Hawaii Real Estate news 
There are currently 10 blog entries related to this category.
Saint Louis Heights in Honolulu
Sunday, April 28th, 2013 at 5:28pm. 53 Views, 0 Comments.
We recently listed this house for sale on Saint Louis Drive. Within an hour the phone calls were coming in requesting showings. That first day I spent nearly six hours at the property! The phone was ringing all week and we had a stream of buyers checking the house out.
This home is all about island style. Built in the 1950's, upstairs is a three bedroom one bath living area with a large lanai overlooking Honolulu. The 7,000+ square foot lot provides enough room for a spacious yard along with the house.
Take a look at this cozy kitchen and the airy feel. This home is about 600 feet above sea level, providing cool breezes along with the nice views.
Here's the master bedroom. It has the only air conditioner in the home, which is…
Date-Laau - the Lease is Up!
Tuesday, December 4th, 2012 at 5:10pm. 248 Views, 0 Comments.
Back in 1958 the Date Laau community was created and the neighborhood eventually became home to hundreds of people. The lease expires today - December 4, 2012.
The lessor, Iolani Schools, is not offering a fee purchase option. Owner occupants at Date-Laau will be allowed to continue living there for an undetermined period at market rents. Other owners who are non-residents (I am one of them) lose their interest in their properties at the end of today.
Is this fair? Well, we all knew when we bought that these were leasehold units. I guess technically it is fair. On the other hand, many other properties on Oahu have been converted to fee simple. All of us (owners/residents) hoped for a fee purchase option or an extension of the…
Hawaii's Economy is improving in 2012
Wednesday, October 31st, 2012 at 10:19am. 204 Views, 0 Comments.
If you live in Hawaii or have visited recently, there should be no doubt that our economy is rebounding. Tourism during the summer set a new record and it looks like the trend will continue through the end of the year.
Visitor arrivals in September 2012 were 595,000, six percent above the same period last year. Tourism dollars spent in September reached $1.1 billion, which was 13% higher than a year earlier.
The majority of Hawaii's visitors are from the U.S. west coast. East coast visitor counts are lower, however those visitors tend to spend more money while vacationing in Hawaii.
Internationally, Japan leads for Hawaii tourism. Other asian countries along with Latin America and European countries have an increasing presence of…
Hawaii Encroachments and Encroachment Agreements
Friday, June 1st, 2012 at 4:39am. 1556 Views, 0 Comments.
In real estate terms, encroachments are intrusions onto a property. Older neighborhoods in Hawaii often have encroachments because the methods of measuring for land surveys decades ago were not as accurate as current methods are.
Encroachments commonly involve walls. For example, a homeowner constructs a wall along the perimeter of his property, believing that the wall is inside the property lines. Later, a survey is performed and it is found that the wall crosses the boundary and encroaches into the neighbor's property.
For residential properties in Hawaii, an encroachment of six inches or less is considered "de minimis". For purposes of buying and selling real estate in Hawaii, de minimis encroachments do not require encroachment…
Oahu Real Property Tax Due Dates
Sunday, April 22nd, 2012 at 10:55am. 309 Views, 1 Comments.
Paying your real property taxes on time
A customer called me recently about a property tax bill they received from the City and County of Honolulu. This couple had bought their house in Kahala in December, 2011. In April, 2012 they received a delinquentcy notice with penalties and interest for their February property tax bill. They wanted to know why they never received a tax bill in January or February?
I called the Property Tax office to inquire. Here's their response:
- Oahu real estate sales are recorded by the State of Hawaii.
- Property taxes are assessed and collected by the City and County of Honolulu.
- It can take 2-3 months from the time the sale records to the time the sale records to the time the City and County of…
City and County of Honolulu pursues illegal vacation rentals
Saturday, August 6th, 2011 at 1:59pm. 3053 Views, 0 Comments.
It's a common misconception that it's okay to to buy a home or condo on Oahu and then rent it out short term. In most cases, such rentals are illegal. The thing is, the City and County of Honolulu has not been doing much to pursue and punish the offenders.
The City is proposing an ordinance to require owners of vacation rentals to post their permit numbers with all advertisements or face penalties of up to $1,000. Continued advertisement after being warned may result in penalties of up to $2,000 per day.
Residents of some communities have strongly opposed vacation rentals for years, arguing that the businesses increase noise and congestion in residential neighborhoods.
In 1989, the City put a moratorium on new vacation rental permits and…
Makaha Valley Towers in the movies
Monday, June 27th, 2011 at 9:07am. 535 Views, 1 Comments.
A few years ago Matt Damon starred in a movie called "The Informant". It was not a blockbuster, still it's a fun movie to watch. The events portrayed in the movie took place in the 1990's.
At one point the characters decide to have a meeting in Hawaii. The location of the meeting is not mentioned in the movie, however for people who know Makaha it's easy to figure out. They stayed at the Makaha Resort (formerly known as Sheraton Makaha) and golfed at the Makaha West course.
Here are some screen pics from the movie:
Here's a picture of the government spies, following the alleged conspirators. The Makaha Valley Towers are in the background.
Matt Damon tees of while the group watches. You can see the Makaha Valley Towers…
FIRPTA and HARPTA and other issues for investors
Thursday, June 2nd, 2011 at 10:10am. 688 Views, 0 Comments.
What Canadian Buyers Should Know About Buying in Hawaii
Being a Canadian and buying in Hawaii is not a problem. From the purchasing standpoint, if you choose to do your escrow signing in Canada (instead of being in Hawaii), your documents will be notarized at the local consulate, which requires an appointment set in advance.
When you sell, there will be two withholding "taxes" applicable. One is called FIRPTA, a U.S. Federal withholding amounting to 10% of the sale price. The second is HARPTA, a Hawaii withholding of 5% of the sale price. To recap, when you sell, 15% of the sale price will be withheld.
The purpose of the two tax withholdings is to ensure a foreign person files U.S. Federal and Hawaii tax returns and pays capital gains on…
How to Apply For GET and TAT Licenses
Wednesday, April 20th, 2011 at 10:26pm. 2621 Views, 0 Comments.
GET and TAT Licenses
A few months ago a customer bought an Ala Moana Hotel Condo unit which was in the hotel rental pool. In order to keep their unit in the hotel rental pool, one of the procedures required by the hotel was that the new owner obtain General Excise Tax (GET) and Transient Accommodations Tax (TAT) licenses. We'll explain how to get these licenses in this article.
What Are These Licenses For?
General Excise Tax is similar in some respects to a sales tax. When you buy something at a store, GET is usually added on to the purchase price. GET also applies to independent contractors, such as landlords, realtors, handymen etc. The State of Hawaii collects GET at several different levels.
Transient Accommodations Tax is also…
Hawaii Kai home sales February 2011
Wednesday, March 16th, 2011 at 2:13am. 586 Views, 1 Comments.
People are often amazed at the resilience of Hawaii Kai's home market. Well think about it, what areas really stand out for prospective buyers, especially those from the mainland? Hawaii Kai often comes to mind because of its safe communities, good roads, shopping centers and ocean views. 
February 2011 was a good month for Hawaii Kai home sales overall. Months supply of inventory is at 5.3 for single family homes and just 3.2 for condos and townhomes! When a neighborhood has less than 6 months inventory, we consider that a sellers' market.
Percent of original list price is important to look at too. In February, Hawaii Kai homes, condos and townhomes on average sold for just under 97% of their original list prices. That means most…