Maui home sales up
The 119 single-family homes
sold last month mark the highest
volume seen in two years
Maui saw the largest number of home sales in two years last month, at 119 single-family homes sold. That's the greatest home sales volume seen on the Valley Isle since June 2001, according to figures released yesterday by the Realtors Association of Maui.
May of 2002, by contrast, tallied 87 single-family home sales.
The median price for a single family home on Maui last month was $375,000, up 1.6 percent from a median of $369,000 in May 2002.
But the total dollar volume of single-family home sales through May shows how much home prices have escalated on Maui in the past year.
At more than $237 million, the total dollar volume for single-family homes is 32 percent above the same period a year ago.
Condominium sales on Maui also continued their strong performance with 153 units sold during the month.
The median price for a condominium last month was $201,000, up 1 percent over the same month last year.
But as with single family home sales, the total dollar volume for condominium sales reached so far has shown more dramatic growth, rising to $228.1 million, up 16 percent compared to the same period last year.
Central and upcountry Maui recorded the most activity for the month in single family home sales.
There were 22 sales in Central Maui last month. Most of that activity centered around the new Maui Lani subdivision in Kahului, which has been attracting mostly local buyers looking to upgrade to a new home in a planned community, said Keoni Ball, broker-in-charge at Carol Ball and Associates.
As the first major multiphase development of its kind on the Valley Isle, interest in Maui Lani has been growing as each phase is rolled out, Ball said. A new phase called The Legend, developed by Schuler Homes, is due to be completed sometime in the next quarter, Ball said. Even though prices are yet to be released, the waiting list is filling up, he said.
Prices for a home in the development are likely to be in the high $300,000 range; up from the mid-to-high $200,000 range for something comparable one year ago, Ball said.
"There are 139 homes and already 500 names on the waiting list so there will have to be a lottery drawing," he said.
Upcountry, the Kula/Ulupalakua/Kanaio area recorded 42 home sales in May. Local real estate agents were not sure what caused the spike of activity in the area, which one year ago recorded 10 sales for the same period.
Most condominium sales -- more than twice the number recorded in any other area -- occurred in Kihei, which had 67 sales for the month and 254 sales year-to-date through the end of May. Ball said he believes the Kihei area is perceived as more affordable than other areas of Maui.
"As we run out of things to sell, people are heading for Kihei. Even Central Maui seems more pricey now," he said.
The most expensive homes on Maui continue to be Kapalua, with a median price tag of almost $2.1 million for a single family home and $891,000 for a condominium.
