For the 4th year in a row, Tony Kawaguchi and his Aloha Tony team have received the honors of being on this prestigious list of top producing agents in the state of Hawaii. The data is compiled from the MLS (Multiple Listing Service) and there are a few criteria that are considered from this.

1. Only MLS transactions in Hawaii

2. Only residential sales are counted. (no vacant land or commercial)

3. No new home sales are counted. (which is a shame since Realtor's often find homes in new construction developments)

4. Primary listing agents receive full credit, co-listing agents do not receive credit.

5. Both buyers agent and sellers agent are credited for the full sales price amount.

6. If the Realtor represents both seller and buyer, the Realtor is credited with twice the selling price.

Along with the top 100 in total sales, there are 4 other categories to celebrate the success of real estate agents statewide. Many of these same agents also made the top 100 Realtors list as well.

1. Most transactions

2. Vacant land

3. Top Companies

4. Honorable mention- This is given to the agents who ranked 101-125 in the value of sales, based on the same sales criteria as the top 100 Realtors.

The highest priced home for this sales year was $17.5 million dollars, and was in the Hualalai Resort area on the big Island. The highest price home sold on Oahu was $17 million and was located just east of the Waialae golf course, on the ocean (of course!). The highest price home on Kauai was sold for $12.85 million. The selling price of this same house in 1998 was $1.2 million. That's an increase in price of approximately $728,125 per year! Incredible!

As a part of the Aloha Tony team, we are proud to say that Tony Kawaguchi (and team) made it on the Top 100 Realtors list as well as the Realtors with the most transactions list. Tony and his team are climbing in numbers each year, while still maintaining the care and attention that we strive for in all of our relationships with our clients.

By: Chelsea Pferschy RS# 76072

Team Aloha Tony

Hawaii Homes International

The first question we get from military clients PCSing to Hawaii is whether it's best to rent or own.

On one hand, renting seems to offer the very attractive prospect of immediate cash savings. If you rent lower than your BAH, that's extra money in your pocket, right away. On the other hand, a wise purchase can help you procure tens of thousands of dollars in wealth ... way more than you'd have if you'd chosen to rent. This type of wealth is not as obvious or immediate as savings you might get from renting, so its value is often overlooked.

Do homeowners know something that renters don't? Are you missing out on key information that would help you plan your future? If you are planning to be in Hawaii for at least 3 years, here are a few details to consider that will help you make an informed decision.

First, let me point out 2 huge perks for military buyers. You probably already know about them... 

Honolulu BAH. The Basic Allowance for Housing in Honolulu is among the highest offered in the nation. An E-5 with dependents gets a BAH of approx. $3000. Over the course of 3 years, that's $108,000 you would never see if you decide to live on base. Check your BAH here: http://www.defensetravel.dod.mil/site/bahCalc.cfm

0% down VA loan. Up to a purchase price of $721,050, you don't have to put any money in for a down payment. And most homebuyers would need to put 10%-20% down in order to get kind of interest rates that are available to VA buyers who put 0 down. (Generally, the lower the down payment, the higher the interest rate.)

Now here are four ways buying real estate builds wealth.

4 WAYS BUYING REAL ESTATE BUILDS WEALTH

1. Rising value. What's the real estate market like in Honolulu? Here are some facts: Between 2011 and 2014, the median sale price for a single family home increased by about 5% each year. Doesn't sound like much? The difference in home equity after 3 years was $100,000! See the numbers here:http://hicentral.com/oahu-historical-data.php

2. Adding equity. This is the "forced savings account" you hear homeowners talk about. Your home equity increases as property values rise AND as you pay down the mortgage of your house. After 3 years, on a $600,000 home (with today's interest rates) you will have paid down your mortgage loan by about $36,000. That money is yours, in the form of equity in your home. This means that even if your property value stays the same, you will have saved $1,000/mo in the form of home equity.

