If you are thinking about using your VA Loan Eligibility in Hawaii to purchase a home, make sure you are aware of wording for the contract.

With a VA Loan in Hawaii, the “Seller Credit” that is identified in Paragraph C-67 of the Purchase Contract MUST be phrased in a way that the Buyer is able to use the credit to its full extent.

This topic is very important when lenders are offering “Rebates” on loans because the rebate CANNOT be used to pay off debt of the Buyer but if worded correctly in Paragraph C-67, the Seller credit CAN be used to pay off debt.   As of yesterday, one of my Hawaii VA loan officers offered a rate of 4.25% on  a 30 year fixed rate VA loan with a 2 point rebate! 

I am not an attorney or a tax professional but I do know how to ask the right people for the answers in order to get the best deal for my Buyers.  For more information, refer to your real estate professional or give me a call anytime if you don’t have a real estate professional working for you.

There are brand new homes located in Ewa Beach, Hawaii that have some new, fantastic incentives!  This is a great time to use your VA home loan entitlement on a property in Hawaii.  Contact me immediately for a list of homes that are included with this special offer for VA loan buyers only.  Sorry but if you are currently working with USAA Mortgage Company or Navy Federal Credit Union, you will NOTbe able to use them to purchase this home.  If you do use them, you will forfeit some of the incentives below.

David J. Kucic, REALTOR
Broker/Owner
Hawaii Military Realty, Inc.
Phone: (808) 218-9338
Email: david@davidkucic.com

Here are some of the incentives that are being offered:

The developer will give 4% of the base price of the home as a credit for the VA buyers contracting now to 8/31/2011.

This credit can be used to pay off the personal loans, including the credit cards and car loans. 

In addition, the developer will pay up to 2 points and the closing costs by going with the developers lead lenders for the loan. 

The house will come with the front yard & back yard landscaping and appliances including washer/dryer and vertical blinds throughout the house.

The proposed new major shopping center in Kapolei is currently known as Ka Makana Ali’i.  This complex is being developed by DeBartolo Development, a major leader in building shopping centers for over 60 years.

The shopping center is to be located between Kapolei Parkway and Roosevelt Avenue near the Department of Hawaiian Homelands main office in Kapolei.

It is proposed to have somewhere around 1.4 million square feet and include a major department store, a family entertainment complex, retail stores, restaurants, two hotels catering to local residents, office building, underground parking, pedestrian plaza surrounded by outdoor cafes, market, drug stores and convenient stores.

Updates to follow as they become available.

Property managers on Oahu, Hawaii play an integral part in assisting people with finding homes for rent on Oahu.  Without their assistance, it makes it extremely difficult, stressful and time consuming for people to find homes for rent in Hawaii. 

Message to Hawaii Property Managers:  You need to pull your heads out of your butt because I am recommending you to people that call/email me for a property manager recommendation and I am getting reports that your services are less than spectacular.  If you are one of the Property Managers on Oahu that:  1) fail to answer your phone calls or emails, 2) fail to show up at scheduled appointments (or on time) to show a house to a prospective tenant, 3) direct tenants to your website to search for rentals but there is nothing available on your website and 4) generally you just aren’t very helpful.  You should seriously re-consider your business and go find another job because you are an embarrassment to the profession.

If the shoe fits, wear it.

The residential property tax rates for Oahu, Hawaii will be increasing this new fiscal year (July 1, 2011 to June 30, 2012).  The current tax rate is $3.29 per $1,000 of the net taxable value for land and for the building.   This is only for the Residential Property Tax Rate on Oahu, Hawaii and does not include commercial, industrial, hotels, resorts and several other categories.

The new tax rate will be $3.50 per $1,000 of net taxable value.   This increase of .21 cents is nothing major.

An example of the change in tax rate for an owner occupied property on the island of Oahu, Hawaii for a home with a combined land and building value of $600,000:

Old Tax Rate of $3.29 would be $1,974 yearly property tax with zero exemptions.

New Tax Rate of $3.50 would be $2,100 yearly property tax with zero exemptions.

For more information about Hawaii Real Esatate, Hawaii Property Tax Rates and how you can save money by filiing a property tax exemption form, contact David Kucic at Hawaii Military Realty, Inc.

