The beginning of April means our peak visitor season is wrapping up. It is also time to bid farewell to the bulk of the Humpback Whales that winter in the waters off our coastline. The end of another month also means another opportunity to take a look at how the Maui Real Estate market is performing. This sneak peek at the March Maui Real Estate Statistics includes information on sales volume, median pricing, pending sales, notable numbers and a few thoughts on the stats and the state of the market for buyers and sellers. Without further ado, here are the March numbers.
March Real Estate Sales Volumes and Median Prices
By my count, there were 83 homes sold in March 2015 at a median price of $625,000. There were 70 homes sold in March of 2014 with a median price of $590,500. That calculates to a 19% increase in sales volume and a 5% increase in median price.
I counted 122 condos sold in March 2015 at a median price of $442,500. By comparison, there were 127 sold with a median price of $420,000 in March of last year. That is a 4% decrease in volume and a 5% increase in median price.
I counted 14 lots sold in Maui county during March with a median sales price of $528,500. That is the exact same number of sales as March 2014 when there were 14 land transactions with a median price of $507,500. That calculates to a 4% increase in median when comparing this March to last March.
Other Notable March Maui Real Estate Sales Numbers
While compiling the sales volumes and median prices, I came across a few other numbers that were worth sharing from the March Maui Real Estate sales activity.
- The highest priced home sale on Maui in March was $14,500,000 for a beachfront home in Kihei. The 5,682 square foot home is located on a half acre lot directly on Keawakapu Beach.
- This was one of five home sales over $2,000,000 for the month. In addition to the Keawakapu home, there were sales in Kapalua, Spreckelsville, Olinda and one additional sale in Kihei.
- The highest priced condo transaction last month was a 3 bedroom, 3.5 bath unit at Montage Kapalua Bay which sold for $3,995,000.
- It was a busy month of sales for luxury condos on Maui with 13 closes over $1,500,000. There was one additional close at Montage, 4 sales at Honua Kai, 2 at Ka’anapali Ali’i, 2 at Wailea Point, a Wailea Elua, a Na Hale O Makena and a Masters.
- The highest priced land sale last month was $1,250,000 for a 5.12 acre lot in Launiupoko.
- There were 12 bank owned sales that closed in March as compared to 4 bank owned sales last March. There were 4 short sales that closed in March compared to 12 successful short sales last March.
Some Quick Thoughts on the March Stats
March saw a resurgence in home sales activity with sales outpacing both last month and the same period last year. The strength of the market varies by price range with homes below and close to the median sales price seeing the greatest amount of demand and activity. While Luxury home sales improved last month, we are still behind the pace of sales for 2014. This is an interesting market segment as there is a lot of inventory providing abundant selection for buyers. That said, it isn’t a true buyer’s market in the sense that there aren’t a lot of really motivated sellers. The majority of home owners in the higher price ranges tend to have additional staying power that thus far has enabled them to hold out for higher prices.
Condo sales activity dipped below the levels that we saw during March of 2014. Overall sales volume is being impacted by a soft middle of the market specifically in the vacation rental condo market. I would surmise that some of the dip stems from a lack of activity among Canadian buyers. The weakened Canadian Currency has put a good number of potential Canadian buyers on the sidelines. You could also argue that some of the decreased activity in the middle of the condo market may be due to inflated asking prices. With demand down, it is surprising to see how many condos are priced well above recent comparable sales. That said, this is another area of the market where seller motivation appears to be lacking. There are quite a few sellers with enough means and sufficient rental revenue to enable them to hold out for higher pricing. The lower price points of the market continue to see pretty healthy demand. The high end of the market condo market was particularly strong last month with 15 sales over $1,500,000. There is a good selection of high end condos on the market and buyers appear to be taking advantage of the quality available.
The land market continues to chug along at about the same clip as what we were seeing in 2014. Limited financing options and a lack of inventory at lower price points have been the biggest constraints to increased sales activity.
March Maui Pending Sales
Sales are always a lagging indicator of current demand. With that in mind, we started tracking pending sales in our monthly statistics posts. Here is a comparison on what we were seeing going under contract in March of 2015 compared to March of 2014.
It appears as if March was a pretty strong month for buyer demand for all but land, as both home and condo pendings outpaced what we saw in March of 2014. It is good to see the last full month of buyer’s season end on a good note. It will be interesting to see if the market sustains itself as we transition out of peak buyer’s season later in April.
What Does it Mean for Buyers and Sellers?
Maui market conditions have not seen any significant changes throughout our peak winter sales season. Buyers will find that market conditions vary pretty widely based on price point and geography. The greatest competition among buyers is occurring at or below the median sales price for each community. That said, buyers shopping at higher price points may find that well priced properties can go quickly at almost any price point. It all depends in part on demand within the specific community. As a result, buyers should prepare themselves so they can act quickly when the right opportunity comes along. We strongly advise buyers who will need financing assistance to get pre-approved prior to their search. Prospective Sellers should consult with a Realtor to better understand market conditions specific to their neighborhood and community. While some parts of the market are strong, other parts still have a glut of inventory. Sellers who want to sell quickly should take a strong look at depth of inventory and recent sales prices when developing their go to market pricing. Contact The Maui Real Estate Team if you have questions about buying or selling property on Maui. We would welcome the opportunity to sit down with you to learn more about your real estate needs.
