This market on Oahu is crazy as we are all aware.  It’s really a great time to be a Seller for many reasons during these times.

My concern is with our Buyers, specifically our VA Buyers who are doing 100% financing as most VA Buyers do and then needing to leave on PCS orders in 3 years.

We have no idea how long this Sellers market will last and when it will swing back in favor of Buyers.  Once the market shifts back to a Buyers market, there is more competition amongst Sellers to attract Buyers and one of the ways they do that is by offering things such as lower price and paying for some or all of the Buyers closing costs.

If our VA Buyers are unable to sell their homes because they would have to come out of pocket with cash in order to sell, then their next logical choice is to turn it into a rental property.  That is great as long as the Owner is able to “eat” the shortage each month.

For example, let’s say Sergeant Smith buys a condo in Ewa Beach for $425,000 with 100% financing.  The maintenance and HOA fee is approximately $550 per month.  The mortgage payment would be about $1,625 per month.  That’s $2,175 total.  Those units rent for about $2,000 per month.   The property manager gets $200.  The GET that the owner pays is $120 per month.  This means that Sergeant Smith would be upside down by $495 per month and that doesn’t include any repairs that might need to be made.  

Please think about your future when purchasing a home rather than just jumping in without the knowledge of what could potentially happen in the future.

The inventory of homes for sale in Ewa Beach, Hawaii is minimal. There are a ton of Buyers looking for homes. Interest rates are low. Combine those 3 things and you have “bidding wars” on homes. In the past 2 weeks, we have had Buyers make offers ABOVE the list price by many, many thousands of dollars only to get beat out by someone that was willing to go higher. Two of the properties had a total of 28 offers and another one had 22 offers. Thats very hard to compete with if Buyers are not willing and/or not able to pay a higher price and have disposable cash to make up the difference between the appraised value and the inflated price they have to pay just to get the house.

The Oahu real estate market for homes in the Ewa Beach area continues to be extremely competitive for interested Buyers.  For single family homes in the 450-600k price range, there is not a lot of available inventory.  For townhomes in the 325-350k price range, there is also a lot of competition.  If you want to have success purchasing a home in Hawaii, you must have an Oahu Real Estate Agent that is working full time for you.  You need to be advised immediately when a new property comes on the market because if you wait a day or two, someone else will get that property.  Hawaii Military Realty prides themselves on working as full time real estate agents in Hawaii who are committed to working diligently for you in order to get you the home of your dreams.  For more information on Oahu Real Estate, Ewa Beach Homes For Sale, Short Sales in Hawaii, Kapolei Resort Homes For Sale, Mililani Homes For Sale, Foreclosures in Hawaii and to speak to a Hawaii Military Relocation Specialist, contact Hawaii Military Realty at (808) 218-9338.

Ewa Beach, Hawaii features 2 major builders of homes.  Gentry Homes and Haseko.  Both developers produce a great product and the owners in each of these builders homes seemed to be very satisfied.  I personally own a few of the homes in these neighborhoods myself and I also live in Ewa Beach so I speak based on personal experience.

This video clip gives you a quick glance at one of Ewa by Gentrys neighborhoods in Woodbridge II.  These homes are large, spacious and very desirable.  Woodbridge II is located off of Hoowalea St at Keaunui Drive across the street from the new Hoalauna Park with the dog park, exercise equipment (par course equipment) and playground equipment.  Click on the hyperlink below to view the video.

For more information on buying or selling homes in Hawaii and in Ewa Beach, please consider contacting someone who knows and lives in the community;  David and Tonya Kucic of Hawaii Military Realty, Inc.

Ewa Beach, Hawaii Woodbridge II  Video

This featured video from Ewa Beach, Hawaii shows “The Tides at Laulani”  This subdivision is located at the intersection of Kapolei Parkway and Keaunui Drive and located across the street from the new Ewa Makai Middle School.  (See link below to view video).

The homes in The Tides at Laualani were built within the past 2 years by one of Ewa Beaches best developers, Gentry Homes.   The Tides has 3 and 4 bedroom homes ranging in price from the high 300’s to the mid 400’s.  All of the new homes have been sold out and the new phase of “The Trades at Laualani” is now being built right next to the Tides.

