Six months ago it looked like oceanfront Halii Kai at Waikoloa Beach Resort was going to have an unusually slow year for sales. By May 2018, only four condos sold in what is normally “high season” and with the Kilauea eruption affecting visitor arrivals and buyer interest for the following three months, the outlook was not strong. Happily, we have seen a burst of sales activity that should take us to at least a dozen sales by year end, not quite the record 18 sales of 2017, but still up from 2016.
The main appeal of Halii Kai is the oceanfront amenity area where you could watch the sunset from the sand-bottomed hot tub or with a cocktail at the full bar.
Sales Distributed Between Coconut Grove, Ocean View, and Oceanfront
In my fall 2017 Halii Kai market review, I commented that the median and mean sales price at Halii Kai seemed to stay remarkably stable around the $750,000 for the previous three years. Without knowing yet exactly where the five unit currently in escrow will close, that seems to be the case in 2018 as well:
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In part, this reflects the mix of sales between the different view areas at Halii Kai: the Coconut Grove buildings with garden and mountain views sell for less than the same unit with a golf course view; those with an ocean view along the golf course, in turn, sell for less than the identical floor plan in the three oceanfront buildings.
Least expensive active listing at Halii Kai is 2 bedroom 4C with golf course view (MLS 619626)
Is it a Buyerʻs Market or a Sellerʻs Market at Halii Kai?
Note that the average sales price to list price in the table above is right around 96%…so buyers are pretty much paying what sellers are asking, and sellers are finally understanding what the market will bear.
When I analyzed sales a year ago, my conclusion was that the best values were at the higher end, compared with the prices the developer sold for in the 2015-2017 market peak. That seems to hold true this year as well.
View from Halii Kai 15D, two bedroom oceanfront condo, just listed for $1,250,000 (MLS 623139)
One oceanfront condo is in escrow, Halii Kai 13H. The asking price of $1,195,000 is 41% below what the developer got in 2007, and 36% above what the buyer paid as a short sale in 2009. Those percentages are almost identical to the oceanfront sale in 2017.
We sold Halii Kai 3C with a golf course view for $550,000, which was 5% below what the developer got in 2008 just before the crash, and 23% above the 2014 sales price.
Bottom line is that the variability is higher where the view premium is more of a factor. Your Coconut Grove or golf course view condo will always have more stable pricing and less downside. Your oceanfront condo will eventually have more upside when we see a truly hot market again.
Either way, current prices at Halii Kai may not be steals, but they should continue to prove attractive to buyers. For help with the nine active listings priced from $619,000 to $1,950,000, feel free to contact me directly.
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