As the traditional "high season" (Nov.-Apr.) draws to a close, we thought we'd provide some analysis on what has happened along the Maui oceanfront. First, some points of comparison. In each of the the 2005-2006 and 2006-2007 high seasons, eleven Maui oceanfront homes sold or were placed under contract. Oddly enough, in the 2007-2008 high season that number has remained the same. Eleven homes sold or placed under contract. Five of those homes were in South Maui, five were on the West side and one was on the North Shore.

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In this Maui real estate market, sellers often make fundamental mistakes when pricing their property for sale. We are going to address just one here. The most common mistake is to "price for negotiation." In other words an owner will say "I want to clear $1.7 million for my property so I'd better list it at $2 million so I have room to negotiate." That kind of thinking can only lead to frustration and stress. Why?

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We are pleased to announce the sale of Na Hale O Makena unit B-302. This unfurnished Makena home sold for $1.875 million. It is another example of the effectiveness of Tom and Sean’s Leading Edge Marketing System. Is the current market for Maui real estate difficult? Many think so. Our clients have an advantage. For more details, contact us!

While Hawaii has been largely immune from the mortgage market debacle, it has clearly impacted the thinking of mainlanders considering buying Maui real estate. In the NYT Sunday Magazine, Roger Lowenstein writes a good article for the layman to understand how this happened. Below are some key snippets.

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There have been several recent events on Maui which will impact Maui real estate. First Honua'ula, which had received County Council approval has had its approvals challenged in court by a local group claiming the Council did not follow the State's "Sunshine" practices in scheduling meetings and allowing for public testimony. While it is too early to determine the timing impact on Honua'ula, this is not good news for the developer. Second, the Maui County Council is hinting that property tax rates for Maui real estate in the 2008-2009 fiscal year will not change. For more details contact us!

Our friends at Bank of Hawaii were kind enough to invite us to a breakfast with their Chief Economist Paul Brewbaker this morning to discuss his views on the State of Hawaii and Maui’s economy. Here are some snippets:

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The NAR has released its latest research on the attitudes and characteristics of American vacation home buyers. Here are some key insights:

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The NAR has released data for March and the news is not good.

The national median existing-home price (2) for all housing types was $200,700 in March, down 7.7 percent from a year ago when the median was $217,400. Because the slowdown in sales from a year ago is greater in high-cost areas, there is a downward pull to the national median with relatively higher sales activity in low-cost markets…Existing-home sales in the West rose 2.2 percent in March to a level of 940,000 but are 22.3 percent below a year ago. The median price in the West was $285,100, which is 14.7 percent lower than March 2007.

The good news is that national for sale inventory only increased 1% in March. That means nationally we now have 9.9 months of inventory at the current sales pace. So what does this all mean for Maui real estate?

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With the demise of ATA and Aloha Airlines, we get asked frequently what we think the impact will be on Maui real estate. What is happening at the moment to airfares etc? This Honolulu Advertiser article summarizes things.

With Aloha Airlines and ATA ending their passenger service, the remaining flights between here and the Mainland are fuller, with fewer discounted seats…

So what does it mean for Maui real estate?

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While we hear all the time from buyers looking to try to find bargains in troubled situations and they appear to be playing a major role in the market on the mainland, the story for Maui real estate is something different. According to Trulia, here is some information regarding how much impact foreclosed properties for sale are having on some California markets.

• In Palmdale, foreclosures make up 77% of all properties listed for sale;
• In Ontario the percentage is 75%;
• In Van Nuys, 63%;
• In Burbank 48%

In contrast, two very high end markets, Santa Monica and Newport Beach, the rates are 20% and 14% respectively. How do these percentages compare to Maui?

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