Real Estate Sales Activity in the Pearl City Region - 11/30/07 02:56 PM
The Pearl City region has had steady growth in sales prices for that last few years and steady sales.  This report covers areas including: Halawa, Foster Gardens, Aiea, Aiea Heights, Waimalu, New Town, Royal Summit, Pearl City, and Pacific Palisades.
The below figures include both fee simple and leasehold properties.  These are only the totals and average sale prices.
Single Family homes sales have softened. Average sales price of single family homes have remained flat from last year.  Sales volume is down from last year.  Inventory levels are reasonably low.
Condo and townhouse sales are another story.  The trend is similar to the single … (4 comments)

Ocean Pointe Real Estate Sales Activity for October 2007 - 11/30/07 01:13 PM
Ocean Pointe a planned community in Ewa Beach, Hawaii (makes up part of tax map key 191).
Single Family homes: Average sales prices of single family homes are down just under 4% year to date from 2006.  Sales volume is has seen a little bigger drop from 2006 levels.  Inventory level has come down the last few months is currently slightly more than 3 months worth.  Buyers and sellers will find the market a little more balanced than in months past.
Condo and townhouse sales are another story.  Sales volume has shown drop a large drop year to date from the 2006 levels.  … (0 comments)

Foreclosures are Still Low in Hawaii - 11/29/07 09:58 PM
Despite all the doom and gloom reports not only is are the real estate prices in Honolulu County showing the highest increase, foreclosure rates are among the lowest statewide in the nation.
The numbers reported in the local media from a survey in RealtyTrac shows the foreclosure rate in Hawaii ranked 43rd in the country. 
While the foreclosure rate in the country went up 2% from September to October it dropped 3% in Hawaii during the same period of time.
… (18 comments)

Kailua Real Estate Sales Activity for October 2007 - 11/29/07 08:18 PM
The Kailua communities (zip code of 96734 and some connecting neighborhoods) have seen changes in the real estate market.
The below figures include both fee simple and leasehold properties.  These are only the totals and average sale prices.
Single Family homes sales:  The month of October saw a drop in the number of closing and for average sales price.  Year to date both numbers have shown increases over the 2006 figures.  Inventory levels are at about 4 months worth.
Condo and townhouse sales:  Have shown increases in average sales price over 2006 levels.  Number of units sold is down year to date from last … (0 comments)

Kaneohe Real Estate Sales Activity for October 2007 - 11/29/07 07:23 PM
The Kaneohe communities (zip code of 96744 and some connecting neighborhoods) have seen changes in the real estate market.
The below figures include both fee simple and leasehold properties.  These are only the totals and average sale prices.
Single Family homes sales have softened. Average sales prices of single family homes have seen some dropping, while sales volume has increased. Inventory levels have decreased to a little over 5 months worth.  This is compared to over 8 months worth of inventory earlier in the year.
Condo and townhouse sales are another story.  Inventory is relatively low and prices have continued to climb.  Sales volume … (2 comments)

Salt Lake, Hawaii 2007 Real Estate Sales Activity - 11/29/07 06:31 PM
Salt Lake Area (tax map key 111, includes Moanalua, Aliamanu, Mapunapuna and Airport Area)
The below figures include both fee simple and leasehold properties.  These are only the totals and average sale prices.
Single Family homes sales have softened. Average sales price of single family homes have continued to climb again.  Sales volume is down from last year.  Inventory levels are still hovering at about 6 months.
Condo and townhouse sales are another story.  Inventory is low with just a little more than 2 months worth.  Average sales prices have seen a nice jump over last year.  The Salt Lake area is still in … (0 comments)

Westloch - Real Estate Sales Activity for October 2007 - 11/29/07 05:38 PM
This Westloch sales report covers both Westloch Estates and Westloch Fairway (part of zip code of 96706).  We have seen a flattening of the market when comparing with 2006 numbers.  Earlier in the year things dropped a little, but have increased slightly to bring the year to date numbers close to 2006 levels.
Month to date in November there have been 3 additional closings.
Interest rates are still low and there is a good selection of inventory making it a good market for buyers.
Currently Active for Sale (11/29/07): 
18 Single Family HomesCurrently in Escrow (11/29/07):
 6 Single Family Homes*These numbers were taken from the Honolulu … (2 comments)

University of Hawaii Football - The Last Undefeated Team in the Nation - 11/27/07 09:11 PM
                                                                                                   
Last Friday's game was the most important and possibly the most exciting game in the University's history.  Boise State has won the WAC conference for the last 5 years.  University of Hawaii was undefeated and trying for their first outright WAC conference Championship.  They were co-winners in the past.
Their victory over Boise State made the University of Hawaii the WAC Champions!
This is the best season in the history of the school.  Until that game we were not getting a lot of respect on a national basis.  Things have changed. 
Our quarterback Colt Brennan, who was barely mentioned as a Heisman … (22 comments)

