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Price Reduced! Hana Home for Sale

We just had a nice price reduction on our listing out in Hana. This three bed, two bath cedar pole home is situated on 5.39 acres of beautiful rolling lawns, towering coconut palms, fruit trees and tropical flowers. Property amenities and features include Brazilian Cherry hardwood floors throughout, koa wood cabinetry, a generous master bath with a sunken Jacuzzi tub, and an open kitchen featuring stainless steel appliances and two stoves. Sliding glass doors open into nearly every room bringing in plenty of light. They also provide expansive vistas of the surrounding tropical grounds. There are great views of Haleakala from the property and ocean views are available with a little thinning of some of the trees on the property.

Beautiful home for sale in Hana, Maui

views from the wrap around porch of a beautiful home for sale in Hana, Maui

Living room area of a Hana Home for Sale

Smell the fresh air, see the natural beauty all around, walk the grounds or pick some fruit from the trees in the yard. This Hana home is a gateway to a simpler, more relaxed lifestyle. The Hana property is now offered for $780,000. Check out the Hana Home for Sale Listing Page for more photos and information. Contact The Maui Real Estate Team to arrange a showing.

By » 2/8/2012 » in

Sugar Cove, Spreckelsville Time Lapse Video

A week or so back, I set up a tripod with my iPhone and took a time lapse video of Sugar Cove in Spreckelsville. It was just around sunset and there were a few people on the beach playing with their dogs and enjoying the afternoon surf.

I hope you enjoyed another beautiful video from Maui! If you are interested in a spacious, luxury condo on the Beach at Sugar Cove, check out listing Sugar Cove Unit 2C. Contact The Maui Real Estate Team for more information or to arrange a showing.

By » 2/7/2012 » in

Unofficial January 2012 Maui Real Estate Statistics

It is hard to believe we are already into the month of February. January was another beautiful month on Maui with spectacular weather, some fun events like TEDxMaui, an abundance of whales offshore and big waves. The end of the month means that it is once again time for The Maui Real Estate Team’s unofficial Maui Real Estate Statistics. See below for more information on last month’s sales volumes and price medians for Maui County.

Table comparing Maui Real Estate sales volumes between January 2011 and January 2012

Maui Real Estate Sales Volumes

Chart Comparing Maui Real Estate Sales Volumes for January 2011 and January 2012

Comparison of Maui Real Estate Sales Volumes for January 2011 and January 2012

Thus far, Maui Realtors have reported 49 homes sold at a median price of $408,000. By comparison, there were 54 homes sold in January 2011 with a median price of $495,414. That is a 9% reduction in sales volume and an 18% reduction in median price when comparing January 2012 to January 2011.

I counted 88 condos sold in January 2012 with a median sales price of $339,500. Comparatively, there 87 condos sold in January 2011 at a median price of $295,000. This calculates to a 1% increase in volume and a 15% increase in median price when comparing January 2011 to January 2012.

The land sales total for January 2012 was 8 closes at a median price of $330,000. There were 9 lots sold at a median price $300,000 in January 2011.

The Maui Real Estate Market continues to be impacted by short sales and bank owned properties (REOs). There were a total of 48 bank owned closes and completed short sales last month. Of the 49 homes sold, 18 were REOs or Short sales. That is approximately 37% of the sales volume. By comparison, 47% of last January’s home sales were REOs or shorts. Of the 88 condos sold last month, there were 27 sales that were either REOs or Short Sales. That is roughly 31% of the transaction volume. Last January, 37% of the condo sales were REOs or short sales. There were 3 REO sales among the 8 land sales last month. Last year, 2 out of 9 closes were REOs and shorts.

