Maui, and Hawaii in general, has always been in the unfortunate position of being one of (if not the most) expensive places to purchase gasoline in the entire USA. Thankfully, some much needed relief is in sight as Maui is about to get a price break in the form of an expanded Costco in Kahului featuring a gas station and car wash.
As of Wednesday September 27th, a gallon of unleaded regular in Maui was $4.39. By example of the potential for cost savings, on the same day Costco was selling a gallon of unleaded regular in Honolulu for $3.92 where the average price was $4.12.
Nearly 90% of residents of Maui, a number totaling over 91,000 people, are card-carrying Costco customers. It’s not clear how much Costco in Maui is going to charge per gallon, but the potential of substantial savings for Maui residents on their fuel costs is quite obvious.
The Costco store located in Kahului is “one of the busiest in the world and one of the smallest in square footage,” said Jaime Havron, the store’s general manager. “We need space.” Listening to the concerns of the store’s management, the Maui Planning Commission voted this week to approve Costco to expand its Kahului store to include a gas station, car wash, 18,000 additional square feet of warehouse space, and more parking.
Not everyone is happy with the expansion, however. A petition submitted by Dairy Road Partners operating a nearby Superstop gas station have expressed concerns about the increase in traffic, and have said the Costco expansion would hurt their business. Commissioners overseeing the application have dismissed the petition, stating that Superstop’s economic interest in preventing the Costco expansion was not enough to qualify them as an intervener in the proposed expansion.
Expansion construction is expected to begin in January. As well as adding the much needed floor space, customer parking and fuel cost relief to the residents of Maui, Costco’s expansion will need to add a much needed 110 extra jobs to their current roster of 356 employees.
“We’re raring to go,” said Jack Frank, vice president of real estate and development for Costco Wholesale Corp.
With a break in fuel costs in their near future, residents of Kahului and area are raring for Costco to begin their expansion, as well!
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- Jan
- 12
The Tipping Point
Last week we talked about the surge in Maui real estate sales volume during 2010. This week, we’d like to take a look at a few of the underlying factors that might have driven this surge. First and foremost, if you’ve visited Maui, then you know what a unique place it is.
Maui is a place where people want to live and retire. Maui, along with Hawaii County, has led population growth for Hawaii. Between April 2000 and July 2009, Maui’s population expanded by 13.3% from 128,094 residents to 145,157 residents.*
Maui is a place that draws visitors back again and again. Eventually some of these visitors choose to become owners of Maui Real Estate. Take a look at this table released by the Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism.
Between January 2010 and November 2010, 6,358,844 visitors came to Hawaii (by air), and 1,904,904 (30%) of those visitors made their way to Maui.
A small (seemingly minute) percentage of those 1,904,904 visitors chose to buy Maui Real Estate. Although this percentage was small; the effect was felt in a large way (what Malcolm Gladwell termed “The Tipping Point.”)
We believe we’ll see the Maui Real Estate market continue to “tip” in 2011. We hope you’ll be one of the tippers.
Mahalo Nui Loa,
The Smith Team
P.S. If the whales and beautiful beaches aren’t enough to get you to Maui, then hopefully Elton John will. He’ll be performing at the Maui Arts and Cultural Center (MACC) on Saturday, February 25th, 2011. Tickets go on sale today for MACC members and January 15th for the general public.
*Taken from the census. Learn more.
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- Jan
- 05
Happy New Year from Maui
Aloha and Happy New Year from Maui! Can you believe 2011 is already upon us?
As our team recently to a moment to reflect back on the past year, the unanimous sentiment was gratitude. Gratitude for friends and family. Gratitude for living on Maui. Gratitude for the best clients. And gratitude for the opportunities ahead.
One thing we witnessed this past year was a considerable increase in sales volume of both single family homes and condominiums on Maui. Between January 2009 and November 2009, single family home sales volume on Maui was slightly over $430 million. Between January 2010 and November 2010 (December statistics are still being compiled), single family home sales volume rose to just over $564 million. That’s significant. A 31% increase. You can see this change summarized here.
