We have two new listings in the beautiful Spreckelsville area of Maui's North Shore. Sprecks is desired by island residents and second home owners for its access to good beaches, world class water sports, the Maui Country Club and its proximity to Paia town and the shopping and medical facilities of Central Maui. These listings are in the newer Sprecks V neighborhood. 

The first listing is a beautiful executive home. This home features amenities such as hardwood floors, granite counters, a large master bath and detached two car garage with two offices. This home has been meticulously maintained. The conscientious sellers have prepared this home for the market with a fresh coat of paint and a thorough home inspection.

This home is listed for $1,499,000. Contact us for additional information or to arrange a showing. Click here for the MLS listing with additional photos and property information.

Our other listing is a rare opportunity to own in Sprecks for under $1,000,000. This charming four bed/three bath home has a lot to offer. Amenities include a tranquil front court yard, a monier tile roof, copper gutters, central a/c, home audio system, sumptuous master bath, hickory kitchen cabinets and more.

This home is offered for $995,000. The seller has an inactive Hawaii Real Estate license. This is a short sale. Offers are subject to lender approval. Contact us for additional information or to arrange a showing.

These are two great homes for sale. When you are buying a home in Spreckelsville, you are buying more than just a structure. You are buying a lifestyle. Come and enjoy all that Sprecks has to offer today!

We have a new listing up in the Maunaolu Plantation Neighborhood between Makawao and Paia. The beautiful Anue'nue  (Hawaiian for Rainbow) estate resembles a private resort with its numerous amenities. Here is a quick tour of the exterior of the structures and the grounds of the property.

Anue'nue features over two acres of well landscaped grounds. Plantings include a variety of palms, mangoes, avocado, papaya, bananas, citrus, pineapple and ornamentals. A private catchment system is used for irrigation. Low voltage lighting illuminates many of the palms and other trees at night creating a magical effect.

Anue'nue has a beautiful pool area. The faux rock lined 30,000 gallon pool has a beach style entry. On one end of a pool is a cave grotto with free form spa. Turn on the waterfall and enjoy the sounds and sights of the water streaming in front of you as it cascades into the pool.

The pool is a great entertaining area. There is a barbecue area for you and your guests to enjoy. There is a small fridge so there is no need to run into the house for an ice cold beverage. Four pool side speakers are tied into the home's central media system.

For golfers, you can practice your chipping and putting in the back yard on the putting green with sand trap. These are just some of the many exterior amenities at the Anue'nue Estate. Look for a future blog post that features the various attributes and comforts of the main house and its associated cottage. This property is listed for $2,375,000. Check out the property website for additional information. Contact us today to arrange an exclusive showing of this beautiful property.

The Maui News had a front page article on Maui Realtor Mike Spalding this morning. Spalding is an elite distance swimmer who was trying to join the very select ranks of swimmers who have crossed the wild and woolly Alenuihaha channel between the Big Island and Maui. The channel crossing is almost 30 miles in length! To date only two other swimmers have made this crossing successfully. Mike was trying to do it at the ripe old age of 61. Pretty impressive to say the least. According to the Maui News, Spalding was 11 miles into the swim when he felt a sharp pain in his sternum followed by a sharp pain in his calf. A support kayak came to his aid when they heard Spalding cry out in pain. Inspection of the wounds when he was on the support kayak revealed two small bites. The wounds were not life threatening, but more than enough to put an end to his crossing attempt. Spalding suspects that the perpetrator was a cookie cutter shark.

Cookie Cutter sharks are a species that usually targets open ocean pelagic fish like Tuna. They stay in the depths of the ocean during the day rising to the surface to hunt at night. When I looked the fish up on Wikipedia, to date the only documented negative human interaction with cookie cutters has been when the shark has damaged American military underwater sonar equipment. There was no mention of any attacks on humans.

Judging by the article in the paper, Mike wasn't phased at all by the shark bites. Instead, he was dissapointed that he had to abort what to that point had been a very good swim. I have had the opportunity to show some of Mike's listings before. He is quite a character. I wish him a speedy recovery. I have no doubt he will be back in the water soon training to cross the channel.

We just had a big price reduction on one of our listings in beautiful Haiku. This is a good opportunity for someone who isn't afraid to roll up their sleeves and do a little work. The property consists of two separate parcels. One is just under 1.5 acres and the other is 4.25 acres. The 4.25 acres has a funky cottage that is livable but needs some work to restore its previous charms. A new well was recently installed in the property, but a buyer will need to connect the well to the existing structure. The buyer will also be responsible for any additional outstanding utility work to be completed. That being said, the property is pretty unique. It offers a lot of privacy and a great sense of seclusion within 15 minutes of Paia town. There is tremendous variety of fruit trees, palms, tropical ornamental plants and native plants.

