Hawaii Real Estate and Economy

Saturday, October 13, 2012

Kauai Real Estate – Statistical Sales Information for September 2012

Source: Hawaii Information Service

Single Family Home Sales for the Island of Kauai:
September 2012 – 34 Homes Sold – $524,500 Median Price
September 2011 – 28 Homes Sold – $440,000 Median Price

Condominium Sales for the Island of Kauai:
September 2012 – 21 Condos Sold – $325,000 Median Price
September 2011 – 20 Condos Sold – $235,500 Median Price

Source: Honolulu Star Advertiser, 10-13-2012, www.staradvertiser.com
Posted by Jeff Uyemura-Reyes, Broker-in-Charge, Realtor®
Global Executive Realty, LLC
www.myhawaiihomesearch.com
www.myhawaiicondo.com
www.myhawaiidreamhome.com

Big Island Real Estate – Statistical Sales Information for September 2012

Source: Hawaii Information Service

Single Family Home Sales for the Big Island of Hawaii:
September 2012 – 95 Homes Sold – $255,000 Median Price
September 2011 – 141 Homes Sold – $225,000 Median Price

Condominium Sales for the Big Island of Hawaii:
September 2012 – 32 Condos Sold – $289,000 Median Price
September 2011 – 42 Condos Sold – $213,750 Median Price

Maui Real Estate – Statistical Sales Information for September 2012

Source: Realtors Association of Maui

Single Family Home Sales for the Island of Maui:
September 2012 – 76 Homes Sold – $437,500 Median Price
September 2011 – 80 Homes Sold – $412,000 Median Price

Condominium Sales for the Island of Maui:
September 2012 – 65 Condos Sold – $339,563 Median Price
September 2011 – 84 Condos Sold – $334,950 Median Price

Friday, October 12, 2012

City Allowed to Sell Affordable Rental Complexes

The Honolulu City Council voted in favor of allowing the city to sell 12 affordable rental complexes to a private company for $142 million. In a 6-2 decision, the city council noted that the Honolulu Affordable Housing Partners LLC, who made the offer, would have a 65-year long lease with the city and have to spend a minimum of $42 million of their own money to renovate the projects. This will help to save city taxpayers approximately $500,000 per month currently being spent to subsidize the complexes.

Councilmen Tom Berg and Romy Cachola both voted against the proposal and stated that they wished to postpone a final decision until more concerns were met. Current residents expressed a huge concern about how much rents would increase under new private management.

Source: Honolulu Star Advertiser, 10-12-2012, www.staradvertiser.com
Posted by Jeff Uyemura-Reyes, Broker-in-Charge, Realtor®
Global Executive Realty, LLC
www.myhawaiihomesearch.com
www.myhawaiicondo.com
www.myhawaiidreamhome.com

Electrical Rates for Various Islands in October 2012

The Hawaiian Electric Company has announced that electricity would cost 33.6 cents per kilowatt-hour on the island of Oahu for the month of October. This is an increase from 33.5 cents per kilowatt-hour posted the month prior. Maui Electric Company charges their customers 36.1 cents per kilowatt-hour. Big Island of Hawaii residents pay 40.4 cents per kilowatt-hour. Kauai has the highest electrical rates at 44.9 cents per kilowatt-hour through the Kauai Island Utility Cooperative. The state has the highest electrical rate in the country with an average of 37.7 cents per kilowatt-hour posted in July 2012. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the national average in July was 12 cents per kilowatt-hour.

Waihonua Construction Crew Finds 19 Additional Hawaiian Burials

Another 19 sets of ancient Hawaiian human remains were found during the excavation for the foundation of the new Waihonua at Kewalo condominium in Kakaako. Developer Alexander & Baldwin had previously discovered 27 burials on the property when they had conducted an archaeological survey in 2010 and lead A&B to redesign the building size and footprint. Six more iwi or burials were discovered in 2011 during an exploration of a layer of ground to recover Hawaiian cultural artifacts. Those iwi were allowed to be moved to another location on the property.

It is still unclear if these 19 newly discovered remains would force addition delays or create new changes. One additional challenge is that the new burials are believe to be be alii or royalty due to whale-tooth necklaces that were found with them. The State Department of Land and Natural Resources’ State Historic Preservation Division will be determining the treatment of the burials. The Oahu Island Burial Council and cultural descendants of the area will also be allowed input in the decision making process.

The Waihonua condominium project currently has binding contracts for 239 of their 341 units. The project is expected to be completed in April 2015.

Thursday, October 11, 2012

Howard Hughes Corp Unviels New Ward Village Plans

The Howard Hughes Corporation has released their new development plan for what they are calling the Ward Village. The plan calls for building a total of 22 residential towers on 60 acres of land and add double the number of existing retail shops and restaurant in the area. The entire project will cost approximately $7.5 billion to complete and will take a total of 15 years. The first phase, which would include three residential towers, will break ground in 2014 and be completed in 2016, pending approval from the Hawaii Community Development Authority.

The exact plans for where the building will be located will not come out until an archaeological survey has been completed and presented to the state Department of Land and Natural Resource’s State Historic Preservation Division. Hawaiian groups praise this decision by the Hughes Corporation, as there is still a concern that the survey would find iwi’s or Hawaiian burials on the land.

Source: Honolulu Star Advertiser, 10-11-2012, www.staradvertiser.com
Posted by Jeff Uyemura-Reyes, Broker-in-Charge, Realtor®
Global Executive Realty, LLC
www.myhawaiihomesearch.com
www.myhawaiicondo.com
www.myhawaiidreamhome.com

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