I love the Big Island and feel very blessed to live here. For over 20 years, I was a resident of Alaska...and after almost 20 years of Alaskan winters, my dream was to live in Hawaii. My dream came true-mainly because of real estate investments. The Big Island is a uniqe and varied island - you can pretty much name your climate, view and price on this island. I live high up on Mauna Kea, at the 5,000 ft level at Waiki'i Ranch where winter mornings are a bit "crisp". This area is known to be a horse lovers dream come true with trails through out the ranch. But, this is also a gardeners delight with the cooler climate making mainland fruits such as peachs, plums and apples possible to grow along with a garden of artichokes, asparagus & salad greens...and of course carrots for the horses! Having also lived in Waimea and Waikoloa, I know this side of the Big Island personally and would love to share it with you.
Posted by Pat Strausse, R on March 15th, 2010 |
Tags: Big Island, Deals, Dry Side Waimea, For Sale, Green Side Waimea, Hawaii, REO, Short Sales, Waimea Kamuela
While the average sales price to date in Waimea (Kamuela) is $425,390, Green Side Waimea distressed sales averaged almost half that amount.
Dry Side Waimea Short Sale Listing (MLS# 228261), $649,000.
While we’re just a few months into this year, there is starting to be a noticeable difference in the type of sales between “Dry side” and “Green side” Waimea on Hawaii’s Big Island. More »
Posted by Pat Strausse, R on March 4th, 2010 |
Tags: Big Island, Hawaii, Sales Stats, Short Sales, Waikoloa Village
The big news in Waikoloa Village homes sales is…short sales.
The average Waikoloa Village real estate residential sales price (year to date) is $333,722, negotiated down from an average listing price of $357,200. Wondering where a sales price of $335,000 fits into the historic pattern of Waikoloa Village sales?
As you can see, the chart was bouncing around the $350,000 range before it took a bit of an upturn in the last quarter. March sales are yet to be reported, but at this point it appears the amount of distress sales are having an impact on pricing in the Waikoloa Village home market. More »
Posted by Pat Strausse, R on February 22nd, 2010 |
Tags: Big Island, Foreclosures, Hawaii, Honolulu, Kauai, Lanai, Maui, Molokai, News, Oahu, Sales Stats
12 percent of Hawaii homes are in foreclosure or threatened by foreclosure.
One of yesterday’s front page stories in Honolulu’s Advertiser was a new report on foreclosures in the country and where Hawaii is ranked.
As reported, a new mortgage industry report shows that more homeowners in Hawai’i fell behind on their loan payments last year, suggesting that foreclosures will continue to rise this year. At the end of last year, 4.5 percent of the loans statewide were in foreclosure, and an additional 12,182 mortgages, representing 7.3 percent of the market, were delinquent but not yet in foreclosure.
A sweet REO house (MLS# 230165) listed for $179,700
More »
Posted by Pat Strausse, R on February 19th, 2010 |
Tags: Big Island, Condos, Sales Stats, Waikoloa Village
Golf course pond by Elima Lani
At first look, 2009 condo sales look similar to 2008 sales as both years posted 18 sales for existing condos. But, a closer look at the numbers shows some very shocking news.
The most amazing sales news for Waikoloa condo sales is…the complete lack of sales! From 11/18/2008 to 3/27/2009 there was not one single condo sale in Waikoloa Village, a town known as one of the Big Island’s biggest condo towns. At this time the economy was tanking, real estate prices were falling and no one knew when the the recovery was going to happen. And so, no one was buying condos. This time of year, in years past, had been one of the peaks of the buying seasons centered around the winter tourist season. More »
Posted by Pat Strausse, R on January 28th, 2010 |
Tags: Big Island, Luxury, Waiki'i Ranch
Waiki'i Ranch polo field & club house
Have you ever considered living the ranch life, high up the flanks of Mauna Kea?? Waiki’i Ranch real estate offers a wide selection of homes for a variety of lifestyles, with 2,000 acres running from the 3,5000 foot elevation to almost a mile high at 5,000 feet. As the name implies, Waiki’i Ranch is an equestrian community featuring a club house and recreation center, alongside a polo field and riding arena used for barrel racing, roping and special events.
