because I live in Hawaii Kai.

Many people moving from the Mainland chose to live in East Oahu, particularly Hawaii Kai. This is probably because it feels most familiar to them. The size of homes, the demographics, the layout of the city - these all add to the familiar feel that mainland transplants appreciate about Hawaii Kai, Aina Haina, and Kahala. I'll give you a free tour of Hawaii Kai, as long as you're going to buy a house here :)

Ewa (Ewa, Kapolei, Makakilo) ~ Ewa is pronounced E' VA, as in, "there's so much traffic on my morning commute, it takes fo' Ewa!" People who live in Ewa drive a lot. Even if they don't drive very far, they are in the car a lot. That's because there is exactly 1 way out of Ewa into Town, where most of the 50,000 people in Ewa work. But here's the positive side - Ewa, Kapolei, and Makakilo are the newest developed cities in Oahu, which means the homes are new, the building and some roads, almost everything is new. So on an island where everything gets rusted and oxidized by the sea air, the new housing can be very appealing.

People who live in Ewa typically do so because they want more house for their money, and they don't mind commuting - or at least they put up with it every though they mind it. If you want a new house with more space than you can get in East Oahu or in Town, then move to Ewa. The average 3 bedroom 2bath house will run you about 30% LESS in Ewa than in Town or East Oahu. That is why you might want to check it out. However, make the commute one morning to make sure. Spend the night in Ewa and drive into town, then drive back to Ewa at 5pm. The 15 mile drive can take over an hour.

Leeward side (Makaha, Nanakuli, Waianae) ~ There is not much to say about the Waianae side. It's a little run down, the houses are generally not well taken care of, and it's the longest drive in Hawaii to get from Waianae to town. The only reason to buy a house in Waianae is that it's dirt cheap and in the winter there is good surf. There is a new community there called Sea Country that sells brand new homes built very nicely for around $450k.

Central (Mililani, Wahiawa) ~ About half way up H2 on the way to the North Shore, you pass through Wahiawa and Mililani. Mililani is another up and coming town that has a master plan. As such, it's layout is pretty good, especially in the new areas. There is old and new Mililani, and of course new Mililani is nicer because it's new! Housing here and in Wahiawa is a little cheaper than town, so a lot of people make the commute down. It's very green up in this area, and the trees remind people of Japan a little bit.

Around Wahiawa and Mililani are dozens of little communities. In fact there are so many that I don't think anyone could ever keep track of them all. There are hillside homes, valley homes, flatland homes, country, city, you name it, it's there. Also, there is a large military contingent, because of the base right there in the middle of Mililani.

Pearl City / Aiea (Pearlridge, Aiea, Halawa, Royal Summit) ~ If you need to live near Town, but you don't want to live right in it, Pearl City and the Aiea area are a good alternative. With housing prices that are a little lower then Kailua and the East side, there are still great properties for sale here. As you might suspect it's near Pearl Harbor, and if you can get a home on Halawa Hts or Aiea Hts, chances are you will have a nice view of the harbor. Some homes actually have a view all the way to Diamond Head. From Aiea, you can get a view of both ends of the island, depending on the position of your house.

The most popular local mall, Pearlridge, is a large center of shopping, eating, and all kinds of industrial and commercial businesses. This area has easy access to all the freeways, and is about as central to Town as anything else. Also, Aloha stadium is here, where you can enjoy all kinds of events, including a U2 concert in a few months.

Houses in Aiea and Pearl City are mostly old, but there actually have been a few homes built in the last 10 years. Also, in the older neighborhoods people are starting to tear down old homes and rebuild with new construction. If you can get one of these new rebuilds with a nice view, I think you'll be very satisfied.

North Shore (Haleiwa, Sunset, Pupukea) ~ Big waves, 2 lane roads, and multi million dollar houses. Locals will call this area "country," as in, "I'm giong up country." Or, "the waves in country are huge!" Life on the North Shore is different than most of the island. It's a little bit like living in Kauai or the Big Island, except that you can get to Honolulu Town in about 30 minutes with no traffic. The famous Pipeline and Waimea Bay bring giant waves in the winter, and about a million tourists with them.

