Hawaii Real Estate News

In the month of March there were 282 single family homes that sold and 392 condos according to the Honolulu Board of Realtors MLS. That was a decrease of 14.5% for the number of single family homes sold compared to the same month last year and a 27.5 % decrease for condos for the same comparison. There were 673 single family sales for the first ¼ of 2008, representing a 22.2% decrease compared to a year ago. There were 1,037 condo sales for the first ¼ of 2008, representing a 23.8% decrease compared to a year ago.

The median single family home sale price was $628,000 a decease of 2.4%. The median condo sales price was $329,300, an increase of 2.4%. The actual sales prices do not seem to being affected as the number of home sale so far.

Purchasing real estate is one of the biggest investments a person can make in a life time. It is important to hook up with the right Realtor. Especially with what has happen in the real estate market lately. Home prices have adjusted from the last real estate bubble. Lenders were loaning money to people that could not other wise qualify for. Many people got slammed into sub-prime mortgages they had no business taking. Here are some things that would qualify an agent to be great.

1. Integrity - Following up and doing what they promise.
2. Honesty - Telling the client the truth even if it means not getting a sale.
3. Knowledge - Knowing their market and what direction it is heading.
4. Education - Informing their client of different areas and neighborhoods.
5. Resources - Knowing where to direct their clients to do the proper research to make an informed decision.
6. Team - Having a team of professionals like Home Inspectors, Mortgage Brokers, Title Insurance Company and Escrow Officers that put the clients interests first and not their own.

Our team strives everyday to live up to these standards. Any Realtor that takes their business seriously wants to be the greatest real estate agent in the world. We also know some of the greatest agents in the world that do the same. If you are relocating to Hawaii, we can help you locate a Realtor in your neighborhood to sell your existing home. Please do not hesitate to contact us before you come to Hawaii. We are here to help.

All real estate webmasters need to make sure they are providing a good service for their users.

The Big Island of Hawaii has seen the sales volume in the residential market decrease over the past year since the peak in 2006. Causing great buying opportunities Islandwide.

Big Island MLS Sales Statistics - Sales Volume
LOCATION PROPERTY TYPE 2006 2007 % INCREASE/

ENTIRE Residential $1,133,249,353 $958,910,123 <15.38%>
PUNA Residential $188,820,314 $148,329,901 <21.44%>
SOUTH HILO Residential $138,404,155 $93,513,499 <32.43%>
NORTH HILO Residential $6,911,888 $7,621,601 10.27%
HAMAKUA Residential $20,445,739 $16,318,740 <20.19%>
NORTH KOHALA Residential $40,845,000 $33,255,990 <18.58%>
SOUTH KOHALA Residential $263,634,942 $249,687,574 <5.29%>
NORTH KONA Residential $389,642,415 $346,580,401 <11.05%>
SOUTH KONA Residential $45,673,450 $35,393,014 <22.51%>

If you are interested in Big Island real estate in Hawaii you can contact American Dream Realty for all your buying needs.

Hawaii real estate on Oahu during December, sales of 240 single-family homes and 353 condominiums were reported through the Board's MLS, decreases of 30.6 percent for single family homes and 22.9 percent for condominiums, compared to the same month last year. This brings total single-family home sales on Oahu to 3,627 for 2007, a decrease of 10.2 percent over the same time period one year ago. Total condominium sales for all of 2007 were 5,499, a 13.8 percent decrease from last year. The full year median prices paid for Oahu properties were $643,500 and $325,000, respectively, increases of 2.1 percent and 4.8 percent over the 2006 prices of $630,000 and $310,000. The total dollar sales volume generated in the housing market for all of 2007 was $4.977 billion, a decrease of 8.9 percent, or $488 million, compared to the $5.465 billion produced one year ago.

There is a 0.6% decrease in Single Family Homes Median Sales Price from last year, while a 1.4% increase in Condominium Median Sales Price in December 2007 compared to the same month last year.

There is a 30.6% decrease in Single Family Homes Sales Volume from last year, and a 22.9% decrease in Condominium Sales Volume in December 2007 compared to the same month last year.
"Even though the number of sales have declined in the last few months of 2007, we are coming off of such record highs that we are still at the levels we attained during the last peak cycle between 1988 and 1991," said Berton Hamamoto, President of the Honolulu Board of REALTORS®. "The Honolulu real estate market has faired well this year in comparison to many Mainland cities. We showed modest gains of 2.1 percent and 4.8 percent for single-family and condo sale prices, as opposed to negative numbers for several U.S. cities."

