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Views regarding the Honolulu real estate market & values. Focusing on Nuuanu, Pauoa Valley, Pacific Heights, Alewa, Puunui, Liliha, Manoa, Moiliili, Dowsett, Kapahulu, Kaimuki, Kahala, Waialae, Hawaii Loa, Niu, Aina Haina, Hawaii Kai & Kuliouou. Rants &
Recent Posts Tagged With 'honolulu real estate 101'
Economic Seers See Honolulu Bottom
This morning, I attended a breakfast sponsored by the Honolulu Chapter of the NAIOP (The National Association of Industrial and Office Properties) the speakers were two of Hawaii’s preeminent economists Byron Ganges and Paul Brewbaker. I found th...
Is Roost To Nesting In Honolulu Real Estate?
Pacific Business News is reporting that Roost.com, a new real estate search engine, is launching its service in Honolulu. I was excited to see what Roost is bringing to the game and went to play with their site. Guess what? I couldn’t find Ho...
Guru Calls Bottom In Honolulu Real Estate
The Honolulu Star Bulletin is reporting that Paul Brewbaker, former Bank of Hawaii chief economist, has called a bottom in “Oahu’s Housing Market”. Over the years I have learned to trust Paul’s opinions, because he has predicted so many oth...
Interest Rates Hit All-Time Low!
The Chicago Tribune is reporting that mortgage interest rates have hit an all-time low. “The average interest rate for a 30-year mortgage dropped to a record low of 4.71 percent this week, pushed down by an aggressive government campaign to reduce ...
More Analysis Of The Honolulu Real Estate Stats
I haven’t seen anything posted by the Honolulu Advertiser or Honolulu Star Bulletin regarding the recently released November Honolulu Board of Realtors statistical report, however, it is going to be fun to read how they spin the information. From...
Honolulu Home Inventory Down To 2005 Levels!
I just did a quick review of the latest Honolulu Board of Realtors statistical report (it was released at 7:45 tonight) and I was surprised to see a drop in available single-family home listings to 1,199. Let me put this in context, we started the ...
Taking Advantage Of December In Honolulu Real Estate
Many Honolulu Realtors, sellers and buyers take most or part of the month of December off from actively working in the real estate market. I have always thought that this is a mistake. December can be a very good month for both buyers and sellers...
Heartland Connected To Honolulu Real Estate
The Chicago Tribune is reporting a significant increase in Chicago area home sales. “It was the best October for sales since 2006, when monthly sales topped 9,000 homes in the Chicago area, and gives credence to the theory that the $8,000 first-tim...
Kailua Home Remodel Goes Green
The Honolulu Advertiser had a really good article on a home remodeled in Kailua that was done in a very green manner. “New building materials help the finished home protect the interior from the sun’s baking rays: The plywood in the roof is b...
Crime Way Down In The Aloha State
Until I read a recent article in the Honolulu Star Bulletin, I would have told you that crime in Honolulu is higher than it used to be (not that it was bad). This may be because murder, mayhem, child abduction and their ilk are splashed across head...
What’s Wrong With This Picture?
The Honolulu Advertiser headline reads, “Foreclosure in Isles 10th worst in nation” and its first paragraph articulates the following. “Slightly fewer home foreclosure cases in Hawai’i were begun in the third quarter compared with the sec...
Stabilizing Neighbor Islands Will Help Honolulu Real Estate
The Maui News reported that their tourism market would stabilize in 2010. As I have said in the past, it is my perception that the neighbor island real estate and tourism markets have been hit much harder than Oahu’s. However, the outer islands...
Honolulu Best Place To Raise Kids
I could have told you this, but BusinessWeek did the work to confirm it (as reported in Pacific Business News). “BusinessWeek picked one town and two runners-up for each of the 50 states. To compile the list, BusinessWeek used towns that have at le...
10 Good Questions & Answers About The Real Estate Market
Sometimes an article about real estate comes out and it is good just the way it is. Today’s Wall Street Journal had an excellent article in a question and answer format. Much of it applies to Honolulu real estate and it is well worth the read! ...
Is Real Estate Driving Down The Road Of The Car Business?