3. Tax Savings. Your monthly mortgage payment includes interest on your loan. The unfortunate fact is, you'd be paying a lot of money in interest. But here's the silver lining: at tax time, the money you paid in interest gets deducted from your year's income. This is called a top-line tax deduction. Approximately 25% of the interest you paid can be retained in the form of tax savings. Please consult your tax professional for more comprehensive information (we are not tax advisors). 

4. Inflation protection. Simply put: rent payments go up, while mortgage payments stay the same. Next year your landlord may decide to raise your rent by 5%. As a short-term renter this may not be a big deal, but consider the wealth accrued by the long-term owner. On your house, your mortgage will stay the same for 30 years. Wise owners who bought a house in Hawaii in 1985 have made hundreds of thousands dollars in the ways mentioned above and from renters ... whose payments have quintupled from 30 years ago. 

I was showing some homes to a client this week and walked into a home that smelled like flowers. All 3 of us made comments about how nice it smelled and felt happy the whole time we were there. I saw that the owner had lit some candles to make the home smell nice.

Then it hit me - why doesn't everyone try hard to make their home buyer friendly? Why is there so much weird stuff I see, smell, and hear when I walk into a house? So here are 10 things that buyers hate. 10 things that will keep your home from selling, in no particular order.

   1. Smokers. You cannot get smoke out of a house. Change the carpet, paint the walls, buy an ozone machine, and you might not get it out if it's real bad. I don't care if you smoke outside, you still can smell it when you walk in.
   2. Dogs, cats, birds, rabbits, and anything with hair. I can small pets the moment I walk in. your carpet is probably stained in places you can't see without moving furniture. You have fleas and you don't think you do. Your house smells like pets, and buyers hate that.
   3. Clutter. Please don't leave your collection of Chinese dolls or your 10 chess sets in plain view for us. Please throw away your trash, clean your dishes, put away your clothes, and make the house look un-lived in.
   4. People. Huh? Yes, people. Buyers want to walk around uninteruppted, and want to feel like they can look anywhere for as long as they want. So please get out of your house when we come to see it. Don't stand there watching over us like a school principle. Let us look slowly and carefully at this most important investment.
   5. Dirt - There is so much red dirt on this island, and it seems to get everywhere. It makes fences and walls look terrible, so go buy some Oxyclean and get that stuff off. You might have to get a pressure washer and put some of that Oxyclean in there. Whatever you do, just get the dirt off your house.
   6. Darkness. Open the dang windows please! Don't close all the blinds when we are about to show up, and please do turn on all the lights. If you have dark drapes or blinds, you might have to get rid of them. This is Hawaii, so let the sun in!
   7. Weird decor - we walked into one house that had a giant nude painting of a woman right in front of the entry. It was all we could talk about the entire time so we hardly even saw the house. The rest of the day we kept laughing about the giant painting. In fact the house was pretty nice, but we could hardly notice!
   8. Extreme colors - bright red, bright yellow or green, basically anything that will distract the buyers. I don't want to walk into a house and be shocked. If my first thought is, "whoa! bright colors!" then you've probably missed an opportunity to grab a buyer. First impressions do count, a lot.
   9. Heat - in Hawaii it gets warm, very warm. So if you have a home that has been locked up with all the windows shut, the buyer is going to walk in and feel too hot to want to stick around very long. Even if they like the house, they might want to get out because they are so darn hot. So if your house gets hot, you may have to turn on the AC when you have showings .
  10. Most importantly - PRICE! Don't overprice and hope to get something lower. Price the house to sell because this is a buyer's market and probably will be for a long time. If you price a house even a little too high, it tells the buyer that you're not that motivated. It might keep you from getting an offer, while pricing it "low" might get you 3 offers above asking. Price it to sell quickly or you'll be waiting around a year and probably will get less in the long run than if you sell fast.

    Many people get confused when Realtor's talk about Mariners Valley in Hawaii Kai. They say, "Do you mean Mariners Ridge????" Nope. Im talking about the valley that's nestled between Mariners Ridge and Kamehame Ridge, Mariners Valley. It goes by a few different names, depending on what area of the valley you're talking about....Mariners Valley or Kamilo Iki Valley are the 2 that are widely used. They're based on the legal descriptive names of the area and the subdivisions used in the property tax records for Honolulu County. 

