Earlier this month, we took a look at Maui’s Luxury Home Market. Today, I wanted to turn my sights towards the high end condominium market. This post will include totals on all of the condos sold for the year to date (as of September 20), notable numbers from this year’s sales, and market conditions specific to the three resort areas of Wailea/Makena, Ka’anapali and Kapalua.

When we have discussed luxury condos on our blog, we have used the $1,500,000 and above price point as the threshold for pricing. When we first started to look at the luxury condo market, that was something of a starting point for some of the really high end condos. To be clear, there are some very nice condos below this price point. That said, we want to be consistent with our methodology. So all properties discussed in this particular blog sold for $1,500,000 or more.

Maui Luxury Condo Sales Volume and Median Price
There were 69 condos sold thus far this year as of September 23, 2015. The median price for those sales was $2,250,000. Between January 1, 2014 and September 23, 2014, there were 63 sales at a median price of $2,575,000. That is roughly a 10% increase in volume and a 13% decrease in median price.

Notable Luxury Condo Sales Numbers for the Year to Date.
Here are some of the most noteworthy numbers from the luxury condo sales this year.

• The highest priced condo to sell thus far this year closed for $8,500,000. This is a three bedroom, three and a half bath, beachfront unit with 2,919 square feet of living space at Wailea Beach Villas.
• Including the sale at Wailea Beach Villas, there were a total of 12 condos sold over $4,000,000.
• Honua Kai saw the most sales activity of any condo complex on the island. There were a total of 20 sales at Honua Kai over $1,500,000 including 11 new developer sales.
• The Wailea and Makena Market saw the most sales activity over $1,500,000 with a total of 28 sales. Kaanapali saw the second most activity and Kapalua was third.
• In addition to the sales activity in the major resort markets, there was one sale in Lahaina, one in Kihei, one in Spreckelsville and two on Lanai.
• There were no bank owned condos or short sale transactions among this year’s sales

Wailea and Makena Condos
Wailea and Makena have had a good year for sales to date. The 28 sales reported exceeded last year’s total of 20. That is a 40% increase in activity. Much of that increase in activity occurred in Makena. While there was only one sale in Makena during the same period last year, this year there were 6 sales. Five of the six Makena sales were at Makena Surf. The remaining sale was at Na Hale O Makena. This was a particularly busy year for Makena Surf with the five sales reported thus far more than any year since 2004.

The Wailea sales over $1,500,000 were spread out among a variety of complexes. There were 7 sales at Hoolei, 1 at Andaz, 2 at Kai Malu, 1 at Papali, 1 at Wailea Ekahi, 3 at Wailea Elua, 3 at Wailea Beach Villas and 3 at Wailea Point. Hoolei continues to lead the way in high end sales in Wailea. The size of the condos combined with their price point and the potential to access amenities at the Grand Wailea continues to be an attractive option to buyers. While Wailea Beach Villas did not have the same sales volume, it was noteworthy for the fact that it had the top two highest priced condo sales on the island thus far this year.

It will be interesting to see what happens in the Wailea and Makena market for the rest of the year and into 2016. There is still a good selection of variety to choose from on the MLS. There is plenty of active inventory on the MLS with 40 condos on the market. There are unlisted properties available at Andaz and the new Keala O Wailea development. There is also a chance that we might see pre-construction sales at Makali’i at Wailea before the end of the year. You can see all of the current Wailea and Makena Condos listed on the MLS on MauiRealEstate.com. Contact The Maui Real Estate Team if you have questions on any of the unlisted properties.

Kaanapali Condos
The Ka’anapali Condo market has also had a fairly strong year with 26 sales reported to date. That is down 7% from the 28 units sold during the same period last year. The Ka’anapali market has been buoyed over the last several years by activity at the Honua Kai Resort. Honua Kai has been a big draw as the first fee simple whole ownership new development along this stretch of coast for over 20 years. Of the 26 condos sold in Ka’anapali for $1,500,000 or more, 20 were at Honua Kai. Ka’anapali Ali’i has had 5 sales thus far this year. There was also one sale at the Masters.

