August 27, 2010

Ko Olina real estate market

The Ko Olina real estate market, a predominately residential and vacation-oriented sector of the Oahu housing market, continues to face trouble, as home sales declined somewhat. The median sales price for the island market rose somewhat, but the boost was rather small considering the additional factor of the expired federal tax credit. An August 9, 2010 article from the Pacific Business News stated that “July home sales on Oahu were down slightly compared to the same month last year, according to the Honolulu Board of Realtors. A total of 268 single-family homes were sold last month, essentially flat when compared to the 266 homes sold during the same month last year. Condos, by contrast, saw a sizable drop, going from 320 units sold in July after a total of 343 units were sold during the same month last year, according to Realtor data. July’s decline was even greater when compared to June results. July’s totals for single-family home sales were off 8.5 percent, and condo sales were down 21 percent, Realtor data revealed. Sales prices for July were basically flat when compared to last year. The median price for single-family home sales was $605,000, up 1.7 percent from the selling price of $595,000 in July 2009. The median price for condos was $299,000, down 2.7 percent from the median price of $307,250 in July 2009, the board of Realtors reported. Single-family home prices were down 4.3 percent from June’s median price, while condo prices were down less than 1 percent during the same period.”

Much of the same mixed news for Ko Olina homes for sale was reported by Hawaii News Now on August 9, 2010. The article by Howard Dicus noted that “Realtors across Hawaii reported generally strong home sales and prices on deals that closed in July, if not the much-improved market they hoped would be spurred by low mortgage rates. Oahu saw 268 July home sales (up from 266 a year ago) for a median price of $605,000 (up from $595,000) while buyers closed on 320 condo sales (down from 343 a year ago) for a median $299,000 (down from $307,250), the Honolulu Board of Realtors reported Monday.”