Enjoy Gold Coast living from this charming oceanfront building at Diamond Head. Relax on your balcony as you check the surf at Tongg's.. The original Penthouse level: This 5th floor unit boasts higher ceilings than lower floors! Additional storage included for surfboards, kayak, etc. Great value & priced to sell. Priced $285,000 under 2005 sales price! $575,000 for this 2 bed, 1 bath unit. Listor Owner

Oahu’s median sales price for homes jumped 8.6% in January to $618,900, which is the highest we’ve seen since September of 2010. Meanwhile, sales volume was down 12.1% from last year and its lowest since February of 2010, indicating signs of less inventory = higher prices.

Oahu Condo Statistics

On the condo front, the median price was also up 4.8% to $305,000 and sales volume was up just slightly at 1.9%. After 4 months of pending sales dropping in volume, they picked up significantly in January as I think both Realtors and Buyers are coming through on their New Year’s resolutions.

It’s a Great Time For Sellers

Months of remaining inventory is the lowest we’ve seen for both homes (5.2 months) and condos (4.7 months) in the last several years. The National Association of Realtors says anything less than 6 months is a “seller’s market,” so, it appears it may be an opportune time if you’re considering selling.

Here’s a recap of January real estate trends on Oahu:

Neighborhoods “Hot” for Sellers

• Home sales in Hawaii Kai were up 160%
• Home prices in Kaneohe were up 29%
• Condo sales on the Windward Coast were up 200%
• Condo prices in Kailua-Waimanalo were up 58%

Neighborhoods “Hot” for Buyers

• Home sales on the Windward Coast were down 75%
• Home prices on the Windward Coast were down 75%
• Condo sales on the North Shore and Wahiawa were down 100%*
• Condo prices on the North Shore and Wahiawa were down 100%*

*There were no sales in either of these neighborhoods in January

As always, all real estate is local. To find out what is happening in your neighborhood, feel free to contact me to see what is going on in your market, and if now is the time to buy or sell.

As 2011 is officially in our rear view mirror, here are the 3 highest sales for Condos in Honolulu last year:

1. Diamond Head Apartments #403/404 closed on 12/8/2011 for $4,673,300
2. Hokua #36K closed on 11/3/2011 for $4,550,000
3. Hokua #34 B/C closed on 2/15/2011 for $4,550,000

Although 2011 saw 4 condo sales on Oahu at $4.5 million and higher, none were as high as 2010's sale of Nauru Tower PH4303 in 2010. It will be interesting to see what 2012 has in store...

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Although sales of single family homes on Oahu in July were down 7% from 2010, Realtors on Oahu closed as many transactions as June with 251 sales. Prices were also down 2.2% from last year. On a brighter note, they took a tick up from June’s median price of $575,000. It also took homes that sell* an average of 34 days on market.

*Homes that don’t sell aren’t factored into the 34 days on market stats. There are many homes that do not sell and are either withdrawn from the market and/or re-listed at a later date. If you attempted to sell your property without success and it is no longer on the market, feel free to contact me for more information about our smart marketing and solid representation.

The condo market on Oahu also followed the single family trend as sales were down 8.3% and the median sales price was also down 7.7% from last year to $277,000. This is the lowest median price for condos this whole year! This may be a sign of a buyer’s market brewing for condos…

What neighborhoods were ‘hot’ for sellers in July?

• Home sales in Moanalua-Salt Lake were up 150%
• Home prices in Moanalua-Salt Lake were up 79.3%
• Condo sales on the north shore were up 50%
• Condo prices on the north shore were up 15.3%

What neighborhoods were ‘hot’ for buyers in July?

• Home sales in Kaneohe were down 51.7%
• Home prices in Makaha-Nanakuli were down 25.8%
• Condo sales in Aina Haina-Kuliouou, Wahiawa and the Windward Coast were down 100%**
• Condo prices in Aina Haina-Kuliouou, Wahiawa, and the Windward Coast were down 100%**

**There were no sales in either of these 3 neighborhoods. This is also the most neighborhoods I’ve seen without any sales in a very long time.

As always, all real estate is local. To find out what’s happening in your neighborhood, contact one of our great Realtors on Oahu to see what’s going on in your market, and if now is the time to buy or sell.

Resales of single family homes and condos on Oahu continued April's downward trend of fewer transactions in the marketplace.

The bad news first:

Single family home sales were down 15.3% and condo sales were down 10.3% in May. Median prices also stumbled from last year with home prices down 0.8% to $595,000 and condos down 4.9% to $290,000.

Now, the good news:

Although April and May's figures were not as strong as last year, both outpaced 2009's figures. In addition, we are on track for a strong healthy summer as pending home sales are up 22.2% for homes and up 44.3% for condos in May!