All of these homes are eligible properties for Military Veterans that want to use their Hawaii VA Loan Entitlement.  Conventional financing is also acceptable.  For more information on Ewa Beach, Ewa Beach neighborhoods and Ewa Beach Homes For Sale, contact David Kucic, Hawaii Military Realty, Inc. at (808) 218-9338 or send email to:  david@davidkucic.com

Click here for the Video Tour of “The Tides at Laulani in Ewa Beach, Hawaii”

This video clip takes you on a drive through the Ewa by Gentry neighborhood of Tuscany II in Ewa Beach, Hawaii.  the homes are all 3, 4 and 5 bedrooms.  They have central air conditioning, private fenced yards and driveway parking in addition to a  1 or a 2 car garage.  The homes with the 1 car garage chose to convert the other garage into a 5th bedroom.  This was done when the homes were brand new and were done by the developer, Gentry Homes.  These homes are a short walk to the new Hoalauna Park which features playground equipment, large grassy areas, comfort stations, par course equipment, a parking lot and soon to come DOG PARKS!

All of the homes in this neighborhood are eligible to be purchased using the Hawaii VA Home Loan.  If you are  a Veteran and interested in more information, feel free to sign up for one of our Free VA Loan Seminars.

For all of your Ewa Beach Real Estate needs, contact the company that KNOWS Ewa Beach, David and Tonya Kucic of Hawaii Military Realty, Inc. 

Ewa Beach, Hawaii Tuscany II Neighborhood Scene

I compiled the following Ewa Beach home sales statistics for Ewa by Gentry and Ocean Pointe.   These statistics were valid as of Sep 30, 2011.

The homes in Ewa by Gentry neighborhoods are just as desirable as or even more desirable than many other neighborhoods on the island of Oahu.  When a property comes on the market in a Ewa by Gentry community, an interested Buyer will make an offer on the property within a few days of listing.  This information is based on the most recent statistics as found on the Honolulu Board of Realtor’s Multiple Listing Service. 

As long as the property being listed is in decent condition and is priced at or near fair market value, there seem to be Buyer’s waiting in the midst to submit an offer to purchase the homes.  Part of the reason for this is the historically low interest rates that have been hovering anywhere in the 3.75% to 4.25% for a 30 year, fixed rate loan.

Ewa by Gentry neighborhoods have had their fair share of short sales, foreclosures and Homeowners Assistance Program (HAP) sales.  However, regardless of which one of these categories that the homes fall into, there are still many interested Buyer’s waiting on homes to hit the market.

Ewa by Gentry single family home most recent statistics (covering approximately the past 6-8 months)

• There are currently 39 homes available for sale.  This includes new homes in Haleakea that are listed on the MLS.  Of these 39 homes, 9 of them are listed as short sale and 4 of them are listed as foreclosures or lender sales.
• There are currently 58 properties that are under contract but have not closed yet.  Of these 58 homes, 37 of them are listed as short sales and 6 of them are listed as foreclosures or lender sales.
• There have been 93 homes that have sold recently.  Of those 93 homes, 33 of them were short sales and 8 of them were foreclosures or lender sales.

For the sake of comparison, these are the statistics for our neighbors in theOcean Pointe community covering the same 6-8 month time period.

• There are currently 5 homes available for sale.  Of these 5 homes, 3 of them are listed as short sales.
• There are currently 19 homes that are under contract but have not closed yet.  Of these 19 homes, 12 of them are listed as short sales and 1 foreclosure or lender sale.
• There have been 45 homes that have sold recently.  Of these 45 homes, 8 of them were short sales and 6 of them were foreclosures or lender sales.

Given the amount of homes in Ewa by Gentry neighborhoods versus Ocean Pointe neighborhoods, these statistics are very similar.

(Information here-in is deemed reliable but not guaranteed)

If Congress confirms the new bill when they return from recess in September 2011, the VA Funding Fee reduction will make Hawaii homes more affordable for Active Duty Military, Veterans and Retirees.  If the bill does get confirmed, it will only apply to VA Loans that close after October 1, 2011.

This is great news for military families relocating to Hawaii who want to purchase a home on Oahu.  While the reduction’s don’t look like much on paper, they actually do provide a savings of up to several thousand dollars due to the high price of real estate on Oahu.

Under the current VA Loan Funding Fee structure, the rates are as follows:

• Active Duty is 2.15% but would go down to 1.4% under the new plan
• National Guard and Reservists are 2.4% but would go down to 1.65% under the new plan
• If using a down payment of 5% or more, the rate will also go down
• If using the VA Loan for a subsequent time, the rate will go from 3.3% to 2.8% for year 2011-2012, 2.15% for year 2012-2013 and 1.25% for loans closing Oct 2013 and later.

For more information on VA Loans in Hawaii and Purchasing Real Estate in Hawaii, contact Hawaii Military Realty, Inc. and ask for David Kucic at (808) 218-9338 or email david@davidkucic.com

Interested in a short sale in Hawaii?  We are your Ewa Beach, Kapolei, Mililani, Makakilo, Koolina Resort, Waipahu, Waianae, Aiea, Pearl City, Pearlridge and Waikele short sale experts!