More Regulation & Stricter Standards Needed For Loan officers - 11/24/07 04:34 PM
OK, I am bracing for the backlash from that title.  Those who know me know that I am not a big government kind of guy.  To the contrary in almost every case I believe in less government; unfortunately not in this case.
There have been several great blog posts written the last couple of days on similar topics.  Rather than hijacking their posts I felt it better to write my own.
CALIFORNIA SUBPRIME BORROWERS MAY GET RELIEF? - More Questions than Answers by Lenn HarleyThe subprime mantra, "Easy in.....easy out" by Broker Bryant TutasWhat Part Do Individual Markets Need to Play In Our … (35 comments)

Aggressive Brokerages - Are They Recruiting or Poaching? - 11/21/07 10:38 PM
In the last few months I have seen several real estate brokerages heavily recruiting agents from other companies.  In our daily mail at the office there are a stack of envelopes from other real estate companies to each and every agent within our company.  While on floor duty I have answered the phone to have another broker try to recruit me.
Just a few of my observations:
I find these practices tacky and show a total lack of class.They seem to be willing to take on any agent.Why would I want to hang my license with a company who will take on anyone … (15 comments)

Hawaii Superferry Will Finally Begin Operations - 11/19/07 11:33 PM
Last week The Maui Circuit Judge lifted the injunction that has prevented the Superferry from traveling between Maui and Oahu.
The Superferry will begin sailing o December 1, 2007.  The Hawaii Superferry is offering an inaugural fare of $29 each way per passenger from Dec. 1st until Dec 20th.
Operations to Kauai will still be suspended by the management of the Superferry until they can address concerns of Kauai residents.  Many may remember the violent protestors who entered the water blocking the ship from docking in Kauai and others who attacked customers and their cars who were planning to ride the Superferry.
The … (6 comments)

Honolulu – Highest Residential Real Estate Price Growth in Nation - 11/19/07 08:21 PM
                                                                                          
Prices in the Honolulu market grew 14.79 percent from September 2006 to September 2007 according to the September 2007 LoanPerformance Home Price Index reported by Pacific Business News.  14.79 percent growth for Honolulu was the highest in the nation.
The article also included the market with the biggest drop, which was Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario market in California seeing the greatest drop at 13.59 percent.
According to the report home prices fell in 17 states tracked by the index, while five states saw price appreciation of between 5 percent and 10 percent.  Hawaii was the only market to experience double-digit growth.
It was … (9 comments)

Motivated Seller/ Priced to Sell - 11/19/07 02:06 AM
How many listings have you seen with these comments on them?  How effective are these comments.
Motivated Seller
Do they think they are unique?  Are the other sellers not motivated?  Why do they have their homes for sale if they do not want to sell them?  Please get serious.  Possibly they may be referring to some of the sellers who have their homes dirty and hard to show.
Priced to Sell
If the others are not priced to sell, what are they priced to do?  Do they just want a free real estate sign in their yard?  Maybe it strokes their ego to have ads … (21 comments)

Why Use A Professional REALTOR® - 11/19/07 01:21 AM
In a time where television shows and get rich quick seminars teach people how to buy and sell homes on their own, I get asked this question from time to time.
Why don't we look at what a REALTOR® does and then we can ask that question again.
For Buyers
The process of buying a home has several steps to it.
Finding a lender and loan officerGetting pre-approved for a mortgage.Finding the right property.Identifying possible issues with the property.Drawing up the contracts. (In Hawaii our Purchase contract is 12 pages long plus in most cases several addendums).Establishing a value of the property.Negotiating the sale price … (0 comments)

Las Brisas in Ewa Gentry - Real Estate Sales Activity for October 2007 - 11/11/07 06:24 PM
Las Brisas is a development within the planned community of Ewa Gentry in Ewa Beach, Hawaii (makes up part of tax map key 191).
Single Family homes: Sales activity in Las Brisas has continued to be softer than 2006.  There is a lot of new home construction in the area competing with the resale market, along with a large amount of resale inventory in the neighboring communities.  It is a good area and time for buyers to find good deals while interest rates are still low.
Currently Active for Sale (October 11, 2007): 
Single Family HomesCurrently in Escrow (October 11, 2007):
 Single Family Homes*These … (4 comments)

Montecito/ Tuscany in Ewa Gentry Real Estate Sales Activity for October 2007 - 11/11/07 06:12 PM
Montecito/ Tuscany an Ewa Gentry planned community in Ewa Beach, Hawaii (makes up part of tax map key 191).
Single Family homes: Sales volume is still too low to draw conclusions.  Most of the homes are less than 2 years old.  The resale prices are very attractive for first time home buyers who are looking to enter the market.
Currently Active for Sale (October 11, 2007):   
13 Single Family HomesCurrently in Escrow (October 11, 2007):
  0 Single Family Homes*These numbers were taken from the Honolulu Board of Realtors MLS system and are deemed to be accurate, but not guaranteed.
You can find out more … (0 comments)