An aeriel  view of Mariners Valley from the ridge above

    There are single family residences and also townhomes in Mariners valley. The valley is in a really great area of Hawaii Kai, right in the middle. But it's tucked back so that you get a nice suburban and quiet feel here. Koko Head crater looms overhead so most of the residences get a nice view of it, at least from the streets. And in the back (top) of the valley, some homes even get Hawaii Kai town views and some partial ocean/marina/canal views. 
    At the beginning of the valley there are numerous soccer fields, a skate park, basketball courts and playgrounds.  Up from there is Kamilo Iki Elementary School.  There is also a park (Kamilo Iki Neighborhood Park) about halfway into the valley with a playground, basketball court and a soccer field space. And if you want to catch the bus, there are a few stops on Lunalilo Home Rd. 

Mariners Valley 3 Townhomes 

     The townhome subdivision is called Mariners Village 3. Prices range from  $448K-$607K  (in the last year) and they have units with 2-4 bedrooms and range between 850-1356 sq ft. The lower priced one's may possibly need some renovations, but the reduced price and being in Hawaii Kai are 2 great reasons to check these out! I've seen these units after they've been fully renovated and they're awesome! The neighborhood has a pool and clubhouse available to the owners and floorplans are spacious and buildings and grounds  have been well planned and maintained. 

Kalapaki St single family home in Mariners Valley 

     There are also many single family homes in the valley that range from $750K-$1,078,000 (in the last year), and land sq ft range between 5,200-13,700 sq ft. If you know your rules of real estate in Hawaii, then you know that the more land you have, the more you'll pay for the home. It's a commodity that we, unfortunately, cannot produce any more of on this island, especially on this side as most of the usable land has been developed already. 

View from the lanai of a single family home in the back of Kamilo iki Valley 

    Hawaii Kai is such a desirable area to live in with the close proximity to great beaches, town, shopping and restaurants. On top of that, the highly rated public schools put Hawaii Kai home values up on the top.  Mariners Valley/Kamilo Iki Valley are a wonderful option for buyers to consider here. Log onto alohatony.com to get customized information on Hawaii Kai and other neighborhood's on Oahu. -Mahalo

By: Chelsea Pferschy RS# 76072 (808) 754-6000

Check out our lakefront listing in Kailua!

Experience island living at its finest in this beautiful corner-lot Kailua home on the water. Over 2700 sqft total, 4 bed 2 bath. Features a brand new kitchen, heated tile pool, dock on the lake, boat parking and mountain and sunset views. Wide open layout, newly remodeled in 2014. Includes PV panels for water, electricity and pool. See 68 hi-res pics at http://www.alohatony.com/kahili/

Enchanted Lake (also known as Ka‘elepulu Pond) covers about 95 acres in Kailua, Hawaii. It connects to the ocean at Kailua Beach Park via Ka‘elepulu Canal. Access to the lake is exclusive to residents and members of the Enchanted Lake Residents Association (ELRA). Last year, to the delight of pond fishermen, the population of local fish species ama ama and papio increased. In addition to fishing on the lake, residents organize Holiday Boat Parades. More information on Enchanted Lake and ELRA can be found at the association website: http://www.kaelepulupond.org/

 Here's the view of Ka'elepulu Pond from behind the house.

This home features a private dock on the lake. 

Beautifully renovated kitchen 

Spacious Master Bedroom

 Newly grassed front yard on a corner lot 

   You may have noticed that home prices are increasingly rising in Hawaii. Sellers are receiving multiple offers and backup offers due to low inventory. This has resulted in above asking price offers. Lets talk about how real estate is expected to be affected in 2015. Or rather, how it will affect you as a homeowner and/or a buyer. 

