Kona Kohala Blog

WEST HAWAII REAL ESTATE:  Our market continues to chug along in a non-stellar fashion but with regular activity and declining prices.  Tomorrow the fed meets to revisit the economy.  Many of the "experts" think Bernanke and crew will decide the recovery isn't really a recovery at all but instead is a second recession in the making.  Regardless of how much money is pumped into our economy, without job growth it will only last as long as any of us typically hold onto money, not long.  There is nothing sustainable in bail out packages.

What we're seeing in west Hawaii, especially in Kona and the Waikoloa Beach Resort and Mauna Lani Resort areas as well as in the Waikoloa Village is people with their nest eggs put away looking to the future.  What we're not seeing is people on the way up the ladder looking for a nicer home, no one seems to be on the way up.

Much of the buying activity today is either retirees or soon to be retirees or investors taking advantage of low prices in one of the world's premier vacation destinations.  Most of today's buyers have the cash for their purchase or have large downpayments and the need for a small mortgage to get into their home.

Most of our activity is in the under $400K price tag for Single Family Residences (SFR's) and the under $250K price for condos.  While our market sales activity has been on the rise since last July, prices continue to move down making for attractive purchases.  Waikoloa Village is again attractive to retirees who want to move to Hawaii, especially sunny West Hawaii, and spend their retirement playing golf and being involved in community activities.  Homes are very attainable in the village for both SFR's and condos plus it's a great place to live.

Along the South Kohala gold coast, resort living in both the Waikoloa Beach Resort and the Mauna Lani Resort had become reasonable, perhaps more so than in any time in the past.  Beautiful resort style condos are available under $300K with all the amenities and associated with the resorts and all they have to offer.

This is a great time to shop for a retirement home, a second home or an investment property in both North Kona and South Kohala.  If you're thinking about it, contact me and we'll get started in a no obligation, no cost search.

POLITICS:  How about a vacation?  How about Spain, sun drenched Spain rather than Hawaii or Florida, especially inviting if the tax payers can foot some of the bill for you.  We've all heard about the lousy economy and how we should be more frugile, even how we should spend our money in our own country to help those struggling to make it in these hard times.

But if you're the first lady and daughter, why not say, "screw the U.S., let's go abroad."  Let's take Air Force 2 and head overseas.  Let's kick the tourists and residents off the beach so we can swim and read and not be bothered by the riff raff.  Let's take motorcades through town and tie up traffic and let's book 60 rooms in the most expensive hotel in Spain for us and our friends.  Oh yeah, this is nice.  I wonder how the other half is living.

Maybe it's time we told the king and queen how the other half, the American tax payer is living.  Care to vote anyone?