Hawaii Foreclosures Down

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March 7, 2014

Every time the headlines say that inventory is down in the Hawaii real estate market, some people wonder whether the recovery is as stable as the press makes it out to be. For those who are still skittish about the economy, it’s important to know how many foreclosure properties are selling here. Foreclosures are a good indicator of how the economy is performing, and now that the numbers are in for January, we know the answer.

According to a recent report by RealtyTrac, only 0.3 percent of all homes sold in Hawaii in January were foreclosures. About two percent of sales were made to institutional investors, which refers to entities that buy ten properties or more in a year. That was a little below the national level of 5.2 percent.

As for short sales, they comprised zero percent of the total number of January sales, for those of you who were curious. Also, 45 percent of all homes sold were paid for in cash in January, which is the same as the national figure.

Back to foreclosures, the report indicated that filings were down by 17 percent compared to December of 2013, and down 29 percent compared to January of 2013. If that’s not a substantial difference, then what is? But as always, we encourage the tracking of trends in the long-term for the best information, rather than short-term fluctuations.

With foreclosures down and prices up, it’s much harder to find one of those steals that used to be so common during the recession, but on the flip side, property values are more stable. Considering the high cost of hotel rooms, which only seems to be rising, Maui vacation rental homes are able to charge more as well, which is great for owners.

If you need assistance finding the right property to meet your needs, you’ll find our contact information at the bottom of the page. Mahalo for reading this week!

mauiluxuryrealestateteam.com – By Robert J. Cartwright, Principal Broker



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