AGENT MLS HOME FINDER

The Oahu real estate market is essentially comprised of the entire City and County of Honolulu, with a population of nearly one million persons, far more than any of the other islands or counties in the Aloha State of Hawaii. Oahu real estate stands apart from the rest of the country in that it began its decline into recession before the rest of the country did, and that it has yet to suffer some of the most potentially serious consequences of the times. Some analysts have suggested that the home and condo markets have bottomed out, although others point out that market for new homes and the commercial sector of the real estate market continue to be in serious trouble.

One of the more positive bits of news for Oahu homes for sale came from a September 2, 2009 article on the KITV Website. According to the piece, “The median prices for single-family homes and condominiums on Oahu last month slipped slightly, according to the Honolulu Board of Realtors…’Sales in August were about the same as a year ago, with single family homes marginally lower and condominium sales higher, which appear to indicate that we’ve stopped declining and that we’ve hit a bottom in the housing market.’” Howard Dikus of Pacific Business News and KGMB pointed out, however, that the construction and housing markets are still weakening.

According to an August 21, 2009 article in the Pacific Business News, foreclosures on time shares, which constitute a substantial portion of the real estate market on Oahu, have stabilized.  The article by Janis Magin pointed out that “Some of the largest time-share operators in Hawaii have taken back hundreds of one-week interests in resort properties through foreclosure, an apparent effect of the recession.” Additionally, a September 11, 2009 article published online in the Maui News stated that “Oahu had the highest overall number of foreclosure filings at 302, but the lowest rate at one filing per 1,109 households.” A September 2, 2009 article in the Pacific Business News found that “Median home prices on Oahu fell about 11 percent in August, while the number of sales appeared to flatten out.”