I hope you're having a great Christmas Day! The weather in Honolulu is sunny, cool and breezy. We're loving it.
Although the economic situation throughout the world has not been good for the latter part of the year, we all know things will get better.
In good times, we're looking out for opportunities. In bad times we retrench and survive. The great part about the slow economy is that careful planning and investment will yield nicely when the turnaround comes.
Hang in there and look forward to more good times!
Aloha, Mike
In the last five years or so, Honolulu saw another round of high rise construction. New choices for condo living in town have emerged. The cycle appears to be reaching its end with a few more properties approaching completion. One of the properties is Moana Vista, located on Kapiolani Boulevard in Kakaako.
This is a great location for city dwellers. Moana Vista is near the downtown financial district, Ala Moana Shopping Center and the Ward Centers. Now the developer is facing the challenge of selling its condos in a slowing market.
KC Development is constructing the 46-story Moana Vista. It's just down the street from 909 Kapiolani and across from the Blaisdell Center. Last week, prices were reduced by 16-25% on 60 units in the 492 unit development.
A mountain view unit on the 18th floor was originally priced at $468,000, now reduced to $392,000. Another unit with ocean views on the 30th floor originally listed at $762,000 is now available for $574,500. All units at Moana Vista have two bedrooms and two baths in various configurations with 12 floorplans.
The agressive pricing is a bold move by the developer. Moana Vista's units are priced competitively with resale units in other condos on the market today. As one might expect, with the current construction boom there were quite a few speculators that bought high rises solely to flip and make profits. The slowing market has them selling for small gains and sometimes at a loss. Moana Vista's new pricing will put more pressure on local sellers and offer buyers better deals, especially with interest rates falling to 5% (and maybe less).
Looking to buy or sell property on Oahu? Contact Mike Bates (808) 551-2663
This past Saturday I picked up a couple at the airport and took them to Waianae to look at a home. The weather was beautiful, sunny and cool with light winds. On the way down, we saw some successful hunters driving home after a pig hunt. Here's a photo of the bigger pig.
They has another pig on the hood of the truck, I didn't get a good photo of that one. The hunters' dogs are in the cage underneath the pig.
Just in time for the holidays, put that pig in an imu and enjoy Kalua Pig at a dinner party.
Aloha, Mike
Peggy Chun passed away on November 19, 2008. Her funeral was on November 5th and it was well attended by friends and family. Peggy Chun died at the age of 62 due to ALS, or Lou Gehrig's disease.
Chun was originally from Oklahoma and she moved to Hawaii in 1969. She took up art after her sister (who was an artist) passed away in 1987.
ALS progressed through Chun's body, slowly paralyzing her until she could no longer move her hands. She continued to paint using a paintbrush in her teeth. Later, she was unable to paint with her teeth she painted using software that tracked her eye movements.
Ms. Chun is survived by her son, Eric Keala and husband Elroy. They lived in Nu'uanu, a neighborhood in Honolulu.
Some of Peggy Chun's art - visit her website here
We're adding a new feature to the website, Comparative Market Analysis Reports, also known as CMA Reports. The reports are on our neighborhood pages. For example, if you're looking for a home in Kapolei, look for our report below the listings on that page.
The reports reflect homes sold in a 12-month period. We update the CMA Reports periodically, some may be for the 12 months ending October 31, others for the 12 months ending November 30th. A few neighborhoods such as Lanikai have a relatively low number of sales and the time period maybe longer, so that buyers and sellers can get the best info for the particular neighborhood.
CMA Reports can be tailored to show sold homes, actives (for sale now) as well as pending sales. Home buyers and sellers, feel free to contact us to receive a CMA report showing the neighborhood and price range of homes you want to see.
Aloha, Mike Bates
Experienced Hawaii real estate agent working full time for his customers. Innovative selling methods and great communication.
ActiveRain Corp. is not responsible for the accuracy of the site's content (which is written by members of the ActiveRain Real Estate Network) and does not endorse the views of the real estate agents, mortgage brokers, and others listed here.
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