The seller has slashed the price from $799,000 to $599,000. This property is being sold "as-is". Contact us for more information on this great Haiku opportunity.

The lure of Maui's countryside is strong. Clean air, beautiful views and low density made this area very popular during Maui's Real Estate boom. The demand for parcels led to significant price increases in both homes and land. This put the cost of owning out of reach for many land buyers. As the global real estate market adjusts, we are seeing price adjustments in Maui's Country. These adjustments mean that there are some values out there for savvy buyers. One of those opportunities may be our agriculturally zoned parcel of vacant land in Haiku.

This 1.49 acre parcel is set in a pretty unusual micro climate in Haiku. Haiku's geography consists of gently sloping fields and forests intersected by a series of watersheds coming off the side of Haleakala. Typically these watersheds or gulches have dense almost jungle like foliage. This listing is located at the side of a gulch in one of the drier locations of Haiku. The lot is mostly open and gently sloping grassland with a handful of palms and old mango trees.The gulch in general is drier than almost all other Haiku gulches. Connections to the island's water infrastructure prevents waterflow in all but the heaviest rains. The gently sloped lot has plenty of building sites. Electric is available to the site and it is serviced by a new well that will also provide water to an adjoining parcel.

This quiet secluded locale is close to town, but feels much father away. You are five minutes or less to Haiku school and Haiku Town Center. Ho'okipa beach park is less than ten minutes away and the shops of Paia aren't much further. Up until know, it has been hard to find lots with water for less than $400,000 on Maui. This opportunity is listed at $315,000. It may be purchased with an adjoing 4.2 acre parcel with a fixer cottage for $799,000. Contact us today for additional information or to arrange a showing.

The Wailea Resort in South Maui is one of the premier destination resorts of the world. The combination of world class beaches, championship golf, high end shopping and five star dining has attracted visitors from throughout the globe. High demand and the real estate boom that lasted the better part of the decade led to a considerable increase in the price of real estate around Wailea Resort. For those that were priced out by the boom, price adjustments have brought new opportunities for buyers. Our listing at Grand Champions is one of those opportunities.

This very well maintained condo has had one loving owner. The condo may need some updating, but it is in move in ready condition. The condo is well located as a second floor end unit above the rental office. It has a large private lanai, is just across the parking lot from the swimming pool and has ocean views from both bedrooms.  The lock off feature is a nice option. You can rent the whole condo, rent it as a separate one bedroom/one bath and a studio, or rent one half while living in the other. All of this is located within the heart of Wailea. Grand Champions is nestled between the Wailea Blue Golf Course Course and the Wailea Tennis Club. Fine dining is just a short walk away at Joe's Bar and Grill. Wailea's Beaches and shops are less than five minutes drive.

This condo is listed well below recent sales at $499,000. This is a great opportunity to own in one of Hawaii's premier resorts for under $500,000. Contact us today for additional information or to set up a showing.

I often find myself using the words "one of a kind" when describing some of our listings. It is the nature of Maui Real Estate. There are a lot of unique homes on this island. Our newest listing might be the most unique that I have seen to date. Perhaps, it has something to do with the owner's background. This New York film producer draws from his east coast roots to bring a couple of architectural styles that you seldom if ever see on Maui. The exterior shake finish conjures up the the tasteful old homes of the Hamptons. The interior has the open floor plan and the modern style of a New York City loft. The setting is classic Upcountry Maui. The home is surrounded by beautiful rolling countryside and forest. The property was named the "See Forever Estate" due to its specatcular vistas of the Wailea Coastline, neighbor islands, and the West Maui Mountains. The synthesis of Hamptons, New York City Loft and Upcountry charm works. It helps to make this a truly unique estate property.

The open and airy first floor is 2000 square feet. 65 feet of seamless glass windows bring in the spectacular views.

A gourmet kitchen features Leicht cabinets, absolute black granite counters and Wolf, Bosch and Subzero appliances.

Another shot of the open and airy living space. The floors are 5" wide IPE planks accented with slate. Steel I beams hidden by concrete columns provide structural support. The house has central heat and gas fire places for those cool Upcountry Nights.

The 1,000 square foot spacious master suite boasts its own private lanai and a decadent master bath which includes a "wet room" with a Starck Tub and Dornbracht shower and body jets.