Royal Kunia Real Estate Sales Activity – October 2007 - 11/11/07 06:00 PM
Royal Kunia is a planned community in Waipahu, Hawaii (makes up part of tax map key 194).
Single Family homes average prices have softened.  Sales volume of single family homes is consistent year to date with 2006 levels.  Average sales price has started to increase and surpassing 2006 levels in October and bringing up the year to date close to 2006 levels.  Inventory levels are low, so expect prices to remain strong for at least the short term.
Condos and townhouses:  Sales volume of condos is small, due to the limited number of condo complexes in Royal Kunia.
Currently Active for Sale (October 31, … (0 comments)

Waikele - Real Estate Sales Activity in Waikele for October 2007 - 11/11/07 11:06 AM
Single Family homes sales in Waikele have remained steady. Average sales prices of single family homes are down slightly year to date from the 2006 year, but did see some a nice increase in October.  Sales volume is up year to date.  The current inventory levels make it a nice balance for both buyers and sellers.
Condo and townhouse sales in Waikele are another story.  Average sales prices have increased slightly year to date.  Sales volume had a slight increase in October. Inventory levels lower than many neighborhoods.  Prices may continue to rise if inventory levels and mortgage interest rates stay consistent.
Currently … (0 comments)

Mililani, Hawaii - Real Estate Sales Activity for October 2007 - 11/11/07 01:23 AM
                                                                    
This Mililani sales report covers zip code 96789 which covers both the Mililani Area (which includes Mililani Town, Launani Valley) and Mililani Mauka.
The Mililani real estate is still moving strong.  We are still seeing good real estate activity in the Mililani area.  With low interest rates and some selection in the inventory, buyers are still able to buy the home of their dreams, while sellers are beginning to see properties moving again.
A few dynamics in the area:
Castle and Cooke is almost finished with new home construction in Mililani Mauka.We have seen a large number of troops returning to Schofield Barracks … (3 comments)

Village Park - Real Estate Sales Activity for October 2007 - 11/10/07 11:51 PM
Village Park is a community in Waipahu, Hawaii (makes up part of tax map key 194).
Single family home sales volume has dropped from the 2006 level, while average sales prices have seen increases over 2006.
Here are numbers for single family homes in Village Park:
Currently Active for Sale (October 10, 2007): 
24 Single Family HomesCurrently in Escrow (October 10, 2007):
11 Single Family Homes*These numbers were taken from the Honolulu Board of Realtors MLS system and are deemed to be accurate, but not guaranteed.
You can find out more about real estate in Hawaii at: http://www.hawaiirandy.com/
Or at: http://www.localism.com/
… (2 comments)

Waipio Gentry - Real Estate Sales Activity For October 2007 - 11/10/07 11:37 PM
Waipio Gentry Area also includes Crestview and Seaview.
Single Family homes sales have softened. Average sales prices of single family homes have begun to climb again and are up slightly over last year to date.  Sales volume year to date has climbed a little faster.  With mortgage interest rates holding relatively low, we may see a strong finish for the rest of 2007 in the Waipio Gentry Area.
Condo and townhouse sales have seen average sale price climb.  Sales volume has dropped some from the 2006 volume, while average sales prices have shown a modest increase.   
Currently Active for Sale (October 10, 2007):  … (0 comments)

Wahiawa & Whitmore Village - Real Estate Sales Activity for October 2007 - 11/10/07 10:24 PM
Single Family homes sales in Wahiawa/ Whitmore have shown increases. Average sales prices of single family homes are slightly up year to date from 2006 levels.  Sales volume is down a little over 9% year to date.  It appears to be a balanced market for both buyers and sellers.
Condo and townhouse sales in Wahiawa/ Whitmore are another story.  Average sales prices have shown a slight drop of a little over 4% while sales volume is down 18-1/2% year to date from last years numbers.  Buyers are still finding good value.  With interest rates still low we may see strong sales for … (5 comments)

House Flipping & Staging TV - Fact or Fairy Tale - 11/09/07 04:40 PM
While checking my e-mail and getting ready to start the day, I have one of my favorite house flipping shows on the TV.
I am a real estate TV junkie.  I tape several house flipping and home staging shows each week and then play them while I am writing blogs and returning e-mail.  I usually do that late at night or early evening when there isn't much on TV worth watching anyway.
Here is a few of my observations on the different shows.  All but one of the shows seems to make the process appear much easier than in real life.  They leave … (21 comments)

