Hot streak continues for Oahu condo market, single-family-home sales dip slightly

Hot streak continues for Oahu condo market, single-family-home sales dip slightly

The number of condominium units sold on Oahu in February was 23 percent higher than the number of units sold in the same month last year, according to the Honolulu Board of Realtors.

Janis L. Magin Managing Editor of Digital Content- Pacific Business News | Mar 7, 2013, 11:46am HST

Oahu’s condominium market continued its hot streak in February, with sales increasing by 23 percent and prices rising 8 percent compared to the same month a year ago, according to the Honolulu Board of Realtors.

The median price of an Oahu condo rose to $340,000 last month, from $315,000 in February 2012. That was based on sales of 279 condo units last month, compared to 227 units sold in February 2012.

Single-family home sales, meanwhile, declined 7 percent to 201 sales, from 217 sales in February 2012. The median price of a single-family home in February was $600,000, down 4 percent from $625,000 in February 2012.

“These numbers aren’t all that surprising, given that February is typically a down month in Honolulu,” Kevin Miyama, president of the Honolulu Board of Realtors, said in a statement. “We anticipate the numbers will start to climb from now until July, which is the high point in the market.”

Meanwhile, other measures of Honolulu’s real estate market indicate fewer listings that are selling faster.

Inventory — which is the amount of time it would take for all listings to sell if there were no new listings — dropped by more than half for both categories. There were 2.3 months of inventory for single-family homes, 55 percent lower than the 5.1 months of inventory remaining in February 2012.

The 2.6 months of inventory for condos in February represented a 51 percent drop from a year ago, when there were 5.3 months of inventory.

The median number of days it took for a single-family home to sell in February also dropped 22 percent, to 25 days, from 32 days a year ago, while the median days on market for condos fell 21 percent to 34 days, from 43 days a year ago.

“For single-family homes, we’re continuing to see limited inventory and fewer new listings,” Miyama said. “On the condo side, sales were quite good when you consider our inventory was down about 27 percent. Compared to single-family homes, we have more condos on the market, especially in the mid-price range.”