Maintenance fees, also known as AOAO fees or HOA fees or strata fees ( for our Canadian clients) usually cover "common" expenses like water, sewage, trask pick up, basic cable, internet, landscaping, maintenance of the pool and maintenance of other common areas. On the properties where there is central air, one may see that the maintenance fee also includes the cost of electricity.

Maintenance fees need not be confused with management or rental management fees that pertain to the use of the property. An owner of a condominium is automatically responsible for the maintenance fee, no matter how the property is used.

To give you an overview, there are a few variables that determine the amount of the monthly maintenance fees:

-square footage

Maintenance fees are usually calculated based on square footage: the larger the unit, the higher the maintenance fees. There are exceptions to this rule though, where all units pay the same monthly amount, like at Kaanapali Plantation .

- electricity

Some properties, like Mahana, Maui Kai, Kaanapali Shores have central air and thus electricty is included in the maintenance fee. As a result, maintenance fee for a 2bd unit at Papakea, is $949/month and it does not include electricity. The maintenance fee for a 2bd unit at Kaanapali Shores is $1,242/ month.

If electricity is not included in the maintenance fee, for an oceanfront 1bd condo, with a pool, you can expect a maintenance fee around $600/month.

- swimming pools

Properties that have swimming pools typically have higher maintenance fees than the ones that dont. For instance, maintenance fee at Napili Villas, maintenance fee for a 2bd/2ba unit, with no swimming pool on the property, is $380/month. A similar size unit on a property that features a swimming pool would be around $700/month (electricity would not be included)

- land and landscaping

The more land, the more landscaping one needs and thus higher maintenance fees. Particularly in Hawaii, where everything grows faster:-))

- number of units in the complex

It is fairly obvious that high density condos typically have lower maintenance fees.

If you are looking to buy an oceanfront condominium, you should expect to pay approximately $1/sf in maintenance fees.

Check all Maui condos for sale at www.forsaleinlahaina.com

Maui's most expensive home ever, with a price tag of $27,000,000 was sold in Makena, only a few weeks ago. The new owner is Peter Thiel, co-founder of Paypal.

Sitting on a direct ocean front parcel of a little over 1.5 acres, this almost 5,000 sf was built in 1991 and it is currently under renovation, according to an article in Pacific Business News.

This property was sold before being listed. The Seller owned and enjoyed this home for almost 5 years; in 2006, he bought it for $19,200,000.  Which comes to prove that the recession has not affected luxury real estate.

There have been 16 homes that sold in Maui, for more than $10,000, ever. Seven of them are located in Makena, five are located in Napili/Kapalua area and four are located in Kihei/Wailea area.

I need to look up the other co-founder of Paypal and sell him a house on the West Side, so they can have the island covered:-))) Good for me and good for them:-))

Maluhia Country Ranches is a subdivision developed in the early 2000's in the area called Kahakuloa, in the north western part of Maui. This subdivision features large agricultural zoned parcels, starting at 2 acres, allowing owners to benefit from beautiful, uninterrupted ocean views and lots of privacy. Being located about 25 minutes away from Wailuku Town  and aproximately 30 minutes away from Kahului airport, this  area is a good option for those that like large acreage, in a luxury neighborhood with a very enjoyable climate. Not too hot, not too cold and close to town.

Maluhia Country Ranches is probably one of the very few  gated communities in Maui that would allow farm animals, thus this is a horse lover's paradise. There are no dedicated horse trails, but gentlemen agreements would allow access to such trails.

The water supply for Maluhia Country Ranches is represented by two private wells that are administered by Kahakuloa Water Partners, a non profit entity set up by the owner of this subdivision, the smaller subdivision of the Cliffs at Kahakuloa and a few other individual owners. While the cost of the water itself is very affordable ( more affordable than what Maui County could offer, if that was even a choice) , there are additional costs, shared by all owners, regarding maintenance and necessary improvements of the water system.

As for other utilities, there is electricity offered by Maui Electrical Company; some homes have photovoltaic systems and there have been a few discussing the possibility of building a wind farm.  Hawaiian Telcom offers phone services and Dish Network offers cable services. All homes have  septic systems in place.

Manicured, lush landscaping and dramatic cliffs made me call Maluhia Country Ranches  the Switzerland of Maui. Add to that some of the best views of the ocean, Kahului harbor and Haleakala Mountains and you truly have one of the best spots on island.

To see what is for sale at Maluhia Country Ranches, please go to Kahakuloa homes for sale.

No "Double Dip" Recession

Paul Brewbaker, former chief economist for Bank of Hawaii and definitely the authority in terms of economic trends in Hawaii had a presentation only several days ago, discussing Maui real estate market and economy.

