Luxury Homes in Hawaii are available at a discount! There are lots to choose from, and there are great buys for gorgeous homes on the island of Oahu in the $1.9 million and up price range. Neighbor Island  prices on Maui, Kauai, and the Big Island have eroded more than in bustling Oahu.

          You get more for your money in the higher price ranges, with these more expensive homes averaging 4279 sq ft (based on MLS sales of Oahu homes in 2010 that sold over $1.9 million), so they actually sell for significantly less per square foot.  

If you have the cash or can qualify for a Jumbo loan, you are in luck.    Now more than ever, it’s important to  find a motivated seller. Many luxury homes on the market are owned by sellers who don™t have to sell, with deep pockets and unrealistic expectations. Couple this with luxury home buyers who are coming from areas of the country where home prices have seriously eroded – not the case with Oahu. Many buyers are unprepared for our higher prices, and are looking for big price cuts that just don™t exist here in the fairly stable market with a perinniel shortage of prime land.  Stalemates are common and successful negotiations are hard-won, so experience and skill is needed to put it together. An experienced professional and Certified Luxury Home Marketing Specialist (CLHMS) is a good choice.

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Know anyone who ever wanted to own a Hawaii property? Now may be the time to consider jumping back into the market. On Oahu, investors from the U.S. mainland as well as foreign countries are feeling enough confidence to start buying. Waikiki condos, for examples, are obvious choices,  with  cash flow  much improved over  the last several years.  It’s now possible to find a studio apartment with kitchenette for  around $150,000 – $175,000, with rental ranges in the $1100 to $1300 range.

While caution is wise in making investment choices, investors who wait too long always miss the boat. The  average person  who follows the  real estate trends by reading newspaper headlines will be behind the curve.

You can browse properties on my web site at http://www.hawaiihomehelp.com.

When is the right time to buy a home – when  things have been slow for a long time,  others are holding back, and the economy is lagging,   – like right now? Or is it when buyers are scrambling to be the first at the Open House, rushing to make offers, and bidding prices up, such as we experienced in 2007?

A herd mentality has been infecting buyers, and the media has fed on the fear. “Foreclosures Up 28%” and “Sales Plummet 40%” which has created a lot of misunderstandings and confusion. Hawaii foreclosures are still among the lowest in the nation, and sales volume not price has dropped dramatically. But  Oahu values, for example,  have proved to be very resilient, with most areas experiencing a moderate 6-10% drop from the inflated high point.

When buyers wait for everyone else to start grabbing property once again, they will  miss out on the opportunities that exist right now for the bold and the brave.    Now is the time to buy Hawaii homes, investments, vacation properties, beach houses, or whatever you can. There are great buys right now in Waikiki, Ko Olina, the North Shore, and everything in between.

Now may be the time to buy a Hawaii property for a song “ or is it? Many investors are circling around, waiting to see what   opportunities the 2009 market will bring. Smart money is grabbing deals right now. What happened?

Prices had been so high for so long, it seemed normal after 5 or 6 years. Multiple offers, million dollar shacks, and low inventory were signs of the times.Then in 2005, median prices leveled off and started sliding a bit “ more in some areas, less in areas. As of January 2009, here™s what the Oahu statistics show: Median prices at $539,500 for houses, which is a drop of 10% compared to January 2008. Condos were down about 6% from a year ago, with a median of $324,000.   Maui and the other neighbor islands dropped even more.

But this is just a part of the story “ the number of homes sold went  down almost 50%.Island-wide, only 122 houses sold in January 09 compared to 228 in 2008. Folks who really need to sell now have to prepare for serious compromises in order to get the attention of buyers. It remains to be seen whether the sale numbers perk up with an easing of mortgage money and buyers wanting to take advantage of the Federal and State tax credit programs.

If you are waiting to find a bargain Hawaii house or a cut-rate Oahu condo, there are more choices now than ever before. Will waiting until later in the  year bring even lower prices? That™s anyone™s guess, but you can be sure that by the time things turn around, it will be too late to grab the best deals. The prize will go the bold and the brave, willing to trade a bit of calculated risk   for the chance at  future rewards.

It™s January, and you are in a hammock stretched between two palm trees, book in lap. It™s not a dream; it™s your life on the beach in Hawaii. The big questions are: Can you afford to live on the ocean, and if so, is it right for you? And where are the best oceanfront locations?