"Housing resales during December were low but this was not unexpected," added Harvey Shapiro, Research Economist at the Board of REALTORS®. "The economy in Hawaii has been maintaining its strength although there are some indications of a coming slowdown." cityneighborhoodinfo.com has relocation and property information accross the united states. Source: The Honolulu Board of REALTORS®

The Hawaii real estate market on Oahu continues to slow down. The third quarter of 2007 for single family home sales compared to the third quarter of 2006 for the number of homes sold is down by 10.5%. The same time period median home sales prices we are down 2.3%.

The third quarter of 2007 for condo re-sales compared to the third quarter of 2006 for the number of condos sold is down by 12.4%. The same time period median condo sales prices we are down 4.8%.

The total dollar volume of sales was $1.311 billion in the third quarter, a decrease of $136 million, or 9.5%, from the $1.447 billion in sales achieved in the same quarter last year.

Here are the median single home sales prices for the following areas:
Metro Oahu (Honolulu Town) - $705,500
Diamond Head - $1,080,000
Hawaii Kai - $853,800
Kailua - $785,000
Kaneohe - $707,000
North Shore - $587,500
Central Oahu (Mililani) - $648,300
Leeward Coast - $387,500 
Ewa Plain - $519,500
Makakilo - $574,900
Waipahu - $582,500
Pearl City - $642,500

Median Sales Price means the midpoint of sales prices.

After browsing real more real estate blogs from around the world I came across a Mississauga Ontario real estate website blog that shows that prices in some parts of the world are doing much better compared to the US.  As a matter of fact real estate prices have been consistently increasing for the past 12 years in the Toronto Ontario area of Canada.  You can see a Mississauga average price graph showing the price increases over this period of time and although there are seasonal fluctuations in the price, every year since 1995 the average single family residential price has increased.

We have information and links to most of the Oahu Schools on our Hawaii real estate site. You can find more information about schools and city information on National Relocation.

Some of the best private schools in the nation are on Oahu. Iolani school is known for its academic excellence. It wins awards every year for its students achievements. Punahou is another great private school and known nationally by many of the great colleges and its students are recruited heavily as well.

These are definately the top two private schools on Oahu and in the state of Hawaii.

Hawaii foreclosures are on the rise. According to some of the stats, Hawaii foreclosure listings have doubled over the past year.  There were 313 foreclosures filed on properties in the third quarter. That was 105% increase than the third quarter last year. Hawaii is still among one of the states with the fewest foreclosures ( Hawaii is ranked 40th).

Nationally, the rates continue to rise. Nevada has the highest percentage with one foreclosure filing for every 61 households. The amount of Las Vegas foreclosures is incredible. The Las Vegas real estate market was one of the strongest a few years ago with some of the largest appreciation the nation saw. No it looks like it is making a major correction.

California and Florida were the other two top states with the amount of filings. While San Diego foreclosures did not lead California, it was among the top big cities to get hammered with the amount of filings. Other top California cities that have allot of foreclosure filings are Los Angeles, Santa Ana, Chula Vista, Anaheim and Riverside. There is a Florida foreclosure filing for every 95 households. Big cities like Miami, Orlando and Jacksonville continue to increase monthly.

It looks like there will be some great buying opportunities in the future across the country. The big questions is when to jump in the market and take advantage of some of the great deals that are gong to be out there.

Despite media reports of a slowing national real estate market, it seems that the Boston Real Estate market remains vibrant and strong, specifically Boston luxury real estate. In fact, Bostonà top neighborhoods of the Back Bay, Beacon Hill, Financial District and South End have all seen continuous growth during the past two years. You can read all about the Boston real estate market in The Bushari Team quarterly Boston Real Estate Market Report.

According to Elad Bushari of Gibson Sotheby International Realty in Boston, the strong Boston real estate market has partly to do with Boston booming financial industries. We are seeing a lot more people searching for lofts near the financial district. In fact, prices there have jumped 17 percent in the 3Q 2007 as compared to last year.

The Boston Real Estate Blog is another great source of information about Boston real estate, Boston Apartments and Boston Lofts.