Looking at the numbers above, I didn’t see anything too earth shattering. While down a touch from last year overall, the numbers comparing this January and last January were fairly similar. If there was one thing that caught my eye it was the distressed property market. Bank owned transactions were down and short sale transactions were up a little. I am wondering if we may be seeing some side effects of ACT 48 on the market. ACT 48 is a new law related to foreclosures that was passed in May if 2011. The law passed by the Hawaii legislature was intended to encourage banks to mediate with owner occupants facing non-judicial foreclosure. The law hasn’t been all that successful in getting banks to engage in the mediation process. Instead, many banks have been putting homes in the judicial foreclosure process. This is a much lengthier process. Banks have also been more proactive in processing short sales. The end result has been fewer homes foreclosed upon over the last 7-8 months. There was a backlog of bank owned homes waiting to go to market, but it is tough to say how deep that pool might be. The bank owned sales and bank owned new inventory will be interesting to follow over the coming months.

Overall, market conditions have not changed drastically and my advice to buyers and sellers remains the same. Buyers will find that this is a good time to look as there are some well priced opportunities. That being said, the best opportunities are attracting strong interest. Buyers should be prepared to act quickly and with strong offers when pursuing the best opportunities. Patience may be needed as inventory is starting to thin in some segments of the market. Buyers requiring financing should be pre-approved prior to submitting offers and better yet prior to looking at properties. It is best to get a good handle on your budget in advance. Sellers in this market will need to keep their pencils sharp. Those who want to sell quickly should look closely at recent comparable sales and price at/or below those numbers. Sellers fishing for high prices may be best advised to stay on the sidelines. Contact The Maui Real Estate Team if you have questions on the January stats or need assistance buying or selling Maui Real Estate.


By » 2/5/2012 » in

Jaws Swell Sends January Out With A Bang

The last two days of the month brought some very large surf to the North Shore of Maui. The swell started to rise significantly late in the morning of the 30th and continued to build throughout the day to heights well in excess of the 25 feet necessary for a high surf warning. This big surf meant Maui’s world famous big wave break came to life. I had the opportunity to head out to Haiku to watch the action at Jaws both on the late afternoon of the 30th and the morning of the 31st.

Each day had its own distinct personality. The afternoon of the 30th was a building swell with particularly big and hollow barrels. I arrived just as the wind was dying and was able to see the very tail end of the windsurfing action. The windsurfers were interspersed with a handful of tow surfers (surfers being pulled into the waves by Jet Skis). After the windsurfers packed up, it was just the tow surfers left in the lineup. I was able to watch Maui Real Estate Team Agent Martin Lenny’s son Kai catch a couple on his windsurfer before towing into a few nice waves. The beautiful late afternoon light was a striking contrast with the menacing looking surf. Here is a quick video showing some of the waves from Monday afternoon.

The surf peaked in size overnight and then started to come down on the morning on the 31st. While the surf was smaller, it was still substantial by the standards of mortal surfers. The composition of the wave riders had also changed. With lighter winds, the line up was dominated by surfers paddling into the waves with their own two hands. There was also one tow team surfing the left and legendary waterman Robbie Naish was out on a stand up paddle board. Here is some video I captured from yesterday morning.

I always enjoy the opportunity to head down the bumpy, old, dirt roads that lead you to the cliffs above Jaws. This wave is a sensory experience and a true spectacle of nature. While I can’t bring you the full sounds of the roaring surf or the smell of the salty mist generated by the waves, I hope these videos give you at least a taste of the visual feast that Jaws offers.


By » 2/1/2012 » in

2011 Paia Real Estate Statistics

It is almost February, but I still wanted to take a look back at how some of the individual communities on Maui performed in 2011. I thought no better place to start than our own back yard, the Paia Real Estate market. The Paia market ranges from modest entry level homes to beautiful oceanfront estates. We saw activity in all segments of the market in 2011. I have included the sales numbers below as well as a few thoughts on the market.

Comparison of 2011 and 2010 Paia Home Sales Volume

There were 26 homes sold in Paia during 2011 at a median price of $597,000. That compares to 23 homes sold in Paia during 2010 at a median price of $590,000**. That translates to a 13% increase in volume and a 1% increase in median.

