Oahu Hawaii Real Estate Articles

Hawaii Real Estate Blasts Into Cyberspace With Prudential Locations' New Blog

Reasons to buy - or become an investor in Hawaii:

As Hawaii's rents increase, the gap between rent payments and mortgage payments gets smaller.  Low mortgage interest rates have brought mortgage payments down, as this article points out Hawaii rent highest in nation , rents are going up, and are now the highest in the nation.    The median rent in Hawaii was up 7 percent from $1,116 in 2006, and up 20 percent from $995 in 2005. September 23, 2008 Pacific Business News say    What is bad news for some, is good news for others.  This is great news for your investors.  There are three things that investors look for in determining when to invest in  rental property.  One is the rent base.  Hawaii has the highest in the nation, check that one off.  The second criteria investors want is low interest rates. Check.  But we don't know for how long, so lets buy before rates start back up.  The third requirement is sufficient inventory so there is choice.  Check - Hawaii now has ample inventory. 

Part of the reason for the strength of the Hawaii real estate market is the strength and variety of the Hawaiian economy.  Hawaii behaves differently from the rest of the US.   As there is more talk about 'recession' on the Mainland.  One of the elements of our unique economy is the very large amount of military spending that goes on here.  The military recently awarded contracts that could total $158 million for a new communications facility in Wahiawa, drydock work at Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard and Navy construction. 

Read this artical: Federal impact on Hawai'i big, rising it describes this spending in detail.  As you can see, government spending in Hawaii is immense. Of special note is the number of jobs that are created by this spending = 86,318.  Keep in mind that many of these jobs are construction as the Military is currently expanding infrastructure on Oahu.  Federal government spending in Hawai'i rose by more than half a billion dollars in 2007 as it increased retirement payments, grants and procurement contracts over its 2006 expenditure total.A new report from the Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism shows direct expenditures in the state rose to $14.1 billion in 2007 from $13.5 billion a year earlier.  The report quantifies what's already generally known about the federal government in Hawai'i — it is one of the state's economic pillars providing employment, contracts, grants and retirement payments. The federal government spent $10,957 per resident here, making it the fifth-highest state in spending on a per capita basis. Most of the federal government's spending occurred on O'ahu ($11.1 billion) in 2007.

This article discusses just some of that spending. This is something that the media can’t put a negative spin on.  There is a quote below that is perfect: "It's a lot of money," he said, estimating the collective value of the work at $500 million to $1 billion a year. "It's significant. The thing that's important is it's not going away."   Read more: Military housing boom offsets slow civilian sector 

How bad can it be if you live in Hawaii?  Economic recovery starts with attitude. Take a look at this article.  People in Hawaii are more optimistic, worry less about money and the standard of living here is number one.  So, who is going to lead this economy back from the cliff?  Hawai'i's economy may stink, but at least we're satisfied about how we live.  Hawai'i findings included:

·  Hawai'i residents were the fourth most optimistic. The highest optimism was in Washington, D.C., which also ranked first in the "thriving" category. Folks in North Dakota gave the weakest response when asked if they were thriving; Maine residents were last in optimism.

·  When it came to worries about money, Isle residents were 38th most worried. People in Rhode Island were most worried about finances, those in Wyoming were least worried.

·  Hawai'i's top ranking in standard of living satisfaction stands in opposition to Ohio's, which was last.

·  Local residents seemed to be worried about the economy getting worse but not as concerned about it affecting their standard of living. Read more:   Poll finds Isle life satisfies 82.4% 

The World's Best Places to Live 2008  While European cities dominated the top of the global list, Honolulu was the highest-ranked U.S. city in the annual 2008 "Worldwide Quality of Living Survey" this year conducted by Mercer, a New York consulting firm. Honolulu ranked particularly high in the recreation and natural environment categories. The recreation category includes variety of restaurants, theaters, sports and leisure activities. Natural environment includes climate and record of natural disasters.

An interesting way to look at the condition of real estate in the major cities.  Instead of looking at sales prices and sold data, this is a look at the vacancy of homes – both rental and owner occupied.  Honolulu is the Nation's best with a vacancy rate of 5.8% for homes and a scant 0.5% for rentals. Read more,  By Zack O'Malley Greenburg, Forbes.com Feb 12th, 2009 America's Emptiest Cities 

Among the many reasons why Hawaii is a unique real estate market, and insulated from most of what happens on the Mainland is its status of high personal income.  Personal income has a direct effect on the ability to purchase real estate. Hawaii ranks 4th in personal income growth Thursday, June 19, 2008 by Pacific Business News (Honolulu)  Placing number 4 in the nation is no small accomplishment.  Nationally, personal income dropped the last quarter of 2007 however Hawaii increased over that same period.  The state's personal income grew to $52 billion in the first quarter 2008, a 1.6 percent increase from the fourth quarter of last year. Hawai'i consumers generally score better than the country as a whole when it comes to how they manage their credit, according to a new study by a national credit bureau. Residents' average credit score of 708 compared to the national average of 692, and was 12th highest among the 50 states and District of Columbia, according to the study by Experian Information Solutions Inc.