The sales volume of condominiums rose during this same period from $529 million to $686 million—a 30% increase. See statistics here.
Yes prices declined during this period, but even more significant, sales activity and resulting volume has been on the rise.
There are some excellent opportunities to get in the game and grab your own piece of Maui in 2011. We’d love to hear from you. Give us a call @ (808)572-0866, or send an email.
Mahalo Nui Loa,
The Smith Team
P.S. Be sure to check out the Hyundai Tournament of Champions which is being played this week on Maui. This is the season opening event for the PGA tour. It will be played at the world class Plantation Course at the Kapalua Resort. Watch the event on TV. Or if you are on Maui, head out to Kapalua to see it in person. This year admission is free. Learn more about the tournament here. And if you have a taste for Kapalua real estate, be sure to check out the two Kapalua properties featured in this week’s newsletter.
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Tourism is the economic engine of Maui’s economy, so it is was welcome news to read that Hotel occupancy on Maui was up again rather sharply last month. We still have a ways to go, but we appear to be on the right track. Read more.
We know that many people have shied away from Short Sales, because of the uncertainty and lengthy process to get bank approval. Times are changing, though, and we are getting more short sales approved in shorter time frames. No longer should you have to wait 6 months to get approval from the Bank.
The featured property listing on Baby Beach in Lahaina would be an excellent opportunity for someone who is looking for a great deal on beachfront property. These homes are side by side, so make an offer on one or both. You might end up getting both homes for the price that just one home was worth a few years ago.
Wishing everyone a very Happy New Year.
Mahalo Nui Loa,
The Smith Team
P.S. Time to make your goals for 2011. If one of your goals is to buy property on Maui, please let us help you realize that goal.
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You are probably aware of how easy it is to search all MLS listings on our website, and how you can get additional information such as site maps and floor plans for most condos; however, here are some additional features we’ve added that you may not be taking advantage of.
Auto-notification is rather easy to set up. You simply do a search with whatever parameters you choose, and then hit Save. You will be prompted to enter your e-mail address, and once that is done, you’ll automatically receive an e-mail whenever a new listing comes up that matches your criteria. This is a great way to make sure you never miss out on that great deal you’ve been waiting for.
Search hot buys. Whenever, we feature a property in our Newsletter, we add it to the Hot Buy list.
Social networking. We have a Smith Team Facebook page which where we also post information about Hot Buys. Please become a fan. We also invite you to follow us on Twitter.
Webcam. Wondering what the weather is like in Upcountry Maui. Check out our webcam located on the 6th green of the Pukalani Country Club Golf Course.
We want to wish you all a very Joyous Holiday Season.
Have a wonderful week.
Mahalo Nui Loa,
The Smith Team
P.S. Reminder that we are giving away a 2 night stay at the Fairmont Kea Lani Hotel. To be eligible for the drawing which will be held at the end of 2011, just send us a bona fide Referral. Whether or not they buy or sell anything, your name will be entered in to the drawing, so long as they are willing to work with us.
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Another very positive report on how tourism is leading the Hawaii economy out of recession.
Economists at the University of Hawaii now predict that the rebounding visitor industry will begin spilling over into other economic sectors in 2011. Read the full article.
Oahu is expected to be the chief beneficiary due to the fact that more Asians travel to Oahu than they do to the neighbor Islands, and that travel segment has benefited from the strong economies in the Far East.
Nevertheless, given the allure and magic of Maui and the slower paced lifestyle; we expect Maui to lead the State in sales of resort real estate….especially in the high end as it did before from 2000 to 2006.
Have a wonderful week.
Mahalo Nui Loa,
The Smith Team
P.S. Last week we featured 231 Kaupalena in Honolua Ridge Phase II. If you are interested in making an offer, now is the time to do it. Reduced again to $2.895M. Comparable homes in the neighborhood are selling for millions higher than this price. More details.
