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RealtyTrac’s latest numbers are out for February of 2010

As foreclosures continue to rise on Oahu, there will be more and more REO’s or lender owned properties coming back on market. Once properties are listed as an REO, they are typically priced well and sell fast.

Oahu REO Galleries

Oahu single family home REOs →
Oahu Condo REOs →

Top 5 zip codes for Oahu Foreclosures

Ewa Beach and Kapolei have consistently been at the top, as they were in January and in 2009. Read entire post →

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David enjoying ride

Hawaii Reporter recently announced there’s a New Phone System for Recorded Weather and Surf Updates on Oahu. This will be much more convenient as several phone numbers were required for the old system. The new 808-973-4380 number can also accommodate multiple callers!

I’ve saved this number to auto-dial on my phone. It’s perfect for all those living their Hawaii Life. Whether you’re looking to paddle from Hawaii Kai to Waikiki, Surf the North Shore or hike in Manoa, you can know what the weather, wind and surf will be from one phone number!

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Ewa Beach Led Oahu in 2009 Foreclosures

The front page of yesterday’s Star Bulletin had an article titled “On Shaky Ground” talking about how Ewa Beach led Oahu in 2009 with the most foreclosures with 636 in 2009. Believe it or not, Waikiki was 2nd with 538 and Kapolei was 3rd with 364.

What was incredible about the article is it said although that one out of every 22 homes in the Ewa Beach zip code was in distress last year! Those weren’t all foreclosures. Those include short sales, owners behind on their payments, etc. What does this mean? More REO or lender owned properties will be coming on the market in Ewa Beach. Keep an eye out for some bargains. Even though prices have come down, inventory is starting to disappear as well according to the article. So, get yourself a good buyer’s agent and get ready for some bargains.

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The family at the 'Pink Palace'

The family at the 'Pink Palace'

My six year old daughter was thrilled to stay at the ‘Pink Palace’, the Royal Hawaiian Hotel on Waikiki, and by the way, so were we!!  After having tea & enjoying the gardens with her mother two years ago, she has been begging to stay, so what a great surprise!

So, finally, here she was, living the life of a Princess, though she told me to stop calling her ‘Your Royal Highness’.  The Royal Hawaiian Hotel is a delightful palace, more like your residence than a hotel, with beautiful architecture, furnishings & wonderful staff . My nine year old son was more than thrilled when checking in, as he was spoken to by his name. He said ‘This is the life!  It’s like in the movies.” We definitely recommend the Ocean Royal Beach Tower & sumptuous Royal Beach Club with its breath-taking views of the beach, sparkling ocean & iconic Diamond Head. Newly renovated, the hotel is beautiful, spic & span with luxury from top to bottom. The beds are oh-so-comfy with soft, feel good high-thread count sheets, snuggly down pillows & the best pull-up-around you comforters.  In addition to the relaxing “Pink Palace’ pool, there is the extravaganze pool, the Helumoa Playground, with water slide, waterways & two whirlpools the children (and adults) will want to enjoy. Lounge chairs in the pool were our favorites, particularly for lunch with just right mai tais. Waikiki is a also great place for paddle boarding & maybe some surfing.  Barney, one of Waikiki’s famous Beach Boys was as friendly as you could ever wish.  In the mornings, we woke to yummy & I mean yummy continental breakfasts with soft, flaky chocolate croissants, tasty baguettes, fruit & fresh coffee. How good was everything?  We changed our flights so we could stay another night. Frankly, we don’t care if we ever stay at a different hotel on Waikiki ever again. Read entire post →

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Welcome to the Ilikai...

Welcome to the Ilikai...

The Ilikai is one of Oahu’s most iconic hotels on Ala Moana Blvd. Jack Lord helped put the Ilikai on the map in the opening scene of Hawaii Five-O. What a lot of people don’t know is the Ilikai was supposed to originally be built in Marina Del Ray, CA. My Mom’s stepfather, Guy Harrison was a real estate developer in Southern California & was here in Hawaii on a trip when he happened to drive by the current site in Waikiki and asked the cab driver pull over because he was amazed at the beauty and location. He ultimately secured an option on the land, moved my Mom, Grandmother and family out from California and brought in Chin Ho as the money partner and developed what is known today as the Ilikai in 1964. What has been so unique about the Ilikai over the years is its mixed use of Hotel and individually owned condos.