Land prices for Hawaii rail route jump $100 million since 2006

The rail project, which will be the state's largest public works project, will affect O'ahu property owners in a variety of ways. Some, including those closest to the 21 planned train stations, could see property values increase.

Conversely, owners of property near the train tracks but far from the stations may face nuisance effects from increased noise and the unsightly elevated structures. That could lower their land values.

 Another set of property owners will have no choice but to sell all or a portion of their land to make way for the elevated guide way and stations.

 The city plans to build the elevated, approximately 26-foot-wide East Kapolei to Ala Moana guide way within existing street rights of way and on government-owned land. However, the guide way and its 50-foot-wide stations will still require acquiring all, or portions of 182 properties including 20 homes primarily in an area near the H-1/H-2 merge known as the Banana Patch.

The city is planning to spend the first $30 million to $35 million on land acquisition and tenant relocation between July of this year through June of next year, according to budget plans. Those purchases will come in advance of construction of the project's first phase in December. The train would open in phases between 2013 and 2019.  That timetable is contingent on the city receiving federal approval of the project's environmental impact study.

Interactive Blog Offers Readers the Latest Insight on Real Estate Trends in Hawaii and Beyond

HONOLULU, HI--(Marketwire - July 18, 2008) - Prudential Locations, Hawaii's largest locally owned and operated real estate company, announced today the launch of HawaiiRealEstateReporter.com an interactive blog that shares up-to-date Hawaii real estate trends through written posts, videos, as well as interactive discussions in response to industry related articles.

"Prudential Locations has always been at the forefront of utilizing technology to educate consumers about real estate," said Joe Segal, Prudential Locations' online marketing manager. "To keep up with the ever-changing world of technology, we have started this new blog to provide consumers with real estate industry insight and tips in a format that is appealing to them."

Prudential Locations invites blog visitors to read and comment about daily posts in response to nationwide articles about the real estate market. Streaming video is another medium for blog viewers to obtain tips from industry experts such as Bill Chee, president and CEO of Prudential Locations. Chee can be seen talking about topics including how to build wealth through real estate.

"With our new blog, we are delving into the world of Web 2.0 -- allowing users to explore and interact with the many aspects of the site, while acquiring the information they need to make informed real estate decisions," added Segal.

Prudential Locations employs more than 280 agents and has eight offices on Maui and Oahu. Known for being technology-driven, the company has altered the traditional real estate transaction by delivering innovative solutions that meet the needs of brokers, sales professionals and customers alike.

About Prudential Locations

Prudential Locations LLC is a multi-faceted real estate company with a rich kama'aina tradition in the islands of Hawaii that boasts more than three decades of extensive local experience and connections to offer its clients. To benefit customers, the Prudential Locations website shows every home, land, condo and real estate listing on Oahu, Maui, Big Island, Kauai, Molokai, and Lanai, with detailed property information to assist its clients. By being a leader in real estate market research and knowledge and continually training more than 280 real estate agents, Prudential Locations produced more than $1 billion in sales in 2007. Prudential Locations Hawaii is ranked in the top 4 percent of all Prudential Real Estate affiliates and recently earned the distinction of Hawaii's top brokerage firm for both transactions and sales volume by the RIS 2008 Power Broker Survey. Prudential Locations was established in 1969 with offices and affiliates throughout the state, and is an independently owned and operated member of the Prudential Real Estate Affiliates, Inc.

Avoid capital gains by trading properties By LISA SCONTRAS
Custom Publishing Group

The downside to the unprecedented appreciation of real estate investments in Hawaii is when the IRS knocks on your door to collect a hefty chunk of your cashed-out equity in the form of capital gains tax.

No one likes writing checks to Uncle Sam, and there is a simple way to avoid it, or at least to defer it. It's called a 1031 exchange.

The 1031 exchange is named after section 1031 of the IRS tax code. According to Julie Tumbaga, vice president and regional manager of OREXCO 1031 Exchange — a leading exchange facilitator and consultant — this tax code allows a property owner to defer payment of capital gains tax arising from the sale of property, if the proceeds are reinvested in a property of like kind.

The definition of "like kind" is any property held for investment, including rental houses, raw land, business property commercial real estate, condos and apartments.

READ FULL STORY click here

60,000 new homes planned for O'ahu By Andrew Gomes
Advertiser Staff Writer, Tuesday, September 19, 2006

Developers, encouraged by strong housing prices, plan to build roughly 60,000 new homes on O'ahu over the next two decades, according to a city survey and Advertiser estimates.

The expansion — adding the equivalent of a new Mililani, Hawai'i Kai, Wahiawa, Kailua and Kane'ohe combined — comes with benefits and drawbacks. It's good for the economy, jobs and families pursuing the American Dream of homeownership. But it's often bad for open spaces, commuters frustrated by increasingly congested traffic and children attending overcrowded schools.

 The projects could mean significant impacts on O'ahu residents already facing congested freeways, crowded schools and rising fees for infrastructure such as sewer lines.  Whether developers will be able to follow through on their plans depends on market conditions, but the prospect of so many new homes is jarring to many.

READ FULL STORY click here

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