The Ka’anapali luxury condo market is starting to see shrinking inventory with only 20 active listings over $1,500,000. A big part of that stems from Honua Kai. The developer is getting close to selling out their remaining units. There are only 3 new developer listings left on the MLS. I believe there are still a handful of additional new developer units in addition to those posted on the MLS. There are only three units active at Ka’anapali Ali’i with the remaining listings located at Ka’anapali Shores and the Whaler. It will be interesting to see if the dwindling inventory at Honua Kai will have an impact on places like the Whaler and Ka’anapali Shores. Buyers have shown a preference for the newer Honua Kai Condos leading to depressed sales at the other places. Will some of the older condos nearby start to see an uptick in activity? You can see the full inventory of Kaanapali Condos listed on the MLS via MauiRealEstate.com.

Kapalua Condos
The Kapalua Market has seen pretty similar activity levels to what we saw last year. There have been 10 sales reported in the year to date this year. There were 9 sales reported over the same period last year. The focal point for luxury condo sales in Kapalua has been the Montage Residences on Kapalua Bay. Montage came on the market last June. This property was formerly the Ritz Carlton Residences. The Ritz Residences went into foreclosure and the property was purchased by Lantern Capital. Lantern appointed Montage to manage and revamp the property. Montage has seen steady sales since it has come on the market despite pricing that starts in the mid three million dollar range. There have been 8 sales reported at Montage thus far this year.

The other notable sale was at Ritz Carlton Residences. To be clear, this is a different animal from the Ritz Residences Kapalua Bay that was previously foreclosed upon. These condos are part of the Ritz Carlton Hotel. The Ritz condos had been on the market closer to the downturn and weren’t getting as much traction. They are back under the market with a new sales team. It will be interesting to see how these condos are received by the market going forward. From what I have heard, they are getting a pretty good response.

While the two new developments have been relatively well received, some of the older complexes have seen slower activity. High end Kapalua condos like Coconut Grove and the Ironwoods are traditionally condos that see limited inventory and limited sales volume. There was one sale in the Ironwoods this year. Kapalua Bay Villas is a condo that seems to be getting poor market feedback by luxury buyers. There have been 4 sales over $1,500,000 at Bay Villas since 2009. There are currently 7 active listings in the complex with none pending. It appears as if sellers in this complex may need to adjust pricing if they are going to generate interest from buyers.

For the rest of the year, I would anticipate that we will continue to see activity at Montage and the Ritz. Buyers in Kapalua have a good selection of inventory to choose from. You can see the full inventory of Kapalua Condos on the MLS on MauiRealEstate.com. Contact The Maui Real Estate Team directly if you would like us to assist you with buyer representation at either the Montage or the Ritz. There is more inventory available at both of those condos than what is showing on the MLS.

Other Condo Sales Around the Island
In addition to the activity at the resort communities, there have been a handful of sales from other communities around the island. There was one sale in Spreckelsville at Sugar Cove, one in Lahaina at Puamana and one at the Royal Mauian in Kihei. There were also two sales over on Lanai including one at the Terraces at Manele and the other was at the Palms at Manele. The two Lanai purchases were both Larry Ellison buys as he continues to expand his holdings on the island. We tend to see limited activity on higher priced condos outside the main resort areas not so much due to lack of demand as it is a lack of inventory. There are only a handful of condos outside the resorts that can sustain prices of $1,500,000 or greater and they tend not to have a ton of inventory.

Overall Thoughts on the Maui Luxury Condo Market
Buyers still have a great collection of condos to choose from around the island. There are both new development opportunities and condo resales in more established condominiums. While the depth of the inventory may provide options, sellers in this price range tend to have more staying power. The challenge is finding potentially motivated sellers who might want or need to redeploy their money elsewhere.

I would expect that the luxury condo market will continue to be perform at or near the levels we have seen for the year to date. While interest rate increases have been postponed, this isn’t a part of the market that is as interest rate sensitive. The bulk of the buyers are using cash or private banking. The biggest potential impacts to the market come from the greater global economy. Poor performance in the stock market is a potential threat. There seems to be something of a correlation between the DOW and high end sales on the island. We have not seen any significant influxes of buyers from China like some cities in the Western U.S. and Canada. Contact The Maui Real Estate Team if you are interested in buying or selling a luxury condo on Maui. We would welcome the chance to sit down with you for a free consultation and to discuss your interests and needs.

