Hawaii real estate sales 
There are currently 9 blog entries related to this category.
The next big thing - Assumable loans will help sellers of Oahu Real Estate
Friday, July 1st, 2011 at 11:37am. 650 Views, 0 Comments.
I sat in a signing with a client this week and was reminded that VA loans are assumable by the next person buying the property, if they have VA eligibility. That means they can apply for and take over the loan that the owner has been paying on, at the same rate. My clients' rate was 4.25%, fixed for 30 years.
In a few years, when rates go up to 6%, 7%, or even 10%, that assumable loan will make their house a LOT more affordable than others.
FHA Loans are also assumbe. From an FHA website: You can assume an existing FHA-insured loan, or, if you are the one deciding to sell, allow a buyer to assume yours. Assuming a loan can be very beneficial, since the process is streamlined and less expensive compared to that for a new loan. Also,…
Temporary higher loan limits set to expire soon on September 30, 2011
Thursday, May 12th, 2011 at 2:10pm. 917 Views, 3 Comments.
For the past 2 years, Freddie Mac’s Super Conforming Mortgages and Fannie Mae’s Temporary High-Balance Conforming loans provided higher maximum loan limits for high cost areas of the country ($793,750 in Honolulu County, versus the conforming maximum loan amount of $625,500). This was a temporary higher loan limit that is set to expire soon on September 30, 2011.
Right now, an Owner Occupant Rate on these "super conforming" loans are approximately 4.625%, 1.625 points according to Honolulu Home Loans, from whom I got an email this morning on this very topic.
It's unlikely that Congress would extend the temporary higher loan limits, so the impact on the real estate market in Hawaii could be substantial. However, in the past 2 years I've…
Obama's Hawaii Vacation Begins Next Week - 30 Pictures Of The Kailua Beach House
Friday, December 17th, 2010 at 4:02am. 1930 Views, 2 Comments.
Next week, President Barack Obama will arrive in Oahu for his annual Hawaii vacation. I've had several occassions to be in the vacation home that the President rents, since I had a few interested buyers when it was for sale for $9.5 million.
This beachfront Kailua property has about half an acre right on the sand, and looks straight down Kailua beach. The house is only 4 bedrooms, 5 bathrooms, and about 5000 square feet. Not too big, considering many houses on the mainland are triple that size. The location on Kailua beach can't be beat. This will be the 3rd year in a row that the President has rented this house. Make sure to read the full post to view all 30 pictures!
Lava rock style poolside
This is the view…
October Oahu real estate sales numbers are out - but everyone is wrong. PENDING SALES ARE UP 28.5%
Wednesday, November 10th, 2010 at 11:52am. 430 Views, 0 Comments.
The Oahu real estate sales numbers are out for October, and you may have seen a not-so-optimistic article in the Star Advertiser today. However, I could not be more sure that our market is about to JUMP UP in sales, because the Star's article missed the most important statistics. . I outline them below. 
Yes it's true that the median price stayed at about $600k last and the number of sales dropped 17 percent to 241 (read: A LOT) compared to from 290 in October 2009.
As the article points out, that was because last year at this time, the effect of first time buyer credit was in at its height.
No kidding. The Federal gov't created a false market, so OF COURSE sales were lower this October. But October is ALWAYS a lot slower than spring and…
Hawaii home sales up BIG in September
Thursday, October 7th, 2010 at 12:46am. 421 Views, 0 Comments.
In May of 2009, I called the bottom of the Hawaii real estate market, and in January through May of this year, I posted several times about the coming market rise. Well, the September sales numbers are out for Hawaii homes, and the numbers are pretty impressive.
Here are some highlights:
- There were 274 sales of single-family homes on Oahu in September, an 8 percent rise compared to last year.
- The Oahu median price of single family homes was $622,450, up 3 percent from $605,000 last year.
- The median condo sale price rose to $335,000, also an 8 percent increase from last year.
- The average home was on the market less than 30 days!
- Year-to-date, the number of sales is up by more than 20 percent!!!
My prediction for the Hawaii market going…
Honolulu is America's Third Happiest City!
Thursday, July 8th, 2010 at 12:37am. 700 Views, 1 Comments.
According to an article in USA Today, a massive new study by Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index of Americans' attitudes shows that Honolulu is America's Third Happiest City.
The Gallup-Healthways Index did interviews with more than 353,000 Americans during 2009, asking them to assess their jobs, finances, physical health, emotional state of mind and communities.
"Residents of large cities — those with a population of 1 million or more — generally report higher levels of well-being and more optimism about the future than those in small or medium-sized cities. In small cities, at 250,000 or less, people are more likely to feel safe walking alone at night and have enough money for housing."
Nine of the 10 cities that fare best on "life evaluation,"…
What EXACTLY are you waiting for???
Tuesday, July 6th, 2010 at 5:28pm. 646 Views, 0 Comments.
Yesterday I showed this beautiful house in Queens gate that is listed for $925,000. With 4 bedrooms, a pool, and a huge master bathroom, it had everything the buyers were looking for.
We had a nice discussion about buying a house right now. I thought there were some great insights, which leads me to pose a question:
If you aren't buying right now, WHAT EXACTLY ARE YOU WAITING FOR?
- Lower interest rates?
- A housing bubble?
- A massive economic collapse?
- 10% unemployment?
- Home prices to fall 20% ?
- Inflation? (prices of houses go up too, you know)
- Global financial chaos?
- Dozens of bank failures?
- Government takeover of Fannie Mae?
ALL OF THAT ALREADY HAPPENED!
We literally just endured the biggest financial collapse in…
Maui Home and Condo Sales Jump in April!
Monday, May 10th, 2010 at 12:51am. 444 Views, 0 Comments.
I was suprised to see this article in Pacific Business News today, which said that Maui real estate sales jumped in April, up four times over the number of sales a year ago.
158 Maui and Molokai condos sold last month, nearly four times the 41 units that sold in April 2009. The median price of a condo also rose to $455,000, up 11 percent over $410,000 in April 2009. The developer sales at Honua Kai, which ranged from 573,300 to $4.5 million also influenced prices, the Realtors association said.
Single-family home sales for Maui County jumped 76 percent to 88 houses sold, up from 50 in April 2009. The median price of a single-family home fell, however, to $477,500, down 4 percent from $497,000 in April 2009.
Good news for the…
How to make money in Hawaii Real Estate
Monday, May 18th, 2009 at 11:29pm. 1057 Views, 0 Comments.
For many it sounds like a dream, owning a home in Hawaii, but the cycle of the Hawaii real estate market can drive people crazy. If you've been watching the Hawaii real estate market long enough, you know about the "Japanese bubble" and the foreclosure market of the 90's. Go back even farther and you can see the impact of the two world wars.
While no one can know the future of the market in Hawaii's real estate, looking at the past can teach us many lessons. I frequently run into homeowners who have been in the same house for 30+ years who understand this. They tell me about buying the house for $50,000 in 1968.
Those same owners are now sitting on properties worth $800,000 or more. As I meet owners around Hawaii Kai, I'm often amazed at how long they have…
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