Currently there are 8 homes for sale in Waiki’i Ranch, with the lowest priced home asking just over 1 million dollars – 67-1182 Palila Road, is a 3 bedroom 2 bath home on 10 acres with awesome ocean and mountain views. This is a smaller home for community, but it’s ranch style architecture fits into the landscape wonderfully with 3 fenced and gated paddocks. This is a great “starter” home or an easy weekend getaway for an Oahu or Neighbor Island resident.
Custom Wood Home- asking $2.25M, MLS#226774
Next on the property tour is a woodworker’s dream, and truly a work of art. Nestled in its own private forest on 10 acres, this home has some of the best views found on the ranch. Beyond the 3bed/2.5 bath main residence is a separate cabin, an oversized two car garage with workshop, beautiful barn, wood-fired hot tub and garden. If you appreciate fine workmanship, this could be your new home in Hawaii.
At the top of the market, described as the most luxurious and highly functioning equestrian estate in the State, this Waiki’i Ranch architectural masterpiece sits on 53 acres with an asking price of $18.5M. Only for the most discriminating buyer, the estate includes: a 4 bed/4.5 bath, 6,964 sqft. main residence; a 912 sqft., 1/1 guest cottage; a European-inspired, 9,900 sqft., 7-stall stable; a 14,000 sq ft. high performance riding arena and a tractor barn. Built in Canada without a single nail from individually picked logs, this incredible home was and then disassembled, shipped to Hawaii and rebuilt on site.
Exquisite Estate built entirely without nails!
As a long-time resident homeowner, I know Waiki’i Ranch inside and out! It would be my pleasure and honor to talk story with you personally about buying, selling and/or living in Waiki’i Ranch. Contact me today for your private residential property tour.
Posted by Pat Strausse, R on January 27th, 2010 |
Tags: Big Island, Deals, First Time Buyers, For Sale, Sales Stats, Waikoloa, Waikoloa Village
Recently, I spoke with an appraiser who called to verify information on a home I sold in Waikoloa Village. We engaged in the usual talk story about the real estate market home values. When I asked if she saw any markets starting to change, I received an interesting response. The answer was an amazing, YES! The appraiser went on to say that right now homes under $400,000 in Waikoloa Village are “Stable.” An appraiser has 3 choices on their form regarding market condition: increasing, stable, or declining. The roaring 2000’s were of course, an increasing market. And, we’ve been in a “declining” market for some time now. So, to hear a ”stable market” is big news. This appraiser did go on to qualify this by saying, “it is just one price range, in one market and it may just be a short term result of the stimulus money…”
Waikoloa Village Golf Course
So, what are the numbers behind this story? In the last six months Waikoloa Village had a total of 37 sales for homes priced under $400,000. Currently, there are only 30 homes listed for sale in this price range. There is now slightly less than a six month inventory of homes in Waikoloa Village in the sub $400,000 market, the absorption rate is indeed, steady.
This market segment was created last year as home prices dropped from 2008 values – in the last 6 months of 2008 there were only 22 sales in Waikoloa Village and only 6 sales were in the under $400,000 range as most home prices were still above $400,000.
What does all of this mean to a potential buyer looking for a home in Waikoloa Village? Buyers need to know they potentially have competition and may want to write an offer fast and close to asking price if they want to secure a particular property.
One word of caution – many of the homes listed for sale in Waikoloa Village in this price range are short sales, specifically listed at low prices to encourage multiple offers because they can be difficult to close. If you’re not familiar with the short sale process, read through our blog as many Hawaii Life agents have shown success with these types of transactions.
Examining the next price range in Waikoloa Village real estate, $400,000 to $500,000, the picture completely changes. There have only been 10 sales in the past 6 months and currently there are 20 active listings. This produces an absorption rate of about one year, indicating a very strong buyers market in this price range. This just shows how very localized real estate can be!
Posted by Pat Strausse, R on November 24th, 2009 |
Tags: Big Island, Life, Waiki'i Ranch
Turkeys along Saddle Road
Where Did All These Big Island Wild Turkeys Come From?
The Big Island’s Wild Turkeys – if you’ve driven around the island you’ve probably seen them. If you take a drive upcountry on Saddle Road to Waiki’i Ranch, you’ll see several
flocks of turkeys sharing pastures with herds of cattle. With Thanksgiving almost here, it’s natural to think of turkeys… which got me to wondering – just where did all these Big Island turkeys come from? More »
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