What was the state of Oahu real estate in 2012?  Here is a quick review.

The chart below shows how Oahu’s real estate market performed in 2012 compared to the previous year.

Unbelievably, the number of sales increased even as prices went up.  Our low inventory and historically low interest rates are a big contributor to this unusual equation. There are fewer homes available in the market (both number of new listings and active listings were down).  Look at the number of pending sales, up 57% for single family homes (SFH) and up 43% for Condos. Buyers are wiping out the available inventory, even at the higher prices. This is not a new trend, our market is continuing to improve in sales and price…just at much quicker pace.

Smart home buyers aren’t standing still. They are taking action now.

Smart home sellers should also take advantage of today’s high-demand market with less competition and much more interested buyers.

If this trend continues, 2013 will be a fantastic year for Hawaii real estate.

Are you considering buying or selling?  I’d love to give you a complementary consultation to discuss your specific needs.

2012年のオアフ島不動産はどうだったんでしょうか？　ぱっと見て分かるように表にしました。（上記太文字）
数字は前年度からの比べた物です。

値段が上がってきているにも関わらず、売却数が伸びてきています。在庫が少ないのと　歴史的に低い金利が大きな影響を及ぼしています。買える家が一方的に減っていている事（新しく市場に出る物件数減、現在市場に出ている物件数減）ご覧のように　売却契約中の物件が　一戸建てで57%、コンドミニアムで43%もアップ。　購入者は買える物件を　少々高くなった値段でもどんどん消化していっています。

実はこれは新しい動きではありません。オアフ島の不動産市場は取引数も、値段も上昇気流には乗っていたのですが、ただスピードが速くなてきたようです。

賢い購入者は　今とばかりに　目を光らせて真剣に住宅購入に取りかかっています。
売却をお考えの方は、競争相手が少なく、購入者の多い　この需要の高いマーケットを是非有効利用してください。

何れにしても、売却や購入、買い替えをお考えの方は　是非一度無料相談のご連絡ください。

The newest stats from the Honolulu Board of Realtors has confirmed that housing prices on Oahu are on the rise. If you recall the upside-down bell curve graph from high school math class, our home prices were already at the very bottom of the curve, and starting to move upward.

Lots of buyers who were on the fence waiting for Oahu’s housing prices to hit rock bottom are starting to realize that they just missed it–and they starting to jumping in.

Why is this happening?

1. There is not enough inventory. There simply aren’t a lot of houses on sale.

2. Interest rate are the lowest ever. In fact, just this week interest rates hit the lowest since the long term mortgage has been introduced in 1950.

3. High demand

This Pacific Business News article summarizes the report nicely.

Buyers: Your wait is over. Put an action plan together right way for your right new home.

Sellers: your wait is over. It’s clear buyer demand is there. It’s the time to put your property on the market!

Happy House Hunting!

Great news for Bank of America home loan holders. As part of a deal the U.S Government made with the major lenders, BofA will make an effort to reduce the financial hardship of their borrowers who are caught in an “upside down” situation (where the balance of their loan exceeds the value of their home). BofA has already started mailing out notification of payment reduction to qualified customers–an average of 30 % in contractual payment will be forgiven. According to this Forbes article, qualified borrowers would be someone who are at least 60 days behind on their payments since the beginning of this year. I understand this is a part of the “foreclosure” settlement, but I wonder how other borrowers who were almost qualified for this program would feel about this news. Especially those whose home payments are more than 25% of their gross household income, and their loan amount exceeds the value of their home today. These borrowers are struggling to make their payments on time, but their diligence disqualifies them this “rescue.”

I would like to hope that help will be on the way for them as well.