Because I am a Honolulu Realtor, I am happy about the extension of the tax credits for purchasing a Honolulu home as your personal residence. As a citizen of the United States, I am concerned that we could be sending part of the house sale and purcha...
Key Information On Homeowners Assistance Program (HAP)
For members of the U.S. military who are transferring from Oahu to their next PCS the Federal Governments Homeowners Assistance Program may be a good way to help minimize your loss on real estate you may have purchased. Here are two links that may ...
Honolulu Newspaper Death Spiral Accelerates!
Hawaii’s largest daily newspaper, The Honolulu Advertiser, just experienced a year on year subscriber loss of 14%. If something isn’t done soon (I am not advocating that the paper be saved), I would not be surprised to see the printed newspaper g...
Waiawa Cancellation Has Losers and Winners
Gentry Development, Alexander and Baldwin and Kamehameha Schools Bishop Estate (KSBE) have just pulled the plug on developing 12,000 housing units in Waiawa (West Oahu). “Local developer Gentry Cos. lost its rights to develop Waiawa Ridge, ending t...
Tourism Cycle Impacts Honolulu Real Estate
The Honolulu Advertiser is reporting that hotel occupancy rates have improved. “After 18 consecutive months of declines in the numbers of visitors staying in Hawaii hotels, September brought a small gain in hotel occupancy — up 1.6 percentage poi...
Should You Sell At A Loss Or Hang On?
Even though the end of this Wall Street Journal post ends up recommending a solution that does not involve a real estate broker, it is an interesting read....
Digerati Bell Weather May Ring In A Good Future For Honolulu
Little Atherton California’s housing market may be a precursor for good things in the Honolulu housing market. A recent Wall Street Journal article points out that the Atherton housing market has been a bit slow over the last few years, but recen...
Some Honolulu Homes Selling…Very Fast!
As a Honolulu Realtor, I am always looking for the right home for the clients that I am working for. In the last week, I saw two Honolulu homes come on the market that might meet the needs of two of my buyers. It is amazing to note that both sold...
Economist Predicts Hawaii Recovery In 2011
Paul Brewbaker is one of my favorite economists. Since following him beginning in 1991, I have found him to make insightful predictions, many of which I disagree with at first. Paul is quoted in the Pacific Business News as forecasting a turn in ...
Good Time To Add Value To Your Honolulu House Or Condo
Today’s Wall Street Journal on-line had an article that reminded me that now may be a great time to remodel your Honolulu house or condo. Think about this, if the work you would like to do would have cost $100,000 in 2005, if the WSJ is right, yo...
Lessons From 911 Apply To Honolulu Real Estate
With Trulia, Zillow and other sources for real estate information, I am reminded of the problems created by technology in the pre-911 world. Prior to World Trade Center being hit, the USA’s intelligence community had been relying on our technolog...
Chinese Airline Clearance Good For Honolulu Real Estate
The Honolulu Advertiser recently reported that Hainan Airlines was recently approved for weekly flights to Hawaii. “State tourism liaison Marsha Wienert said the first nonstop scheduled service from China to Hawai’i could provide a big boost ...
Did Honolulu Real Estate Get Hit By “Disintermediation”?
Brian Boero, of The 1000 Watt Blog, visited a Realtor fear that was running rampant as the Internet began to gain momentum in the mid-1990’s. I can remember Realtor concerns that the Web was going to make us irrelevant. Essentially, the thought...
National Housing Construction Trends
Here is a good update on national construction trends. “The Commerce Department says construction of new homes and apartments rose 0.5 percent in September to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 590,000 units. That was a weaker showing than the 61...
7 Things To Consider Before You Buy Your Honolulu Home
As a Honolulu Realtor, I have generally believed that owning your home or condo is better than renting it. There are too many benefits to home ownership, however, a recent Washington Post article, made me think again. “Don’t get me wrong: B...
Should I Take The Hit Now or Rent My Honolulu Home?
A Forbes on-line article started me thinking about selling a home when it is not worth the value the owner paid for it. The article makes it seem really easy to rent it until the price of the home rises to the point that the home can be sold at a p...
