Prices were up for both single-family homes and condominium units.
The sales volume for houses was up a healthy 26.5 percent compared with May 1995 and while the apartment volume was down 3.5 percent from a year earlier, it was still the best month for condo sales in the past 11 months, according to the Honolulu Board of Realtors.
Helen M. Lindemann, president of the 4,500-member real estate trade association, said a review of the number of properties now going into escrow, heading toward completion of sales, suggests that the higher volume will be maintained for the next several months.
"Because the real estate market is often a leading indicator of the strength of Hawaii's economy, we are hopeful that the heightened housing sales are telling us that we may be turning the corner on our economic slump," she said.
Leroy Laney, chief economist at First Hawaiian Bank, cautioned against putting too much weight on any one month's figures but he said the improvement in home sales is a good sign.
"It's encouraging. That would be a pretty good barometer, even if it is only one month," he said, adding that a boost in tourism has been helping the state's economy.
The board reported the May figures today, adding up sales of existing single-family homes and condominium units but not counting sales of new homes.
In all, 167 single-family homes changed hands last month compared with 132 in May 1995. The median price, the level at which half the homes sold for more and half sold for less, was $344,000, an increase of 6.7 percent from $322,500 in May 1995. Last month sales were also 21 percent higher than April's sales and the median price was 1.5 percent higher.
A total of 218 condominium units changed hands in May, a decrease of 3.5 percent from 226 in May 1995 but a fat 26.7 percent increase from 172 in April. The condominium median price last month was $182,000, an increase of 1.1 percent from $180,000 a year earlier and a 4 percent rise from April.
"We're quite excited by the May resale figures, both for single-family homes and condominiums," said Lindemann.