Here are a few of the key ideas presented by Paul Brewbaker:

• There is plenty of data to confirm that this recession was not the deepest or the longest in US history;
• Despite what the media says or how some may choose to interpret the statistics, there is no double dip recession, nor another recession. For the next couple of years we will see a lot of small and frequent oscillations up and down, part of the market's tendency to stabilize; 
• Three years from today, we will all look back and be sorry that we did not invest in real estate; the opportunity is NOW!
• Although Neighbor Islands were hit by the recession much harder than Oahu, it is just a matter of time before unemployment rates go down and income will increase as well.

ACT 48 Update

ACT 48 was approved by Governor Abercrombie on May 5^th 2011 and it was meant to protect consumers against faulty foreclosure procedures and to force banks to consider loan modifications.

One of the key elements of this bill is that owner residents can be foreclosed on only via the judicial system. Until now, most banks preferred to file non judicial foreclosures, whereby after due notifications, a property would be auctioned on the steps of the Court House. The bank would have its own bid, usually in the amount of the defaulted loan, which would happen to be the highest bid.

Going through a non-judicial foreclosure would take up to a year, depending on bank, borrower and property. With the new laws, having to go through a judicial foreclosure, the timeline has increased dramatically and anecdotal evidence shows that the Courts are already clogged up.

 While this may bring relief to some owners, the impact on the real estate market is still to be determined. Some claim that the new law will not change anything, nor the rate or the speed of new REO listings on the market. Others claim that this law will increase the existing "shadow" inventory, not available to buy or rent yet. The rental market in West Maui is already very hot and there is high demand for 3bd + homes or condos.

 MAUI Property Tax Changes- Going UP, of Course!

As of July 1^st 2011, we have new property tax rates in Maui.

 As you already know, Maui County estimates the value of your property every year. This represents the tax basis. If you are an owner resident, the tax basis is decreased by $200,000 (used to be $300,000).

 To determine the yearly amount of tax, a certain tax rate is applied, depending on the use of the property.

 Owners of residential homes pay $5.55 per $1000 of estimated value. If the owner is also a resident of the property, the tax rate goes down to $2.5/$1,000.

 Owners of condos that are used for vacation rental purposes pay $9.00 per $1,000, while owner residents of condos are taxed as "apartments" at a rate of $5.50 per $1,000.

 In the (very frequent) event that the Tax Division miss categorizes your property, applying a higher tax rate, you need to contact them as soon as possible, while you would have to wait to appeal until April next year.

 There have also been many discussions at County Council level involving more strict conditions for granting the home exemption (now at $200,000, down from $300,000).

 If you would like to know what your property is currently estimated at by Maui County, please contact me via email and I will look it up for you.

 Hope you are enjoying the summer,

 A Hui Hou!

 Mihaela

www.forsaleinlahaina.com

In an attempt to define the purpose of my business, I foudn my self having to deal with the bigger question:  What am I selling? Sure, the short answer is HOUSES. And most of us, when we think of houses we think location, square footage, condition of the property, market value.

But are we really selling just square footage of living space, which truly  is square feet of area under the roof? Are we selling a pile of construction materials arranged in a seamingly logical and hopefully artful or functional manner? Are we selling numbers attached to this big ticket item, validated by an appraisal, and thus by more numbers?

The most beautiful and extensive definition of a HOME I found is in the beginning of Lori Ryker's book called " Off the Grid Homes, Case Studies for Sustainable Living". Please take a minute to slowly read every word of this:

"Homes are expressions of collected day-to-day experiences. They provide a place of refuge and memory making. From within our dwellings, our lives unfold and are invented, while personal beliefs are explored and expressed. Rituals are created and reenacted daily, weekly, or monthly, responding to our interpretations of how to live in the world. Holidays are given their context from within our homes, entwining our sense of an event within a particular place. Homes have the ability to express and embody an understanding of ourselves and our relationship to the world around us. They express who we are, who we want to be, and how we will be remembered."

I was so impressed with this definition, that I had to post it on my website, at www.forsaleinlahaina.com

Enjoy your weekend, at HOME!

If you love turtles, Honokeana Cove, aka Turtle Cove is the perfect spot for you!

 Napili Point is located direct oceanfront, right on the bay, and it comprises 2 phases. Phase II is now fee simple and unit B 44 is the only  2bd/2ba  for sale. This property is managed through an on site rental program, set up by owners of the  participating condos. Thus, there is no "middle man": the income from rentals covers all expenses and profits are distributed to the owners of the condo, based on number of days units were rented out.

The monthly maintenance fee for this condo is $1,132 and it covers electricity, water, sewage, trash pick up, landscapingm pool maintenance, maintenance of the common areas.

This property is currently listed at $825,000, by Colley and Associates. I can represent you as a buyer's agent, for the purchase of this property.

To see what else is listed direct oceanfront in West Maui, please check http://www.forsaleinlahaina.com

As we all thought, it was just a matter of time before real estate property rates went up again.  The new,increased rates are to be applied for the taxation year starting July 1st 2011.

To see what is for sale in Maui County, please check www.forsaleinlahaina.com.