This shot shows the homes "Hampton Style" exterior, citrus orchard and the great views. A separate two car garage with artists studio is barely visible on the right hand side of the photo.

Sunsets are truly magical from the "See Forever Estate". These views and this exquisite home are offered at $3,473,000. Check out the property website for additional photos and details on the property. Check out MauiRealEstate.com for the MLS details on the property.

The Hawaiian Islands are located farther from a continental land mass than any other island chain in the world. It is an important point to consider as we continue to rely on imported fossil fuels and imported food for our day to day living. Island home owners can make choices that will improve our self sufficiency and reduce our carbon footprint. The native Hawaiians were able to sustain a large population through the local environment. It is time that current residents start the steady shift back to this model of living.

Here are a few options that homeowners could take to make their island lifestyles more sustainable:

1) Improve your water heater. Electric water heaters are energy hogs plain and simple. Consider a solar water heater or an on demand water heater. The high cost of utilities on the island speeds the return on investement when installing any sort of device that improves your efficiency. It of course also means less demand for fossil fuels through the utility companies.

2) Power your house through a complete photovoltaic system or a wind turbine. Maui and Hawaii in general offer copious amounts of sun and wind. As with solar water heaters, return on investment for these upgrades is shorter due to high utility prices. Hawaii utility prices are quick to rise and slow to decrease. Until we reduce our dependency on fossil fuels, that is unlikely to change.

3) Plant a garden. Maui offers a year round growing season making your backyard an ideal spot for a veggie garden. If you have a little less space, a container garden will grow well even on the lanai of a condo. If you have a little more space, consider planting some fruit trees. Citrus, banana, avocado, papaya and mango all grow well throughout much of our beautiful island. If you really want to take the next step, consider a small chicken coop or some goats. They provide protein and manure to fertilize your garden. If you are looking for inspiration, the Dervaes family urban homestead in Pasadena shows how much you can do in even a small space.  Growing your own food decreases our dependence on imported food,  and it reduces your bill when you go to the grocery store. Imported fruits and veggies can be expensive!

The one area where this list is lacking is when it comes to new construction. While there are a few companies like Bamboo Technologies that have addressed green home construction on Maui, there is still considerable work to be done.  While I have seen a few high end homes earn LEED status on Maui, sustainable design has been lacking on the low end. This is where the designs of Brad Pitt and the Make it Right Foundation would be a boon to a community like Maui. Maui developers are scheduled to build a significant number of affordable housing units on island over the next few years. Wouldn't it be nice if these homes were green and affordable? The designs would need little or no modification as our sub tropical climate is somewhat similar to New Orleans. The New Orleans homes are built on stilts, but it appears that they could be modified pretty quickly to be post and pier construction which is predominant throughout much of Hawaii. Were the Make it Right Foundation to sell these designs to Maui developers, the proceeds would help underwrite the cost of construction in the 9th Ward. It could be a true win win for all parties.

It is time for Maui and Hawaii to embrace green. Not only does it hold the opportunity to help the environment, over the long run it may very well save island home owners money.

This four bedroom/three bath condominium home in Haiku is an interesting opportunity for buyers looking for a spacious move in ready home in a quiet country setting. The home has been extensively remodeled over the last couple of years. Recent improvements include completely upgraded bathrooms, new custom lighting, a new roof, a new solar hot water heater, new tile on the lanai deck, fresh paint, new carpet and more. There is even a recently finished gym area attached to the home via the garage. This home offers a flexible floor plan making it ideal for an extended family.

Set at the end of a quiet cul de sac off the main road, the home has a great country feel with views of rolling hills, Haleakala, the beautiful Pacific ocean and the eastern end of Molokai. This home is priced to sell at $699,000. Contact me for additional information or to arrange a showing. Click here for additional details and photos.

We just had a nice price reduction on our listing at 183 Welau Way in Ka'anapali. This beautiful three bedroom/ three and a half bath executive home in the Summit gated community is made for entertaining. A pool, attached spa, and a huge covered lanai connected to the home via pocket doors all make for great indoor/outdoor living. A gourmet kitchen is ideal for preparing meals. The views are second to none with vistas of the Ka'anapali coastline, neighbor islands, sunsets and breaching humpback whales during our winter season.

This home was just reduced in price from $2,495,000 to $2,249,000. This home is co-listed with Mary Anne Fitch of Coldwell Banker Island properties. Contact us today for additional information or for a private showing.

Click here for a virtual tour of this beautiful Ka'anapali Residence.