Of the 26 homes sold, four were short sales and five were bank owned properties. That equates to roughly 35% of the total sales. By comparison, there was one bank owned property and three short sales in Paia during 2010. That translates to roughly 17% of the sales for the year. By simple math, there was just over double the activity in the bank owned and short sale market in 2011 when comparing the two years.

Here are a few other notes about the Paia area 2011 real estate sales. The Paia stats includes the high end Spreckelsville neighborhood. There were seven homes sold in Spreckelsville in 2011. That compares to three sales in Spreckelsville in 2010. That is a 133% increase in activity for the Spreckelsville Real Estate market.

There were a total of four oceanfront sales in the Paia area in 2011. Two of the oceanfront sales were in Spreckelsville and two were in the Kuau area. That compares to two sales in 2010. That is a 100% increase in sales activity along the beach and oceanfront in the Paia area.

In 2011, the Paia real estate market saw the highest ever sale along Maui’s North Shore. A beautiful oceanfront estate in Spreckelsville with an acre of land and two homes sold for $9,650,000. On the other end of the spectrum, there was a 500 square foot residential condo in Kuau that sold as a short sale for $168,000. That was the lowest priced sale we have seen in Paia going all the way back to 1999.

Overall, the numbers show that the Paia Real Estate market saw improvements over 2010. The 13% increase in home sales was a little better than the 10% increase for home sales throughout Maui County. The increase in median offers little for determining changes in values. The small sample size plays a factor. The increased activity on the high end of the market is also providing an upwards pull on the median. I would expect to see a similar performance for the Paia Real Estate Market in 2012 barring any big changes in the overall economic picture. If you are interested in purchasing a home in Maui’s quirky North Shore Beach town, you can browse the current inventory of Paia Real Estate listings on MauiRealEstate.com. You may also contact The Maui Real Estate Team directly for additional assistance buying or selling Paia property.

**2010 figures include two sales that were not reported on the Maui MLS that did not involve Realtors.

By » 1/29/2012 » in

Hawaiian Islands Land Trust Buy Back The Beach Benefit Luau

The Hawaiian Islands Land Trust is an organization that was created out of four separate conservation organizations in Hawaii. In January 2011, The Kauai Public Land Trust, Oahu Land Trust, Hawaii Island Land Trust and Maui Coastal Land Trust merged into a statewide conservation organization. The goal of the trust is to preserve and protect the natural and cultural treasures of the Hawaiian Islands. On Maui, they have preserved tracts of land from Waihee, to Spreckelsville, to Kipahulu, to Ulupalakua to Kapalua. The Maui Coastal Land Trust has used the Luau as their big annual fundraiser for ten years. They are continuing the tradition into its 11th year under the new Hawaii Islands Land Trust. This year’s Buy Back The Beach Luau is scheduled for Saturday Night, January 28th.

Hawaiian Islands Land Trust Buy Back the Beach Benefit Luau at Old Lahaina Luau January 28, 2012

As always, the Buy Back The Beach Luau promises to be a great event. Mistresses of Ceremony Joni DeMello and Liz Morales of Ahumanu will guide attendees through a celebration of the bounty of Hawai‘i culminating in a private concert by HAPA. Luau food will be provided via Old Lahaina Luau, Aloha Mixed Plate, Star Noodle and Leoda’s Kitchen. In addition to the entertainment, there are a number of impressive auction items available including an Afternoon with U.S. Poet Laureate William S Merwin, A Hike in The Cloud Forest of Waikamoi, A visit to the Haleakala Observatory, and a five night/six day stay in Napa Valley.

The fun starts tomorrow at 5:00 PM. Tickets for the event are $150. They may still be purchased online or via phone at (808) 244-5263. This is a great opportunity to enjoy good food, good music and help preserve our beautiful Maui Landscape.


By » 1/27/2012 » in

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