Yes, even new ones. There are two good reasons. The first is that no matter how many disclosures the sellers may make, you need to have an independent and compe­tent third party tell you the condition of what you are buying. There may be problems with the property that even the sellers don't know about. Second, if there are problems, you can use them as a negotiating tool to get the sellers to correct them, lower the price because of them, or both.

 Hawaii home inspections are relatively new. Ten years ago no one even heard of them. Today virtually every buyer (and seller) wants one, and for good reason. Homes have reached the stratosphere in terms of pricing. The medium price for a resale as of this writing is around $125,000 and climbing. It is higher for a new home. In many areas peo­ple regularly pay $300,000 or more for a home. At those prices you just can't afford to buy a pig in a poke. You must know what you are getting.

It's also important to understand that there are literally thousands of parts to a home and more than a dozen complete systems. Today's modern home has heating and cooling systems, waste water and potable water systems, electrical, phone, and cable systems to name only a few. In addition, there are the foundation, the chimney, the roof, the floors, the insulation, and dozens of other areas where problems can occur. Unless you happen to be in the building trades and are an expert on these, you won't know if they are in good shape, broken, or ready to fall apart. (Even if you're a plumber, you probably won't know what's right or wrong with the electrical system.)

 Further, repairs can be costly. Here is just a sampling of what it can typically cost to repair or replace various items:

 Fix roof—$5000 to $10,000 or more

Add insulation—$500 to $2500 or more

Convert galvanized steel plumbing to copper—$5,000 or more

Improve drainage—$500 to $10,000 or more

Fix cracked foundation or slab—$5000 to $50,000 or more

Fix chimney—$2500 to $10,000 Convert 2-wire to 3-wire electrical—$5000 or more

And many, many more

 The inspection, hopefully, will reveal most problems. Then you can insist that the sellers fix them, or at least compromise and demand that the sellers pay a substan­tial portion of the costs.

 You can also use problems the inspec­tion reveals as a lever to force the seller to lower the price. You do this by threatening to back out of the deal unless price concessions are made. (It's important that the sales agreement specify that you have a certain number of days to approve the inspection report and that if you disap­prove of items, the deal is off)

A Hawaii buyer's agent has you for the client. A seller's agent has the seller for the client. One of the oldest maxims is that no one can truly serve two masters. When it comes to critical negotiations or judg­ment calls, whom would you rather have the agent work­ing for—you or the seller?

In the old days, agents almost always worked for the sell­ers. That is, they had a fiduciary or trust relationship with the sellers. What this meant was that if you offered $90,000 for a house, but in confidence told the agent you'd really be willing to pay $100,000, the agent was eth­ically and legally bound to inform the seller of what you'd said. Now, what do you think your chances would be of getting that property for $90,000?

Your only choice was to keep your mouth shut. Today, you can find a buyer's agent. A buyer's agent has a fidu­ciary or trust relationship to you. The agent ethically and legally should not tell the seller that you'd pay more. On the other hand, if the seller admits to this agent that they'd really be willing to accept $85,000, the agent must tell you! That's a huge advantage.

There's also a middle road today allowed in some states in which the agent can, theoretically, serve both buyer and seller—a "dual agent." This is murky territory and in attempting to avoid hurting either party by not passing along vital information, he or she could conceiv­ably end up harming both. In a dual-agency arrange­ment, the agent attempts to protect both the buyers and the sellers.

The agent must declare whom he or she is serving. In many states this takes the form of a written document given to all parties. It's important to remember that who pays the agent doesn't determine whom the agent serves. Just because the seller is paying the commission, doesn't mean that the agent isn't working for you. It's whom the agent declares himself or herself for that counts.

What this means is that very often you can use a buyer's agent, yet don't have to pay that agent anything. Rather, the buyer's agent works for you and then, assum­ing the property is listed, gets a part of the listing com­mission from the seller. [On the other hand, you might have to pay. For example, if you buy a property for sale by owner (FSBO) and the sellers refuse to pay any commission, you might have to pay your buyer's agent.]

Finally, one of the not so obvious advantages of a buyer's agent is that this person often will be better able to find just the right house for you, including FSBOs.

On the other hand, some buyer's agents aren't worth the agreement they have you sign. Recently a friend was selling a home FSBO and was presented an offer $7000 below asking price. My friend was willing to pay the buyer's agent a half-listing fee, in this case 2 1/2 percent. But, the buyer's agent wanted a full 5 percent. So the agent said that since she knew the buyers would pay full price, my friend (the seller) should counter with a full-price offer, then pay her (the agent) the additional $7000 as a commission. Remember, she was presumably repre­senting the buyers in all this, but was in reality screwing them out of $7000 in order to fatten her commission!

Certainly this example is an exception, but it's worth remembering that just because an agent says on a piece of paper that she or he is in a position of trust to you, does­n't mean it's guaranteed in real life. (By the way, if an agent works for you as a buyer's agent, you're the client. The seller is the customer.)

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Single Family Report

Date/Time Range: Jun 9, 2011 00:00 - Jun 13, 2011 23:59
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The advent of the Internet has made things so much easier for us – all that we need to know is online. Just with a single click, information - regardless of what we are searching for - pours from the monitor screen before our eyes.

This development in technology has given us better opportunities and faster results in finding what we are looking for. There are several industries that have benefitted from the magic of the Internet, and one of them is the real estate industry.

