West Hawaii Home Prices Increase By Double Digits As Inventory and Interest Rates Decline

The real estate market in Kailua Kona is a tale of well-priced homes being scooped up quickly within days of being placed on the market with multiple offers and inventory declining rapidly. Rates below 3% are spurring people to buy homes knowing they can get more home for their dollar.

Local Realtors are doing more virtual tours with homebuyers who have already listed their homes for sale in white-hot markets on the mainland and looking to make a move, despite the travel restrictions to Hawaii Island. (I just did a video discussing how to buy a home sight unseen on Hawaii Island)

According to the Mike Griggs, who creates the Griggs Report, “Pending sales have reached 111 which has caused the pending ratio to climb above 100, into peak market territory.   We have not seen this since the red-hot market of 2004.    It is likely that the record low interest rates plus the relatively virus free environment has contributed to this impressive change in the market.” He also reports that there are only 44 homes on the market priced below $900,000 and 85 in escrow. In the over $4.0 million residential market, the number of sales has more than doubled since the 2019 count.

In North Kona, single-family median home prices jumped a whopping 20.83% year over year from $599,999 in 2019 to $725,000 in 2020. 49 single-family homes were sold at this time last year, compared to 41 this year, a drop of 16.33%. Vacant land in North Kona was up 15.38% from $325,000 to $375,000.

Condo sales prices saw an 11.49% leap from $296,000 to $330,000 from 2019 to 2020.  Number of sales for condos dropped 23.68% from 38 in 2019 to 29 in 2020. Even with the recent rise in prices, the condo market in North Kona saw sales volume drop 15% year over year.

In South Kohala, which includes Waikoloa Resort and Waikoloa Village, the median home price increased 7.56% year over year from $595,000 to $640,000. Condos decreased 6.07% from $511,000 to $480,000 year over year. 23 condos sold in 2019 compared to 19 this year for a 17% drop year over year.

30 homes sold in July 2019 while 19 sold in 2020, a 36.67% decrease year over year.

Vacant land sales across Hawaii Island have been brisk with an increase of 59.54% year over year, but a drop in sales volume of 8.97% year over year.

I have been receiving many emails/direct messages from people on the mainland looking to buy vacant land so they can come, get a home set up and plant some fruit trees…affordably. I have had to refer them to my East Side Realtor partners, as lots in West Hawaii are over $250,000.

For more information about homes and land, please contact us at [email protected] and we can set you up!