It’s hard to believe it is October and we are into the last quarter of the 2013. This is typically the quiet season for the Maui Real Estate market as this is also one of the quietest times of year for vacationers. That appears to be the case this year as we have seen the number of pending properties gradually decreasing in number since Labor Day. There are different dynamics than last fall when we saw a shift in buyer sentiment and some of the busiest months of 2012 for properties going under contract. I may be a little bit ahead of myself talking about current buyer activity. Typically when we are looking at sales data, it is more a reflection of buyer demand over the previous couple of months. With a typical transaction time of anywhere between 30-60 days, the September sales are a reflection of demand from back during the summer months. Based on the numbers, it is safe to say that this summer there was strong real estate activity. Here are the numbers that I compiled for September of 2013 in Maui County. I will also give a few thoughts on the state of the market via a brief video commentary.
Thus far, there have been 85 home sales reported during the month of September with a median sales price of $470,000. During September of 2012, there were 77 sales with a median sales price of $425,000. That calculates to a 10% increase in sales volume and an 11% increase in median when comparing this September to last September.
I counted 114 condo sales reported by Maui Realtors for the month of September. The median sales price for those transactions was $350,000. That compares to only 67 sales last year with a median price of $325,000. That calculates to an impressive 70% increase in sales activity and an 8% increase in median when comparing the two Septembers.
I counted 15 land sales last month with a median sales price of $350,000. By comparison, there were 11 land sales last September with a median price of $238,000. That is a 36% increase in volume and a 47% increase in median price when comparing September of 2013 and September of 2012.
In addition to the median prices and sales volumes, there were a few other numbers that I came across from the September Maui Real Estate Sales that I thought were worth passing along this month.
- The highest sale for a single family home was $1,940,000 for a residential condo in the Launiupoko Subdivision just south of Lahaina. This has been a community that has shown strong luxury home and land sales activity over the last 18 months.
- This high sale was somewhat unusual for two reasons. It was below $2,000,000 and it was a short sale.
- The high condo sale for September was $3,469,600 for a luxurious Three bedroom at Honua Kai.
- There were a total of eight condo sales over $1,500,000 as the luxury condo market continues a strong year.
- Five of the eight luxury condo closes were at Honua Kai. For the last year, buyers have been snatching up condos under $1,000,000 at Honua Kai. We are starting to see an increase in activity in the $1,000,000 plus range at this popular West Maui Resort.
- There were a total of eleven REO or bank owned properties that closed in September. REO activity remains low compared to what we were seeing a couple of years ago.
- There were 24 short sales that were successfully completed last month. Short sale closes have remained a little more steady.
Here are a few thoughts on the stats, a little bit of context on the significance of the numbers and my guess as to what we may see in the coming months.
Contact The Maui Real Estate Team with any questions or comments on this month’s statistics. You are also welcome of course to leave a comment below. If you are considering buying or selling a property on Maui, we would welcome the opportunity to sit down and discuss your real estate needs.