There are now several websites devoted to Hawaii real estate, and thousands of real estate agents in Hawaii with social networking pages or personal websites. This makes buying a home more accessible and much easier than a few decades ago. All you need to do is browse through these websites, enter the requirements for your home, and the list of available properties will be presented before you in a neat and organized manner.

Indeed, you would still be able to look for properties in real life, such as attending houses with the agents or searching for referrals. However, this may become inefficient, considering that it takes a lot of time and cost. With the vast amount of information that users can share online, the web can cut your cost and searching time almost by half. Not only does the Internet help to look at a lot of options, but also it can easily narrow down the options that you are looking for.

If you feel that you want to work with a real estate agent, you can search for the experienced agents online. The Realtor website lists agents and brokers that you can work with, and sometimes you can also call them in for an interview before selecting them. Different agents usually specializes in different areas, so the internet can be helpful if you are looking to live in a specific area and need to find a real estate agent that is knowledgeable about that area.

With the Internet, not only can you look at houses, but also some specific information such as size, price, location, and rooms available, and other important factors that you may want to look out for. The net is very useful for finding specific types of houses that you are looking for.

After making a list of the possible future houses that you look up on the Internet, try contacting the agents or the owners via phone or email to see if they can schedule an appointment with you. This gives you a firsthand experience of the house that you want by actually seeing it, so you can now properly judge that the home that you saw on the screen is the right one for you.

It’s no surprise that finding a home has never been easier. With the help of the Internet, we are only a few clicks away from your own dream house.

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Date/Time Range: May 12, 2011 00:00 - May 13, 2011 23:59

The likelihood of you living in your Hawaii dream home is more or less your choice depending on how you approach the matter and how you want it handled. Do you want to just buy an already built home regardless of whether it is an old one or a new house? Many people would prefer to buy a not-so-new and not-so-old house, one that has taken most of the hard beatings and still stand the test of time. You see were it to fall apart, it would have by now so the fact that it is still standing means it is in good shape and maybe it will only do with a little renovations here and there and will be as good as new.

Some changes as simple and affordable as painting the exterior and interior walls, doing the lawn and stuff will go a very long way in ensuring you end up with an almost new home. Perhaps you have the money and are thinking of how best to go about it. You can decide to build your own customized home where you can raise your family. Be advised though that building a new Hawaii home is not like buying a new car, it is very expensive and very time consuming, and you will need to be very prepared especially in financial matters. 

To many people though, building a new Hawaii home is next to impossible in such a tough economic time that we live in now. Unemployment is also very rife at the moment and people are being laid off by the minute so it may not be a wise move to start building a home and eventually end up being laid off before finishing the construction. It can be very frustrating and time consuming, not to mention very expensive.

You might want to consider taking a home mortgage loan with an extended repayment period of up to 30 years. This way, you will be guaranteed of a roof over your head with minimal monthly installments. But of course there are other things that would need you to take care of such as phone bill, electrical bill, car payments, and water, gas for your car, and of course food. Of course these bills can be overwhelming with no stable source of income, hence you are advised to think of alternative ways of securing a roof over your head if the mortgage loan will be burdening.

The other possibility to be remodeling your current premises if you live in your own premises that is. You see you can apply for a small loan which will finance the remodeling expenses and you will end up with an almost new Hawaii real estate and a small loan to service. This would be as good as buying a brand new home as you can revamp it the way you want. 

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Date/Time Range: Apr 1, 2011 00:00 - Apr 7, 2011 23:59

 Condo/Townhouse Report

Date/Time Range: Apr 1, 2011 00:00 - Apr 7, 2011 23:59

If you are longing to go to Kauai, but you want a homier environment than the usual sterile hotel room, you might consider looking into one of the many vacation rentals available on the island. Many people visit Kauai every year to take advantage of the gorgeous beaches, world-class golf courses, exhilarating hiking opportunities and fabulous surfing, and there are accommodations of every type for every visitor. Read on to learn about the different rental opportunities available on Kauai.

Are you taking a big family vacation, traveling to Hawaii with your whole brood? A private home might be the best option for you. It would be a great relief to have a kitchen to cook in, and it would be nice to not have to worry about making noise and disturbing neighboring rooms. Honeymooning? An intimate bungalow can give you and your new spouse the intimacy you desire. Looking for a lot of different amenities? A condo can provide the swimming pool and tennis court you desire. Simply assess your own personal needs and choose the vacation rental that would be best for you as you visit Kauai.

There are vacation rentals available all over Kauai, from the gorgeous North Shore with its stunning scenery and cascading waterfalls, to the sunny South Shore, where you can find popular Poipu Beach, the island's biggest tourist destination. Many vacation rental businesses are also able to provide discounts on car rentals, and they can also provide helpful tips about what to see and do around the island. For instance, many travelers enjoy hiking through the impressive Waimea Canyon, which is considered to be a smaller version of the Grand Canyon in Arizona. It's full of volcanic rock buttresses, cliffs that have waterfalls tumbling from their heights, and it's also got a gorgeous view of the Na Pali cliffs and the ocean when the mists hold off. Another hiker's paradise is the Alakei Swamp, which is 5,250 feet above sea level. It's nearly the wettest place on earth, and its misty cloud covers mossy rocks and trees as well as the rampant growth of violets and tropical ferns.

Vacation rentals can also provide close access to one of Kauai's fabulous beaches. Be it a condo or a house, nothing beats bounding out the back door onto the beach. And, in the case of a rental house, the beach is all yours. Newlyweds particularly appreciate the privacy afforded them by a rental home directly on the beach.