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After two very slow months at the beginning of the year, March 2009 showed some signs of recovery for Hawaii's housing market.  The median price of a single family home climbed back up to $600,000, from February's $555,000 median.

Single family home prices were down from a year earlier, approximately 4.5% island-wide.  Condo and townhome prices were down 7.4% in March 2009, versus a year earlier.

Home Sales Volume on Oahu

March 2009 had 188 single family home sales, up from 163 sold in February 2009.  In March 2008, 282 single family homes sold.  We're down about 33% compared with a year earlier.

For condos and townhomes, there were 248 sales in March 2009 versus 160 in February 2009.  That's a huge increase, 55%!  In March 2008, 392 condos and…

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Here's an interesting property on the windward side of Oahu.  A small house sits on this 3/4 acre beachfront lot.  The house is definitely a fixer, although habitable.  The current owners have lived in the house for several years. 

This listing will attract a lot of attention because of its price.  Originally listed at $175,000, the owners have dropped the price all the way down to $99,000.   Normally, a sandy beachfront lot of 1/4 acre and larger on Oahu would start at a minimum of $1,500,000 and higher. The reason for the difference?   This property is sold leasehold - that is, the current "owners" are actually lessees. 

The lessor is the Bishop Estate, a large charitable trust established to educate native Hawaiian children.  The estate charges…

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Here's a deal at Makaha Valley Towers!  This is a two bedroom, one bath condo with views of two golf courses, the ocean and the mountains.  The building has central air conditioning and it's kept in great shape.

This used to be my listing.  The buyers got into financial troubles and we tried to sell it.  The condo went to foreclosure auction and the bank set the minimum bid at $275,000.  A few people were interested, but not at that price.  The bank took the condo back and it's been relisted.

Makaha is on the west side of Oahu.  This is a quiet area and sparsely populated, unlike Honolulu.  The drive into Honolulu is about 35 miles.  This is a great building, however it's not close to town.

Comparable units in this building were selling for $300,000+…

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One night after my wife and I had watched a show at Windward Community College, we were driving around Kaneohe and thinking about getting some dinner.  We saw El Mariachi and decided to give it a try. 

This restaurant has some great authentic Mexican food, just like the sign says!  That night we had chicken burritos and tacos.  They tasted great, along with the home made chips and salsa.

Last month I was looking at homes in Kaneohe with a couple that's planning a move to Hawaii.  I asked if they'd like to get some Mexican food for lunch.  They said yes and we went to El Mariachi.

This time I had the chicken tamale.  It was tasty with a great sauce.  The couple had beef tacos, which they really enjoyed.

El Mariachi is reminiscient of the Mexican…

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In late February, Costco opened its doors in Kapolei.  The store's address is 4589 Kapolei Parkway, near Home Depot. 

This is Oahu's fourth Costco location (or fifth, if we count the first store at Salt Lake that closed and moved to Iwilei).  The store covers about 160,000 square feet - add in the parking lot  and Costco Kapolei covers about 17 acres. 

The response from the community was enthusiastic!  As Kapolei moves closer to being Oahu's Second City as envisioned years ago, area residents are glad to see another opportunity to shop in their local neighborhood, rather than driving to Mililani or Iwilei to get their goods from Costco.

Some features of the Kapolei Costco are a gas station and an indoor food court!  This is the only Costco I've seen on…

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We recently looked at this house in Kaimuki.   It was built in 1939 on a large 8,570 square foot lot.  The house appears to have been expanded at some point and now has 1,832 square feet interior area within its four bedrooms with one and a half baths.  There's also a separate carport with a bathroom and laundry room. 

The yard has a tropical look with a mango tree, laua'e, crotons and ti plants surrounding the home.  The front side has double-entry doors.  The living room is carpeted and the kitchen has vinyl flooring.  Most of the other rooms have hardwood flooring, which appears to be original.

 

Another neat touch is this bureau built into the wall

 

This house is located on Hookipa Way in Kaimuki.  It's a quiet side street with easy access to…

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Many have wondered when and if Oahu's housing market would be hit the way mainland markets have been crushed.  In the fourth quarter of 2008 Hawaii had a significant decline and some neighborhoods lost value.

In January we saw many new prospective buyers enter the market, lured by weak sales and low interest rates.  Some have made offers on properties and others are watching to see what happens with an eye on 30-year mortgage rates.

Meanwhile, sales in January tanked.  These closings probably represent offers made in November and December 2008, when financial news seemed to be bad nearly every day.  While we hope for the better, long-timers still remember the mid 1990's and worry about a repeat.

Here's how Oahu's home sales and median prices in January…

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Last week I spent time looking at properties with a hui of motivated buyers.  We looked at a variety of residential properties to determine what would best fit their intended use as a vacation retreat in Hawaii.

Moana Vista is currently under construction at 1015 Kapiolani Boulevard.  It's convenient location in town and elegant design caught the interest of these buyers.  We stopped by the project and checked it out.

         

Honolulu condo construction is winding down

Honolulu residents witnessed a boom in condo development in the last five years or so.  Times are changing and Moana Vista might be…

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