Short sales on Oahu, Hawaii continue to be very prevalent on the island.  Each day as I read the “hot sheets” that show the newest properties that have come on the market, I notice that there are always more short sales available.  The area of the island doesn’t matter.  Each area is affected by short sales but the higher numbers of short sales are located in Mililani, Ewa Beach, Kapolei, Makakilo, Waianae and Waikele. 

Even though there are a lot of short sales in Hawaii, there are also a lot of buyers looking for properties. 

Here is what you need to do if you want to be successful at getting a Hawaii short sale offer accepted:

1.  You need to have your agent set you up on an auto notification system that will send you an email each time a new property comes on the market that meets your search parameters.

2.  You must go to see the property immediately.  If you wait, it will be gone.

3.  Make sure your agent submits all of the appropriate documents with the short sale packet which will include a loan preapproval letter from your lender. 

4.  Insure you are working with an agent that is familiar with the procedures involved in short sales.

5.  DONT THINK YOU CAN LOW BALL AN OFFER JUST BECAUSE IT IS A SHORT SALE.  YOU WILL LOSE OUT TO SOMEONE WHO IS WILLING TO PAY FAIR MARKET VALUE!

Almost all of the short sales in Hawaii will accept a VA loan from a veteran Buyer.  Need more info on VA loans in Hawaii?  Call or email me anytime.

Happy house hunting and good luck!

Do you want to know whether the property you are interested in is approved by the VA?  In order to use your Hawaii VA Loan Eligibility, the property must be approved by the VA.  A list of approved condos can be found on the VA Website by following this link:  VA Approved Condos.  The easiest way to locate a building using this website is to go to step 5 and select HAWAII and then click on SUBMIT.   All of the Hawaii VA Approved Condos will come up and you just need to scroll through the list and find yours.

For more information about Hawaii Real Estate and using your VA Loan Eligibility in Hawaii, please contact me at (808) 218-9338 or email me at david@davidkucic.com.

Good luck!

Hawaii Military Realty, Inc. will open its doors within the next 30 days. 

1SG (Ret) David Kucic, REALTOR,  is the Principal Broker and Owner of the new company.  Tonya Kucic, REALTOR-ASSOCIATE,  is co-owner of the company.

We will specialize just as we have over the past 6 years with servicing the men and women of the Active Armed Forces, National Guard, Reservists,  retirees, veterans and anyone else that has ever worn a military uniform.

VA Loans are our specialty when it comes to Buyers purchasing homes on Oahu.  However, we are well equipped to handle FHA Loans, USDA Loans and conventional loan clients as well.

Are you a civilian that is looking for a hard working, dedicated real estate agent but you have never worn a uniform?  Let us show you what our committment to excellence is all about.

Looking forward to serving all of you in the future.

Requesting a Certificate of Eligibility for a Hawaii VA Loan is very simple.

In many cases, the bank/mortgage company that is providing you with the VA Home Loan can obtain the COE for you using a web based program called webLGY.

If you are a Veteran wishing to use your VA Loan Eligibility in Hawaii, you can also downloand the COE Request Form at www.va.gov/vaforms/

Most of my Hawaii Military Real Estate Clients are able to obtain the COE directly from one of my VA Approved Loan Officers in Hawaii but some Veterans that have had a break in service or who have transferred branches (Army to AF, AF to Navy etc…) and those who have transferred from Active Duty to Reserves/National Guard and vice versa are the ones who may have a problem getting the COE from webLGY.

For more information on Hawaii VA Loans, Hawaii Real Estate and Military Relocation to Hawaii, visit, call or email your Hawaii Military Family Real Estate Team, David and Tonya Kucic!

I am offering Free Advertising on my website for Hawaii Military Families that would like to post their Hawaii house for rent or are looking for a rental property in Hawaii.

The requirements are:

1.  You must have a .mil email address so I can verify your military status.

2.  You must provide all of the information about your property along with photos.

3.  You have NOT signed a contract with a property manager.

As the calls and emails come in to my website requesting Hawaii rental properties, I will forward the information to the appropriate owner.

There are many military families relocating to Hawaii and I get flooded with calls and emails.  Rentals in Hawaii are hard to find (especially quality rentals) so you will be providing a great service to your brothers and sisters in arms.

Looking forward to hearing from you.