Posted on: Saturday, September 11, 2004
Maui home sales decline for fourth month in row
By Andrew Gomes
Advertiser Staff Writer
A downturn in sales of previously owned homes on Maui continued in August for a fourth consecutive month with sales of condominiums and single-family houses falling by double-digit margins.
On other major Neighbor Islands, resales were up on the Big Island last month after a mixed July. On Kaua'i, activity was mixed as single-family home prices and volume rose while condo prices and volume fell.
Maui, however, has been perhaps the most overheated market in the state, and the sales cool-down has not surprised real-estate agents and other observers.
Wayne Steel, administrative officer in the Maui prosecuting attorney's office, said he opted to wait 14 hours in line to buy a new townhome late last year after watching prices of existing homes on the island move higher with no end in sight.
Steel's townhome at Kehalani in Wailuku won't be delivered until 2005, but he's happy he didn't wait for prices to rise higher.
Maui's median price for a single-family home last month was $540,000, up from $468,500 in August 2003. The median, which is a point where half the sales were for more and half for less, hit a record $620,000 in May.
The high price of homes on Maui has increased demand for "affordable housing," in which developers price units below the market rate, often in return for zoning and permitting exemptions from county officials. Yesterday, 3,576 people signed up for a lottery for 214 homes to be offered at below-market prices.
The volume of Maui single-family home sales fell by 45 percent to 73 last month from 132 in the same month a year earlier, according to statistics from the Realtors Association of Maui. The decline continued a trend begun in May that some brokers believe happened because prices have risen above what many people are willing or able to pay.
Maui condo sales were lower too, falling 23 percent to 143 last month, compared with 185 in August 2003. The median condo price during the same period rose to $339,000, from $235,000, and was also up from $281,425 in July.
The Big Island was the most active market, with 247 single-family home sales last month. That was up 24 percent from 199 in the year-ago month. The median was $275,000, up from $250,000 in August 2003.
Hawai'i Information Service, which released Big Island and Kaua'i statistics yesterday, reported Big Island condo resales in August totaled 107, up 39 percent from 77 in the year-ago month. The median price was $250,000, up from $185,000.
Kaua'i single-family home sales totaled 59 last month, up 11 percent from 53 in August 2003. The median price was $485,000, up from $359,900.
Condo resales on Kaua'i were down 16 percent, to 47 last month compared with 56 in the same month a year ago. The median price was $330,000, down from $331,500.
Mike Imanaka, vice president of sales and marketing for Title Guaranty of Hawai'i Inc., which processes home sales, said prices around the state appeared to generally stabilize in August. "With favorable interest rates, Hawai'i real estate continues to be an attractive investment," he said. "We expect 2004 sales to remain strong throughout the end of the year."
Reach Andrew Gomes at agomes@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8065.
