2010 continued to be a tempestuous climate for the real estate market, as April home sales increased dramatically, while median Oahu housing prices slipped. These developments were chronicled in both the Honolulu Advertiser as well as the Star Bulletin this Friday. Though mixed opinions can be drawn from such data, the rise in home sales as outlined by the Advertiser indicates a steady trend towards continued market stabilization.
A more established trend has been the volume of sales, which have been rising since September. Last month, single-family home sales surged 52.9 percent to 286 from 187 a year earlier. Condo sales jumped 48.3 percent to 390 from 263 in the same period.
Many have pointed to the federal tax credit program which recently expired as the principle catalyst in the substantial gain. The next several months will be indicatory of whether this notion is justified. Undeterred by these gains, the median price fell relatively significantly for the first time this year, as expounded upon in the Star Bulletin.
But while there was more activity in the market, buyers still sought good deals, as evidenced by the slight decline in median prices. More than half of the single-family home buyers paid $563,000 or more for a home in April, which represented a 6.2 percent dip in the median price from $600,000 in April 2009. Similarly, the median sales price for a condominium fell 2.2 percent to $308,000 from $314,950
Though there is little doubt that these numbers are not as favorable as many economists had hoped, one must view the data with a degree of precariousness. It must be noted that while Oahu as a whole declined slightly, many neighborhoods saw significant increases, such as Kalihi, Aina Haina, and Makiki; which all reported double digit percentage price gains. Furthermore, the nature of the real estate business cannot simply be summarized with all-encompassing figures, purportedly indicitave of general market trends at a given point. Rather, the proof is in the proverbial pudding; the real story lies within the myriad of details surrounding the market.
Each article may be accessed here: Honolulu Advertiser’s “April home sales rise as prices fall”
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