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We were tempted to write about how the extension of the Bush Tax Cuts might have a positive impact on real estate; however, there still appears to be a lot of uncertainty in this regard.
What one thing has a stronger and more immediate impact on our local economy than anything else? Tourism, of course. So it was very welcome news to see that Maui has led the rest of the state out of the occupancy slough this year. Read more.
Furthermore, anecdotal news we are receiving from a number of vacation rental managers indicate that things are definitely looking up for the next 5 months. If you are planning to come to Maui soon, and haven’t made your reservations, we would suggest doing so soon.
Although we don’t do any property management ourselves; we will be quite happy to assist you in finding a terrific deal. Simply send us your travel dates, number of people travelling, preferred budget and type of accommodations, and we will do our best to assist you.
Have a wonderful week.
Mahalo Nui Loa,
The Smith Team
P.S. It promises to be a great season for Whale Watching, a most popular pastime for locals as well as our Winter visitors. Read more.
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- Dec
- 07
Are the Good Times Back?
Are the good times back? Well, we are not quite prepared to say that; however, we do feel that things are definitely improving.
We are getting multiple offers over list price on many of our bank owned listings lately. Within the last 2 weeks, 5 homes in the $3 to 8.5 Million range went under contract.
Also, according to several vacation rental companies, they are seeing bookings running way ahead of last year. Approximately 80% of the bookings during the busy Winter Season which runs through April 15th, are from Canadian visitors.
Not surprisingly, these same visitors have been a prime source for purchases especially for South Maui condos and homes. The fact that real estate prices here have dropped 30 to 50%, while at the same time their currency has gained strength against the U.S. Dollar, should only add to their desire to acquire more properties in the upcoming Winter season.
Have a wonderful week,
Mahalo Nui Loa,
The Smith Team
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As the 2010 year rapidly draws to a close, and with the Thanksgiving Holiday coming up in a few days, we wanted to take a moment to express our gratitude to all of our loyal customers and past clients.
2010 has once again been a banner year for The Smith Team. We will easily surpass last year sales by at least 30%. So far, we have closed on 52 transaction sides (sometimes we have both the buy and well side, which count as 2 transactions) totalling $24 Million.
With 11 more Pending sales, we should exceed $26 Million for the full year barring any last minute Escrow cancellations. We couldn’t do this without the referrals we received and the support of current and past clients. We extend our sincerest appreciation and heartfelt wishes for a most wonderful Thanksgiving Holiday.
If there is anything we can help you with, please don’t hesitate to ask. Also, don’t forget for every referral we receive, your name will be entered in a drawing for a 2 night stay at The Fairmont Kea Lani Hotel.
Have a wonderful week.
Mahalo Nui Loa,
The Smith Team
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For those of you interested in Wailea and Makena condos, we now have detailed information on almost every condo in Wailea and Makena. The only two condos that are missing, Ho’olei and Wailea Town Center will be added in the next week. Check out the weblink.
We are quickly approaching the busy Winter season, and thngs are definitely looking up for both sales and rentals. The weakness in the dollar is having a positive affect in foreign investment, primarily from Canada.
The low end residential condo market is hot. We are seeing multiple offers on almost every one of our very low end REO listings such as at Southpointe, Kihei Villages,and Kihei Shores.
Homes in the low to middle end ($300K to 600K) are also receiving multiple offers in many cases. We suspect that our new REO Listing at 53 Honuhula Place in Honu Alahele subdivision that was listed this afternoon will sell quickly. This custom home in a beautiful neighborhood has lots of upgrades amd comes with an attached ohana.
Have a wonderful week.
Mahalo Nui Loa,
The Smith Team
P.S. Please become a fan of our Facebook and Twitter pages by clicking on the links on our Newsletter.
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