Photo: Hoakalei master planned community 

   The median home price (on this rock, Oahu) has steadily risen in the last 5 years, since the bubble burst. (which I might add, only affected home prices minimally in comparison to our mainland comrades) It is currently at $690K and economists believe that by 2020, the median home price on Oahu will be $1M. Some even believe that it could double by then. 

Photo: Sunrise in Kailua/Lanikai

   During the last surge in home values back in 2005-2006, local lenders stayed conservative, that helped Hawaii homeowners hold onto their homes, and protected our home values as well.  We only saw a 3% drop in 2008, 7.9% drop in 2009 and then in 2010, prices started to slowly rise again. This shows the true strength of the Hawaii housing market.  

 The housing market went up 3.8% for single family homes, and 5.4% for condominiums this last year alone. Supply and demand play a big part in our market, that along side with living in a beautiful place with a perfect climate. This makes it increasingly more difficult for non-homeowners, but specifically younger people, to become homeowners, which then drives up rental rates as well. But despite new home development on the Ewa plain and in Kakaako, the inventory is still low. Average time on the market has also gone down each year.

Photo: Hawaii Kai to Diamond Head from the summit of Koko Head Crater

   You may think that as a buyer, your going to experience the downside of the Hawaii market, well not so much. Experts at the Honolulu Board of Realtors say that if you jump in, and take advantage of low interest rates now, you will profit in the end.  Interest rates still remain low, which helps buyers attain higher loan amounts. There are also many options for buyers here, like USDA 100% loans, VA loans and even seller financing. 

    But many Realtor's agree: Buyers, be prepared to meet or exceed asking prices. Be completely pre-approved with a lender before making any offers.  Your agent may want you  to send a letter about yourself/your family to get the sellers attention on your offer. And most importantly, be prepared to move fast! 

   If you're starting to build your real estate portfolio or expanding it, purchasing in Hawaii can be a safe move for you....
Where do you want to be in the year 2020?    

By: Chelsea Pferschy RS# 76072

The median home price in Honolulu reached a record high of $719,500 in November. This exceeds the summer high ($700K in June '14) and reflects a 5% increase over last year. This year-end peak follows a $50,000 drop in median home price between June and August.

Three months ago, I wrote an article in which I highlighted a notable trend in Honolulu real estate, making two main observations:

1. That median prices tend to take a dip in the autumn, between highs in the summer and winter
2. That the end-of-year peak will likely surpass the summer peak.

Here's an excerpt from that September post:

"In two out of the last three years, the median price in the winter exceeded the previous summer high. While we can't say with certainty that the median price this December will be higher than $700k, it's a safe bet to say that it will be higher than August's $650K."

And so the trend holds. I created the chart below so you can see the ebb and flow from 2011 to 2014.

Median Sales Prices on Single Family Homes (Oahu)

Confidence for sellers and buyers

This is encouraging news for both sellers and buyers.

Sellers can take confidence in the fact that Hawaii's real estate market is still going strong. "The demand for homes continues to outpace current inventory levels." said Honolulu Board of Realtors President, Julie Meier. More demand than supply means higher prices and therefore, more money for the seller.

Buyers can also take confidence in the strength of our market. When the cost of a commodity rises, so does its value. For instance, the higher the price of gold or oil, the more valuable it is. Similarly, as home prices have been on the rise in Hawaii, we have seen a corresponding rise in home values. The trend of a healthy annual increase in Hawaii home value is good news for future home owners, as owning Hawaii real estate remains a solid opportunity to build wealth.

Importance of finding a good realtor

But how important is it really to track trends? Not nearly as important as finding a knowledgable realtor -- especially in a unique market like Hawaii. Good realtors are able understand trends and act accordingly. For example, on a recent sale, our buyer's offer beat out three higher priced offers on the same home.

What made our lower-priced offer stronger than the others? We included an appraisal clause in our offer (which none of the other agents did for their clients). Upon hearing that all offers were over asking price (as would be ours), we asked our buyer if they would be willing and able to furnish cash to cover the difference if the appraised value came in under their offer price. If so, the seller wouldn't have to worry about the deal falling apart because of the loan.