Hawaii BuiltGreen™ Homes - 11/08/07 05:45 PM
Hawaii BuiltGreenTM is a program run by the Building Industry Association of Hawaii. 
The program is designed to feature homes that incorporate:
Water and energy conserving featuresReduced materials & waste consumptionHealthy, durable, environmentally- preferable materials.These homes are designed to reduce the operating costs of the homes while increasing their value.
Some of the Energy Star® features these homes incorporate are:
Spacious outdoor living areas.Wide overhangs to protect walls and windows from the sun.R-11 Insulation in the walls.R-19 insulation at ceiling and/or radient barrier under roof decking.Upgraded windows (U-factor -0.40).Sealed and insulated distribution ducts.In addition to the energy saving features listed above here are some … (17 comments)

“As Is” Does Not Mean the Buyer is Stuck - 11/07/07 07:27 PM
Have you been in escrow, done the home inspection and found major health and safety issues; to then have the seller who did not disclose any of these say it is "AS IS" too bad.
I know in some states "As Is" takes on a little different meaning.  In Hawaii it does not mean the buyer loses any rights during the purchase process.  Our "As Is" Addendum clearly states that. Some agents get confused on this issue.
I was representing a seller about a year or two back where the home had major renovations.  It was beautiful or so we thought.  The home inspector … (22 comments)

Road Closed in Hawaii Because of Snow and Ice - 11/06/07 10:01 PM
For you folks on the mainland you did not read that wrong. 
                         
While driving home yesterday I heard the news report on the radio that roads were closed on the Big Island of Hawaii due to heavy snow and ice.
The report was that they closed the road at the 9200 ft. elevation and were waiting for snow removal equipment to clear the roads.  I knew we get snow on Maui and the Big Island at the tops of the mountains.  I even knew that there is some skiing for a very short season on the Big Island.  I did … (29 comments)

Oahu - Sales of Existing Homes & Condominiums for October 2007 - 11/06/07 07:22 PM
The October 2007 numbers are in.
Single Family Home Sales continue to show a small rebound in volume and another modest increase in median price in October.  From this time last year the median price has shown a modest increase.
Condominium Sales had a slight increase in volume over the previous month while the median price saw a small drop from the previous month. 
With interest rates remaining low,  both buyers and sellers continue to advantage of the market conditions in most areas.
*These numbers were taken from the Honolulu Board of Realtors MLS system and Old Republic Title they are deemed … (0 comments)

Bringing Out the Worst in Some - 11/04/07 10:22 PM
The topic of professionalism seems to bring out the worst in some folks.
It is amazing to read comments from a few defending bad behavior or a lack of professionalism in blog posts.  If you want to start an argument on your blog post all I have to do is suggest we increase standards or require higher ethics.  God forbid we suggest the public needs stronger protections.
Writing about the lending industry's needs for improvements is considered by some to be blasphemy.  In the past I have deleted a few comments left in my posts because they were either over the top or … (24 comments)

My 1st Anniversary on Active Rain - 11/04/07 06:46 PM
                                                                                         
I looked at my Active Rain account and saw that tomorrow will be my one year anniversary on Active Rain.  It seemed longer than that, considering this will be my 361st blog post.  That is nearly one a day.
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Looking a back I was pondering how my time on Active Rain and blogging has impacted my business and my life.
First and foremost I have made many new friends from all over the country.  So many top professionals have graciously shared their experience and knowledge with me.  I have learned even more than I ever imagined.  I have gotten many great ideas … (39 comments)

Hawaii Superferry May be Sailing Very Soon - 11/02/07 04:53 PM
The ship the Alakai is here tied up in Honolulu Harbor.  The docks have had upgrades in the three ports it will be servicing in Honolulu, Kauai and Maui.  Everything is ready except one thing; a law to allow them to sail.  There will be more on that in a minute.
                                
 The Hawaii Superferry began taking reservations this summer.  They were drug into court and an environmental group got the court to stop them from sailing until an environmental assessment was completed.  The problem was the state had previously determined they did not need one, so one was not done.
The Hawaii … (18 comments)

Halloween Waikiki Style - 11/02/07 04:29 PM
Two evenings ago (Halloween evening), I was in Honolulu and trapped in traffic.  Where did all these people come from?  I felt like I was in Manhattan or downtown Chicago during rush hour.  Intersections were grid locked.  It took me 2 hours to go a reasonably short distance. 
                 
I had appointments in town and then was going to catch a quick dinner with a good friend to avoid the rush hour traffic home.
When I finally met up with my friend for dinner he suggested we try to go to Waikiki and watch the Halloween crazies.  So after fighting our … (2 comments)

 
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Randy L. Prothero - Hawaii REALTOR® (808) 384-5645

Island Style Realty Inc. - "The Prothero Group"

Mililani, HI

More about me…

Island Style Realty Inc.

Address: 94-539 Puahi St., #B, Waipahu, HI, 96797

Office Phone: (808) 671-2225

Cell Phone: (808) 384-5645

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