Analysis of Core Honolulu Real Estate Statistics
September 2nd, 2009 categories: For Buyers, For Sellers
In past posts I have made a distinction between the core of Honolulu’s real estate market and the rest of the island of Oahu. Furthermore, for many reasons (see past post), as a Honolulu Realtor I believe that this core area will out perform the other parts of the island in appreciation. Every month the Honolulu Board of Realtors publishes its statistical analysis for the island of Oahu and in general things look good.
Overall we have seen remaining inventory of single-family homes drop to 1,624, this number compares with July and August of 2005 (1,604 and 1,658 homes respectively). Condominium inventory is down to 2,140 from 2,494 in January 2009. Note that at the end of July 2008 there were 2,753 Oahu condos for sale. This month I have taken a much harder look at the core area that I define as Kamehameha Heights through all of Hawaii Kai.
Here are a few numbers that you may not find reported.
1. Year to date closed sales for the island of Oahu 3,677. Core Honolulu accounted for 1,724 (sfr and condos) of these sales or 47% of the market.
2. 598 sales closed on Oahu in August 2009 and, again, core Honolulu accounted for 246 of the sales, which equates to 41% of the sales in August.
3. Only 28% of the new listings for resale homes were in this core area.
4. Of the overall available freestanding house inventory only 22% was available in core Honolulu.
5. Remaining inventory of houses is 6.1 months.
6. Remaining inventory of condominiums is 6.5 months.
What does this all mean? To be overly simple, it means that, in this area, demand is out stripping the supply of homes. 47% of the annual sales and 41% of the monthly sales are generated from this area, but only 22% of the available inventory can be found in this core section. Low inventory and high demand means upward pressure on prices. Here are two more random thoughts.
1. The demand for Honolulu houses is for homes priced under $1,000,000.
2. The demand for Honolulu condos can be found for apartments priced under $500,000.
If our inventory continues to remain low and/or decrease then you may be seeing a bottoming in key Honolulu markets. If you are a buyer, I recommend pulling the trigger on a purchase now (especially with today’s interest rates)! If you have been waiting to sell, then now may be a good to get sold. If you are a property owner (in the core Honolulu area) and want to wait, you may find that your property will be worth more if you wait a few years.
If you would like to discuss your real estate needs, feel free to call me at 808-737-2093 or toll free at 877-737-2093. You can email me at keahi@lava.net.
; ?>/images/MatoChiclet.gif)
