Maui has a number of great options for snorkeling around the island. There are a variety of snorkeling spots in Makena like Palauea Beach. There are good places to go along Wailea’s beaches. Honolua Bay up near Kapalua is a fantastic summer snorkeling spot. One of the most popular and well visited snorkel spots is Black Rock at Ka’anapali Beach. The reef around the rock attracts all kinds of sea life. Here is a quick video from a summer snorkeling session.

It is usually a pretty safe bet that you will see sea turtles (honus) and a variety of fish. You may even get to see a Spotted Eagle Ray like the one who swam up to check me out.

Great snorkeling is one of the draws of Ka’anapali area real estate. If you are looking for a place that also offers great beaches, shopping and golf, you can check MauiRealEstate.com for the current inventory of Ka’anapali Condos for Sale. While there is a limited inventory of beachfront homes in Ka’anapali, there are a number of beautiful executive homes within a short drive of the beach offered for sale. Check out the current inventory of Ka’anapali Homes for Sale on MauiRealEstate.com. You may also contact The Maui Real Estate Team for assistance or to discuss the Ka’anapli market.

This is part of my ongoing look at how a handful of Maui community real estate markets performed at the halfway point for 2011. This post looks specifically at Ka’anapali Resort. Included are statistics on sales volumes, medians, bank owned sales and short sales. I also have included information on sales volume at individual Ka’anapali condo complexes. Without further ado, here are the stats followed by a few thoughts on the significance of these numbers.

There were 20 home sales reported in Ka’anapali during the first half of 2011. The median sales price for those transactions is $1,018,500. By comparison, there were 11 sales during the first six months of 2010 at a median sales price of $1,300,000. This translates to an 82% increase in sales volume and a 22% decrease in median prices.

• The highest sales price during the first half of 2011 was $3,305,000. During the same period of 2010, the high was $4,500,000.
• The low sales price for the first six months of 2011 was $700,000.
• Of the twenty sales reported, MLS records indicate that thirteen were all cash transactions.
• There were four REO sales and three short sales during the first half of 2011. There were only two short sales in 2010.

There were 32 condo sales reported within Ka’anapali Resort during the first 6 months of 2011. The median price for those sales was $562,000. The tally for the first half of 2010 was 31 sales at a median of $490,000. That translates to a rather modest increase in sales volume of 3% and an increase in median of 15%.

• The high sales price for a condo was $3,700,000 for a unit at Ka’anapali Ali’i. The high for the same period last year was $3,400,000. This was also for an Ali’i unit.
• The lowest sales price was $150,000 for a Bank Owned Leasehold unit at Kaanapali Royal.
• That Ka’anapali Royal Sale was one of four REOs that closed in Ka’anapali during the first half of 2011. There were also two short sales. By comparison, there were three REOs and one short during the same period in 2010.
• Leasehold sales increased in 2011 with six sales compared to two during the first half of 2010.

Ka’anapali’s land market was the most active of the resort land markets during the first half of 2011 with 13 sales at a median price of $525,000. That compares to 4 sales at a median of $487,500 for the first half of 2010. That is a 325% increase in volume and approximately an 8% increase in median.

• The high sale for the first half of the year was $800,000 for a lot in the Pinnacle.
• The low sale for the first half of the year was $275,000.
• Seven of the sales were REOs. All were in the Lanikeha subdivision in Ka’anapali.

There were a number of things that stood out with the Ka’anapali statistics. Overall, it was a solid first half of 2011 for the Ka’anapali Real Estate Market with all segments seeing increased activity. Home sales saw a healthy increase after a sluggish 2010. Part of the stems from a rise in buyer confidence and interest in the luxury market. Some of that increase also comes from some good opportunities. The first half of 2011 saw an uptick in bank owned listings and short sales at Ka’anapali Resort. As with other areas of the island, buyers have been seeking out values among shorts and REOs.