It is hard to believe we are already midway through 2015. It seems like time moves faster and faster. I think my own personal time space continuum has ramped up with a 19 month old running around the house. Since we are midway through the year, our “Sneak Peek” at the June Maui Real Estate Stats is going to be somewhat abbreviated. This month’s edition is going to be more limited on the analysis. I have some additional posts scheduled for later in the month that will look at the mid year numbers for a number of communities around the island. Those stats posts will have a little more analysis specific to individual communities. In the interim, here are the June 2015 stats.

June Maui Real Estate Sales Volume and Median Prices

By my count, Maui Realtors reported 99 homes sold last month with a median price of $650,000. That compares to 93 homes sold at a median price of $530,000. That calculates to a 6% increase in volume and almost a 23% increase in median price when comparing the two Junes.

I counted 98 condos sold with a median price of $528,184 in June of 2015. The previous June, there were 94 condos reported sold with a median price of $444,500. That is a 4% increase in sales volume and roughly a 19% increase in median.

There were 13 parcels of land sold in June with a median sales price of $395,000. Last June, there were 18 lots sold with a median sales price of $545,500. That is a 28% decrease in sales volume and a 28% decrease in median price.

I have just one quick comment on the numbers above. If you are a regular reader of our stats posts, you have heard this before. That said, it is worth repeating. The change in medians above are not a direct reflection of the change in property values. The increase in median in sales price for homes and condos is influenced in large part to the decrease in inventory on the low end of the market and an increase in activity at higher price points in the market.

Other Notable Numbers From the June Maui Real Estate Sales Activity
While compiling the sales volumes and medians, I came across a few more notable numbers worth sharing.

• The highest price home to sell last month was 102 Honolua Place in Kapalua. The four bedroom, five and a half bath home in the Plantation Estates Subdivision has over 6,500 square feet of living space on 2.8 acres of land overlooking Honolua Bay.
• This was a pretty strong month for luxury home sales with Honolua Place just one of 12 total sales over $2,000,000 last month. There were 2 other sales in Kapalua, 3 homes in Lahaina, 3 in Wailea, and 1 each in Kula, Kihei, Molokai and Ka’anapali.

 

• It is pretty rare to see high end Molokai sales. This is the first Molokai sale over $2,000,000 reported on the Maui MLS since 2006.
• While I am not sure it is significant in the scheme of things, I thought it was interesting that the sales over $2,000,000 included one bank owned property and one short sale.
• The highest priced condo transaction last month was $3,000,000 for a three bedroom, three and a half bath unit in Ho’olei. This particular unit was on the top row of the development. Due to superior views, the top row units sell at a premium.
• While the luxury home market was particularly busy, the luxury condo market was comparatively quiet. There were only two other sales over $1,500,000 in addition to the Ho’olei close. Those sales were at the Royal Mauian in Kihei and the Ironwoods in Kapalua.
• There were two lots that sold for over $1,000,000 last month. Both of those sales were in Kapalua.
• There were 13 bank owned or REO sales reported on the MLS last month. In June of 2014, there were 13 REO sales.
• There were 8 short sale transactions that closed successfully in June of 2015. By comparison, there were 13 short sales that closed in June of 2014.

 

Pending Sales in June
The June sales are a reflection of buyer demand largely in March, April and May. We like to track the pending sales so that we have a better sense of more recent market demand.

June was a good month for pending sales with homes, condos and land all performing better than last June. The condo pending numbers were somewhat striking as condo sales for the first half of the year have lagged behind what we saw in 2014.

June Wrap Up
The June sales numbers suggest that market conditions have been fairly consistent throughout 2015. Buyers will find that the lower price points of the market have limited inventory and well priced properties can be particularly competitive. As you go higher in price in the market, there is more inventory to choose from. That said, well priced properties can still go quickly. Sellers will find that market conditions vary depending on town, price point and neighborhood levels. Well priced and well cared for homes are generally selling quickly. If you want to sell quickly, look closely at recent sales in your neighborhood. Sellers who are priced well above comparable sales will find that buyers are being more discerning and looking for value. Contact The Maui Real Estate Team if you have questions on the stats or if you are interested in buying or selling property on Maui. We would welcome the chance to sit down and learn about your needs. Stay tuned for more posts looking at the mid-year sales numbers around the island.