What neighborhoods were great for sellers in May?

• Home sales on Downtown-Nuuanu were up 33.3%
• Home prices in Aina Haina-Kuliouou were up 31.6%
• Condo sales in both Kailua-Waimanalo and Makaha-Nanakuli tied at 66.7%
• Condo prices in Ala Moana-Kakaako were up 43.6%

What neighborhoods were great for buyers in May?

• Home sales in Kaneohe were down 61.3%
• Home prices on the Windward Coast were down 21.4%
• Condo prices along the Windward Cost were down 52.7%
• Condo sales in Mililani were down 42.3%

As always, all real estate is local. To find out what's happening in your neighborhood, contact one of our great Realtors on Oahu to see what's going on in your market, and if now is the time to buy or sell.

Dr. Beach came out with his annual Top 10 Beach List and Oahu was the only Hawaiian island to make the list at the #3 and #9 spots.

Duke Kahanamoku Beach took the #3 spot

Duke Kahanamoku Beach fronts the Hilton Hawaiian Village in Waikiki. The boundaries are the pier on the east side and the Ala Wai Boat Harbor on the west.

It's a great stretch of beach that isn't as crowded as the main beach in the heart of Waikiki. Fee simple condos can be found just west at the Ilikai as well as the Ilikai Marina, where I just listed a 1 bed, 1 bath (MLS# 1106541) overlooking the boat harbor for $355,000.

Waimanalo Beach also made the list at #9

Waimanalo Beach on Oahu's southeastern shore is a beautiful white sand beach that seems to stretch forever...This beach was put on the map when the nearby "Robin Masters Estate" was featured on episodes of Magnum P.I.

I'm not surprised that either beach made the list. Obviously, there are many more beautiful beaches throughout Hawaii! Dr. Beach just happened to touch on a few here.

If you're interested in living your Hawaii life on Oahu, there are some great options near these beaches in Waikiki and Waimanalo.

For 2010 and 2011, Canada has taken over for Japan as the #1 foreign country investing in residential real estate in Hawaii.

I had the opportunity to hear Dr. Michael Sklarz of Collateral Analytics speak today at the Hawaii Convention Center about foreign real estate investment. He had some interesting data that he was able to compile with the help of Title Guaranty.

For the state of Hawaii, Canadian investment in real estate has by far surpassed other foreign countries over the past few years. Over the past decade or so, the Japanese have been averaging 250-300 purchases/per year. Canadian investment is nearing 400 purchases/year over the last 2 years. Following a distant third behind Canada and Japan is Hong Kong. Read entire post →

We are happy to announce our latest REO listing in Waipio Gentry.

Kuola Townhome #A/7 (MLS# 1105390) is a REO listed for $248,500

The Kuola town homes in Waipio Gentry were built in 1983 and are within walking distance to Waipio Shopping Center. Waipio Gentry is just inland of Waikele.

It is a sleeper community that doesn't get as much attention as Waikele or Mililani (further inland). When you approach Waipio Gentry via Kamehameha Highway, you'll notice a number of Norfolk Pines as you do in Mililani Town, which were typical of early Castle & Cooke developments, and feels like you're on the island of Lanai.

In addition, there's a nearby Costco for all your shopping needs. If you're looking for an affordable entry level home, this is it. Unlike your typical REOs, this unit is in really great shape. It also has the advantage of a quick response on your offers as opposed to so many short sales on the market these days.

If you're interested in this, or other condo and town home REOs on Oahu, contact one of our great Realtors for more information.

In April, we experienced one of the largest dips in home sales on Oahu in awhile.

This Honolulu home (MLS# 1014958) is priced at April's median price of $585,000

Existing home sales were down 19.6% from the previous year. Condo sales were also down 6.7%. On a brighter note, prices were stable as the median sales price on Oahu was up 3.5% for homes to $585,000 and down just 0.7% to $305,000 for condos.

Although the dip in home sales may be alarming, April is typically a slower month as people are preparing their taxes. This was also the first bump up in prices this year.

What neighborhoods were great for sellers in April?

• Home sales on the Pearl City-Aiea were up 220%
• Home prices in Aina Haina-Kuliouou were up 109.2%
• Condo sales on the Windward Coast were up 300%
• Condo prices on the Windward Coast were up 74.1%

What neighborhoods were great for buyers in April?

• Home sales in Kalihi-Palama were down 61.5%
• Home prices on the Moanalua-Salt Lake were down 18.7%
• Condo sales in Wahiawa were down 100%
• Condo prices on the Wahiawa were down 100%

As always, all real estate is local. To find out what's happening in your neighborhood, contact one of our great Realtors on Oahu to see what's going on in your market, and if now is the time to buy or sell.