Looking at the land market, the big increase in sales volume and the big surge in foreclosures are both noteworthy. The focal point for land activity has been in the Lanikeha Development. This new development first came to market close to the peak. There were quite a few lots bought speculatively either for long term appreciation or for spec homes. Whether it was strategic default or financial challenges, a number of those speculative purchases ended up as foreclosures. The majority of the limited pool of buyers in the land market have placed value and opportunity at the top of their list of priorities when purchasing their properties. With prices half of peak market land prices, buyers have been attracted to the opportunities presented by the REO listings at Lanikeha.

On the condo side, it is worth noting that the stats provided above include only properties that are within the traditional confines of Kaanapali Resort. I decided to exclude a couple of properties like Honua Kai, Mahana and Ka’anapali Shores that are frequently lumped in with the Ka’anapali stats through the Realtors Association of Maui. I did this for two reasons. Honua Kai sales were going to really distort the stats due to what I have dubbed the Honua Kai Effect. There has been a significant volume of sales at this complex over the last couple of years. The vast majority of those sales were based on pre-construction contracts that were originally executed sometime between 2005-2007. If you include Honua Kai closes, there were far more sales in Ka’anapli during the first half of 2010 than there were in the first half of 2011. These long term contract Honua Kai closes do not provide a good indication of active buyers shopping during each particular year. Instead, these long term new developer contracts are closing when construction was completed and the buyers are able to take occupancy. I decided not to include Ka’anapali Shores and Mahana because they are categorized inconsistently. They are also listed as Honokowai properties by Realtors.

When you focus on just the core Ka’anapali condo sales figures, the first half of 2011 was almost a mirror of 2010. There were a few changes in the composition of sales. While there were no bank owned transactions in 2010, there were three bank owned sales in 2011. Leasehold sales were up two in the first half of 2010 to 6 in the first half of 2011. There were also some shifts in which complexes were most active. The greater impact of bank owned properties is significant, but I am reticent to put too much weight into other shifts in market activity. This is a pretty small sample size and we may just be seeing fluctuations in activity based on the quality of inventory or more random variables.

Contact The Maui Real Estate Team if you have questions about these statistics or if you need assistance buying or selling Ka’anapali Properties. You can also search the current inventory of Ka’anapali Homes for Sale and Ka’anapali Condos for Sale on MauiRealEstate.com.

Over the last few months, I have been giving updates on the Maui Luxury Real Estate Market. I started with an overall view and have since provided updates on Wailea, Kapalua and the combined North Shore and Upcountry luxury real estate markets. Today, I am going to take a look at Ka’anapali and its luxury market comparing 2008 year to date performance vs. the same span in 2007. Specifically, I am comparing overall homes sold and condos sold for more than $1,000,000. Ka’anapali is West Maui’s original resort community. It is renowned for both its golf and its world class beaches.

• Ka’anapali Home Sales

Sales between January 1, 2007 -> July 30, 2007 = 14
Sales between January 1, 2008 -> July 30, 2008 = 11

• Kaanapali Condo Sales over $1,000,000

Sales between January 1, 2007 -> July 30, 2007 = 52
Sales between January 1, 2008 -> July 30, 2008 = 16

Here are some thoughts on the stats. The home market is off 21% in volume from last year. Comparatively, island wide home sales volume is off 27% through the end of June. This appears to support the notion that the luxury market is weathering the current slow down a little better than other parts of the market.

The condo numbers are a bit of a shocker. We have seen a 69% drop in volume from last years numbers. This is obviously a sizable decrease. What makes these numbers interesting is that it does not follow trends in other luxury markets around the island. Kapalua saw a more modest decrease in volume of 27% while Wailea actually saw an increase in sales volume. Wailea’s increase in volume was not insignificant. What does this all mean? Frankly, I am not sure what accounts for the difference and anything I would proffer would be little more than a guess.

For those that are in the market for Ka’anapali Luxury Real Estate, there is pretty good inventory available on the market. Check out MauiRealEstate.com to see the current inventory of Ka’anapali Homes for Sale, Kaanapali Condos for Sale and Land for Sale. Contact us for additional information on Ka’anapali Luxury Real Estate.