If you're thinking of living up country, you better not need to commute. There is nothing to do except surf and enjoy the ocean, or the country. There are no malls, hardly any stores, no entertainment. The country side of Oahu is for surfers, local people with local jobs, vacationers, and retirees. If you can afford a second home on the north shore, you're one of the lucky ones on earth. It's beauty and tranquility are second to none. The only problem is that there is a 2 lane road that runs all the way through the country, so if there's big waves, expect tons of traffic. Living on the North Shore is a little bit like living in a small town.

Oahu real estate - January 08 statistics are out!

The Oahu real estate sales statistics were released today, showing some serious change and yet no change at all - at the same time. The results were surprising, because many people have been saying for time that the Hawaii real estate market is going to drop like the CA market. Not so according to the statistics.

MEDIAN PRICE
The median price for single family homes in Oahu was $600k, which is the same as it was one year ago. For much of 2007 the median price of Oahu homes was around $640k-$650k, with this past month being the lowest in 12 months. The price peak in Hawaii homes seems to have been June of 07, when prices reached $685k.

The median price of Hawaii condos (Oahu) $324k, which is just about what it was all of last year. In 8 of the last 12 months, condos in Oahu were $325k or less. Condos seem to have been flat in value last year, but up about $10-15k since 2006.

Days on Market (DOM)
For the properties in Oahu that closed in January, the average single family home took 61 days to sell, while the average Oahu condo took only 42 days to sell. In comparison, last January it took 60 days to sell a house and 55 days to sell a condo! So you can see how the Oahu real estate market for the most part hasn't changed much! In fact Oahu condos are selling faster now than they were last year.

NUMBER OF SALES
The total number of sales is where the change in the Oahu real estate market is showing a slow down. 228 single family homes sold in all of Oahu in January, which was 13.3% less than last January. The number of condos sold was down 22.5% compared to last January. That's a huge drop, but as you'll see, it's not the whole story. You would expect that the drop in the number of sales would mean an increase in inventory, but...

INVENTORY
Hawaii real estate still has low inventory of homes for sale. In January there were 1876 single family homes for sale and 2349 condos for sale. In comparison, last month we had 1874 homes for sale and 2346 condos for sale. The inventory of Oahu homes actually decreased!

TOTAL DOLLAR VOLUME
Here is a number that might suprise you. Even though the number of Oahu homes sold dropped by 13.3%, and the median price remained the same, the total dollar volume is actually up 4.3% compared to last January. That means that while the median price is the same, individual home prices actually are higher.

However the total dollar volume of Oahu condos sold was down significantly, by 20.2% since last year. So when you combine the single family and condo sales in Oahu, they are down only 6.3%. So with the total number of sales down 13.3% but dollar volume down only 6.3%, you can see that overall, price are actually rising.

AVERAGE SALE PRICE
If you need more evidence of prices rising in Oahu, the average sale price of single family homes was $954,670, compared to only $793,777 last January. This is probably a better measure of prices than median prices.

Big rise in real estate prices in some areas of Oahu:
In some areas, there were shockingly large jumps in prices.

• For all Honolulu homes (town), the median price rose 36.6% to $1.1million!
• For Kapahulu and Diamond Head, prices rose 22.4% to $909k.
• Homes in Kaneohe rose 17.8% to $733k.
• Homes on the Windward Coast rose 18.9% to $594,500.
• In Pearl City and Aiea, the price of homes rose 27.7% to $629k.

These numbers indicate that prices remain strong in Oahu even though the number of sales has dropped. At the same time, inventory has actually dropped since last month, in a traditionally slow time of year!

While much of the country is suffering a housing meltdown, the Hawaii real estate market remains strong!