Honolulu: September 2009 housing statistics

The Honolulu Board of REALTORS® released housing resale figures and statistics today for the month of September. According to the analysis conducted by the Board, using data collected from its computerized Multiple Listing Service (MLS) system, the statistics are:

September 2009 Residential Resales Statistics for OahuSingle Family Home Resales
Number of
Sales
This Month
Compared To
Median*
Sales Price
This Month
Compared To
September 2009 244 $ 600,000
August 2009 $ 566,000 up 6.0%
September 2008 215 up 13.5% $ 590,000 up 1.7%

Condominium Resales
Number of
Sales
This Month
Compared To
Median*
Sales Price
This Month
Compared To
September 2009 345 $ 305,000
August 2009 $ 290,000 up 5.2%
September 2008 305 up 13.1% $ 296,000 up 3.0%
Click here to view September 2009 Resales Charts.
*Median price means half the prices were above and half below the given price.

During September, sales of 244 single-family homes and 345 condominiums were reported through the Board’s MLS, an increase of 13.5 percent for single-family homes and an increase of 13.1 percent for condominiums, compared to the same month last year. This brings total single-family home sales on Oahu to 1,788 for the first nine months of 2009, a decrease of 16.2 percent over the same time period one year ago. Total condominium sales through September were 2,338, a 26.32 percent decrease from last year. The median prices paid for island properties in the first nine months of 2009 were $575,000 for single-family homes and $300,000 for condominiums, decreases respectively of 8.0 percent and 7.7 percent from the same time period in 2008. The year-to-date total dollar sales volume generated in the housing market through September was $2.021 billion, a decrease of 31.7 percent, or $938 million, compared to the $2.959 billion produced one year ago.

Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the National Association of REALTORS®, provided the following commentary on Oahu’s housing market:

“Home sales in 2009, to-date, were essentially at a 10-year low. One reason for the much lower sales can be explained by stricter mortgage underwriting guidelines. In addition, Hawaii suffers from the credit freeze that is taking place in the jumbo market and for second home purchases. However, the biggest reason for such low sales activity is likely due to fear of further home price declines.

“Consumer psychology appears to be decisively turning for the better as the housing market has been showing signs of bottoming, if it is not already past a bottom point. Affordability conditions are now at multi-year highs thanks to lower home prices and very low mortgage rates on conforming mortgages.

“The first-time homebuyer tax credit is also helping. It is no surprise, therefore, that home sales have begun to rise nationally for 5 straight months. The increases were beyond the normal seasonal uptick in spring and summer.”

(This report reflects information about resales of existing properties only and does not include new home sales. All of the MLS information is compiled from sales reported during the cited months; this data is known only after closing of escrow. The time delay between the signing of a sales contract and the closing of escrow is usually between one and three months.)

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