バンク・オブ・アメリカのローン保持者に好報です。アメリカ連邦政府と大手金融機関との間で交わされた取り決めで　現在アメリカの住宅事情低迷のため　貸し付けのローン額が現在の不動産価格より上回るいる状況の顧客に　経済的に補助をするというものだ。バンク・オブ・アメリカではもうすでに条件に当てはまる顧客には今週より郵送でローン返済額の減価の知らせを出し始めた。平均にして３０％の減価。フォーブスの記事によると、条件としては今年に入って少なくとも６０日以上月ローン返済が遅れている等がある。

For the first time in almost a decade, Hawaii home prices are the highest in the nation.  According to experts, this is a sign that Hawaii’s real estate market is stable, compared to those on the mainland. In California’s Bay Area, the median price of single family homes dropped more than 40% compared to 1st quarter 2008 (Hawaii’s median price dropped 8% in the same period).

Luckily, we didn’t see the huge swings in our market, but economists warn that increasing interest rates may lower demand.

オアフ島不動産価格全米最高値　（今のところ．．．）
１０年ぶりくらいに ハワイの住宅価格が全米で一番の最高値になった。 専門家によると、これはハワイの不動産市場がアメリカ本土に比べて安定していると見ている。　カルフォルニアのベイエリアは、一軒家の中央価格が去年の第四半期に比べると４０%以上にも下落 している（ハワイの同時期の中央価格下落率は８％）

幸運にも、私たちの市場は大きな反動は見られなかったものの、専門家はローン利率上昇で不動産需要が下がるだろう懸念している。

Long-term mortgage rates this week ties a record low reached the week of April 2nd, the lowest level since at 1970.  Last year at this time, the 30-year fixed rate mortgage averaged 6.06 percent.

Check out this release from Freddie Mac.

ローン利率１９７０年ぶり低
長期ローン利率が４月２日の週で１９７０年ぶりの最低率を示した。　去年のこの時期の３０年の固定型ローンは平均６．０６パーセントでした。

フレディーマックからのリリースを読む

Back in 2006, people were lining up to purchase units at the Moana Vista condominium project. As the economy took a turn for the worse, people started backing out for fear that interest rates will climb before the project can be completed.

Today, the building stands half-finished as construction has been stalled since December. The developer is stuck without cash and reducing prices, but people are waiting for completion. And now, to make matters worse, the the contractor is suing the developer for $30 million.

Check out the KITV story here. Stay tuned for more on this development.

モアナ　ビスタ　プロジェクト危機
２００６年にはこのモアナ　ビスタ コンドミニアム　プロジェクトを購入するのに行列をつくって購入希望者が並んだ。　　経済が悪くなるにつれ、コンドミニアムが完成するまでにローンの利率が上がるのではという不安感からキャンセルが続いた。

今の時点で建設は１２月より中途半端にも半分の状態で足止めになっている。　開発会社は資金不足、売値の値下げ、その上完成するのを待っている購入者を抱えてしまっている状態だ。　それに加えて、コントラクターからの＄３０，０００，０００の賠償裁判を掛けられてしまった。

つづきは KITV でここをクリック.

Prospective home buyers are finding that the two-point drop in interest rates over the past few months equates to more buying power, meaning it’s a good time to buy.

Click here for the rest of the story.

売り手も低利率に恩恵
過去２ヶ月に見られたローン利率の低減化が購入力アップに直接つながり購入希望者は今が買い時期。

続きはここをクリック

According to Freddi Mac, the national average of interest rate last week has dropped to the lowest ever since 1971.  This historical low interest rate is sparking a big refinancing boom among homeowners trying to lower their monthly payments, shorten the life of their loans, or convert from adjustable rate to fixed rate mortages. It’s expected that more people will refinance as word of the low interest rates spread. Check out the Honolulu Advertiser article.

Ofcourse… when rates are this low, it’s also a great time to buy.

突然のリファイナンスブーム

フレディーマックの調査によると　先週の全国平均住宅ローン利率が１９７１年以来の低率になったことがわかった。　この歴史的な利率は　持ち家がある人の間で突然のリファイナンスブームを巻き起こす原因となった。　ホノルルアドバタイザーの記事を読む