In the end, the appraised value matched our client's offer price! And because there was no difference, the loan was funded with no hiccups and our client never had to bring in the extra cash we referenced in the contract.

What does this have to do with the rise in median home prices?

We didn't just get lucky. We saw the trends and anticipated that the home was worth more than what the seller was asking. In light of this, we let our client know his options and the associated risks, equipping him with the information he needed to make a confident decision -- a decision that paid off in the end.

But it all starts with one decision: which real estate professional will you choose?

Kuapapa at Hoakalei is comprised of 4 collections (price ranges)  that all have customizable floor plans in variable price ranges.

Loulu-  the Loulu collection of charming seaside-style cottages have 4 plans that start in the $600's. Residence 25.10, 25.20, 25.30 and 25.40 range from 1628-1864 sq ft. They  include three or four bedrooms, and an available main floor master suite.

Naio- The Naio collection is in the same vein as the Loulu collection, with a bit more space and more refined interior finishes. There are 4 plans that start in the mid $700's. Residences 45.10, 45.20, 45.30 and 45.40 range from 1,997 to 2,381 and have four to five bedrooms and up to three full baths.

 

Koa Lifestyle series- The Koa collection features 2 floor plans, both with attached 2-car garages. This collection starts in the mid $900's and has between 2545 sq ft (65.10 plan) and 2612 sq ft (65.20plan), and both have 4 bedrooms and 3 baths. These 2 home plans have a free flowing, open 'great room' layout. 

Koa Premier Series- This is the top of the line series in Kuapapa-Hoakalei. It consists of 5 plans that start in the mid $900's and go up to $1.1M+.  Residences 60.10, 60.20, 60.30, 60.40 and 60.50 are between 2123 sq ft and 3552 sq ft, with 3, 4 and 5 bedrooms, and 2.5, 3.5 and 4.5 bathrooms. They tout large open, great room layouts, with opulent master retreat and bathrooms. They also, all have attached 2 and 3 car garages. 

With home ownership in Hoakalei, you get privileged access to the new Wai Kai Hale Club and the planned neighborhood pool and spa. The Wai Kai lagoon, when finished, will be the largest manmade body of water in Hawai'i. The Wai Kai Lagoon is envisioned to be the centerpiece of the resort district and they hope to make this neighborhood a one stop shop for finicky "2nd home" and "resort home" buyers on the west side of Oahu. 
There will be a neighborhood pool/spa and playgrounds. The Wai Kai Hale Club will be on the shore of the lagoon, there you can gather with friends, BBQ or launch your kayaks, paddle boards, and surf boards. The Hoakalei Resort, designed by Haseko Development, Inc., is a 726 acre master planned destination community and currently includes an 18-hole Ernie Els designed champion golf course.

Call Team Aloha Tony, for independent and personal representation and assistance in finding the new home of your dreams at Kuapapa, Ka Makana, and Kipuka at Hoakalei, today.

-Chelsea Pferschy RS# 76072

(808) 754-6000

Check out our new Ocean Pointe listing in Ewa Beach! This immaculate 5 bed, 3 bath shows like a model home and has over 2700 sf interior living space. Upgrades include plantation-style shutters and built-in desks and closets. 

Built in 2006, this Ocean Pointe home is located just a mile away from the brand new Laulani Village Shopping Center, where you'll find Safeway, Ross, Petco, Walgreen's, Panda Express, Starbucks and other great shops.

The kitchen has a wide open feel with stainless steel appliances. The master bedroom is spacious and features two walk-in closets. 

The house is not located on a busy, main road (like some homes in Ewa Beach), so no need to worry about heavy traffic passing by your home. It takes less than a minute to get from the house onto Kapolei Parkway, which provides convenient transit between Ewa Beach and Kapolei. 

And this is a huge plus: directly across the street is a grassy neighborhood park, so the view from this home will not be obstructed by future construction close-by. The house also comes with a gas BBQ range out back. 2-car garage with a covered, gated carport for a 3rd vehicle. 

This is the park located directly across the street from the house.