Beach or Marina? House or Condo?
Oceanfront properties on the island of Oahu vary greatly and tend to be somewhat eclectic. Most are in suburban or rural settings, not tourist spots. Clearly, these are the ultimate luxury homes for those who can live wherever they choose. If you have vision and means to achieve this, you will want to make your property very personal. You may select a high rise condo or a townhome, but most properties are freestanding single-family homes. It could be on a sandy beach, a marina with boat docks, or a rocky cliff – the ocean is your backyard.

What Oceanfront Costs
Single family homes on the ocean start at about $600,000 for less desirable waterfront locations, but the median price for homes currently on the market is about $3,000,000.   Twenty-eight oceanfront houses sold in the past six months, with the median sale price at $2,000,000. Prices have remained stable for the most part, but a lower number of sales are taking place. This means that motivated sellers will need to offer attractive prices based on past sales, not pie-in-the-sky hopes. There is a smaller pool of buyers so negotiating opportunities exist. Beach houses can be found in these areas, starting with the areas that are generally most expensive: Diamond Head, Kahala, Kailua, Waialae to Hawaii Kai, Waimanalo, North Shore, Windward Coast, Makaha, Ewa Beach.

Now is the Time. Will there ever be a better or more affordable time to seize your destiny? Oceanfront property is a rare and priceless treasure to enjoy and experience for a few years or a lifetime. Are you one of the fortunate few who will choose to live the dream? For more details on Hawaii homes on the ocean, just email me at mailto:stephanieg@remax.net.

The latest report measuring market conditions in the Honolulu area has just been released as of Dec. 14, 2008. According to the Institute for Luxury Home Marketing (ILHM), œbuyers market conditions prevail around the nation. As expected, Honolulu shows more stability than the country as a whole. The Market Action Index (MAI) has risen, which indicates that the supply and demand are slightly balanced towards sellers, making Honolulu one of just four other metro areas that are still bucking the downward trend. Boston, Orlando, Salt Lake City, and San Francisco are also in this elite group.

Still, some indexes show a less than strong market. The days on market has gone from 80 to 120 since July. Lower sales numbers means that statistics can be skewed “ for this reason it is crucial for Realtors to be familiar with the properties themselves.

Honolulu real estate prices in the luxury category were also analyzed by the Institute. These statistics show a slight price decline from a high of $1.22 million to the current $1.12 million, and stabilizing. This includes the island of Oahu, with neighborhoods featuring oceanfront estates, beach homes, gated communities, ocean view homes, and luxury condos.

Stephanie is a Certified Luxury Home Marketing Specialist and a member of the Million Dollar Guild.

 *90 day rolling average price for homes identified by the LHMI as being among the 10 highest-priced zip codes.

We are in a vastly different real estate market this fall. The financial shakedown has hitHawaii. Oahu home prices are in a cyclical downturn in all areas, yet the facts are not asdrastic as elsewhere.  Sale Prices: Year-to-date sale prices as of October 1, 2008 have decreased 3.5% forsingle family homes (to $624,000) and show 0% change for condos ($325,000),compared to one year ago. A closer look at the details shows that September prices- whenexamined alone- were significantly lower than a year ago for houses (down 9%) and condos(down 11.6%).  Number of Sales: Total house sale numbers are down 26% and condo sales down 27%.Homes take longer to sell, but as always, the best-looking and best-priced ones sell.  Weird Facts: Honolulu metro house prices are statistically up 3.5% and Downtown-Nuuanucondo prices up 17.9%. This is likely to be a statistical fluke due to more luxury propertiesselling. Because of the lower number of sales, the data may be skewed depending on whatsold. Most neighborhoods have less than 20 sales per month!

Cost vs. Value Study: A detailed report is published annually by Hanley Wood for each region of the country, for the construction and real estate industries. This compiles some 30 projects and gives you the predicted return on selling for that item. The  latest report shows that in the Pacific region, the best return on your investment is likely to be the following items:

100% or More Returned:
Deck addition
Minor kitchen remodel
Window replacement
Siding replacement
Bathroom remodel
Basement remodel
Major kitchen remodel

95% of Cost Returned:
Attic bedroom remodel
Bathroom remodel
Basement remodel
Major kitchen remodel

Many people have strong opinions about the power of the supernatural which are crucial when they select a home.   Beliefs about death does affect a buyer™s comfort in a home, so they or their Realtors should make specific inquiries above and beyond the narrower obligations in the state law, which varies from state to state.  

Consider those areas  of the country  where homes are over 100 years old “ most homes would have this stigma.   Owners of older homes may have no idea of this sort of past history. Concerned buyers may need to bring in their own advisors during their home inspection contingency, which could include a trusted spiritual advisors, exorcist,    Ghostbuster!