Fast forward 42 years: local devloper Brian Anderson bought 343 of the 1009 rooms in 2006. He had grand ambitions for the place. Unfortunately, they never came to light and the past few years the association has sued Anderson, he went delinquent on maintenance fees on the units he owned and earlier this year, the lender foreclosed on Anderson. Due to all the litigation that’s been taking place, lenders have not been lending on the Ilikai. Therefore, those that are looking to sell need cash buyers. This has created some awesome opportunities for those with the cash!  Here’s some statistics I ran over the past 5 years:

Year Average Sales Price Median Sales Price Number of Sales
2005 $415,788 $400,000 45
2006 $494,343 $480,000 32
2007 $452,531 $445,000 24
2008 $354,866 $360,000 15
2009 $279,507 $280,000 35

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Waikiki Shore Condo

Waikiki Shore Condo

Following up on a series of Where to Find Oceanfront Condos on Oahu, we work our way clockwise on Oahu from Diamond Head to Waikiki. Believe it or not, there is only 1 true oceanfront condo building in Waikiki, which is the Waikiki Shore. When you think about it, the reason why is all the prime real estate in Waikiki is taken up by the hotels.  Waikiki Shore is adjacent to the newly renovated Outrigger Reef and fronts a beautiful white sandy beach. One of the great things about the building is the maintenance fees are relatively low because the commercial spaces on the bottom floors offset some of the operating costs of the association. In addition, the 2 most recent sales sold at $1,062 and $1,598/square foot and active listings average $1,580/square foot. This is a great price for prime oceanfront property, given the new Trump Waikiki isn’t even on the ocean & is selling for $2,000/square foot… If you’re looking for an oceanfront condo in Waikiki within walking distance of great shops, restaurants and the only 5 star hotel on Oahu, this is it! Here’s a gallery I’ve put together of available listings. Enjoy!

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Unlike some of the neighbor islands that have lots of oceanfront condos, Oahu’s oceanfront condo inventory is somewhat limited given the population of the island. The purpose of this blog post is to lay out where you can find oceanfront condos on Oahu. We’ll start at Diamond Head on Oahu’s southeastern shore (Diamond Head is where the original land surveys on Oahu used for reference) & work our way around the island clockwise.

  • Diamond Head- The oceanfront condos are found at the end of Kalakaua in an area we refer to as the Gold Coast
  • Waikiki- There is only 1 true oceanfront condo in Waikiki called the Waikiki Shore
  • Ko Olina- There are 2 projects as of now Kai Lani and the Beach Villas at Ko Olina
  • Leeward Coast- There’s a few buildings on this leeward Oahu strip on your way out to Yokohama Bay
  • North Shore- The majority of these are in Waialua, with other projects in Mokuleia, Haleiwa & 1 in Turtle Bay
  • Windward Coast- There’s a few projects between the long stretch of Punaluu to Kaneohe
  • Hawaii Kai- There’s only 1 oceanfront condo project here as well, however tons of units on the marina
  • Kuliouou- There’s only 1 project here on the ocean, however not a sandy beach and fronts a marine sanctuary
  • Kahala- There’s only 1 project here called the Kahala Beach Apartments, which is Leasehold

As you can see, a number of the areas mentioned above have either just one or two projects in the entire area. In the near future, I’ll be posting more information on each of the specific areas. In the meantime, if there’s anything specific I can help you find in regards to oceanfront condos on Oahu, give me a call at 808-371-3509.

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The below map shows a % for both SFH’s and Condos for each of the areas. This % equals the amount of Just Accepted Offers in Escrow as compared to total inventory for sale. Please note the ACS % at the top left of the map is for an Average of all of Oahu SFH’s and Condos. The Oahu ACS% is the basis for the up or down arrows for each neighborhood on the Island Map. Read entire post →

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waikiki-condo-july-09-map1

The above map shows a % for Waikiki Condos. This % equals the amount of Just Accepted Offers in Escrow as compared to total inventory for sale. Please note the ACS % at the bottom left of the map for Oahu SFH’s and Condos. The Oahu ACS% is the basis for the up or down arrows for each neighborhood on the Island Map. Read entire post →

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oahu-2nd-qt-09-percentage-drop-sold-price-08-vs-09-do-not-remove-until-3rd-qt9

This map depicts the % decreases in Average For Sale and Average Sold Prices around the Island for 2nd. Quarter ’08 vs. 2nd. Quarter ’09. Read entire post →

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