O‘ahu Housing Market Slows in February but Picks Up from January 2023

Honolulu’s Ala Wai canal with the Watermark condo building on the right January, 2023 | ® Hawaii House

O‘ahu Housing Market Slows in February but Picks Up from January 2023

byMalia L. Meenderman/October 6, 2023/instatistics

In the latest resale figures released today by the Honolulu Board of REALTORS®, the housing market on O‘ahu continued to show a lack of momentum in February. Closed sales of single-family homes and condos declined by 28.2% and 33.1%, respectively. However, there was a notable improvement in performance compared to January 2023, with single-family home sales rising by 15.3% and condo sales increasing by 18.2%. According to the analysis by the Honolulu real estate board, using data collected from its computerized Multiple Listing Service (MLS) system, the Oahu island housing supply and statistics are:

Oahu (Hawaii) Single-Family Home Re-sales
	Number of Oahu home sales	This Month Compared To	Median* home sales price Oahu	This Month Compared To
Feb 2023	173		$987,000
Feb 2022	241	-28.2%	$1,125,000	-12.3%

Oahu Condominium Re-sales
	Number of Oahu condo sales	This Month Compared To	Median* Sales Price Oahu	This Month Compared To
Feb 2023	325		$480,000
Feb 2022	486	-33.1%	$497,000	-3.4%

*Median price means half the prices were above and half below the given price.

O‘ahu Housing Market Slows in February with Substantial Sales Declines, but Gains Momentum from January 2023

Median sales prices in both markets saw declines in February, with single-family homes experiencing a significant drop of 12.3% from $1,125,000 to $987,000 compared to 2022. Meanwhile, the condo market experienced a more modest decline of 3.4%, going from $497,000 to $480,000. Approximately 189 O‘ahu properties were sold for under $500,000 in February.

In February 2023, the median days on market for single-family homes nearly quadrupled, skyrocketing to 47 days compared to 13 days in February 2022. Similarly, condos saw a doubling of the median days on market, with 28 days compared to 14 days a year ago.

The percentage of single-family homes sold above the original asking price significantly declined from the previous year, accounting for just 19% of sales in February compared to 55% in February 2022. Conversely, only 32% of single-family home sales received full asking price or more, compared to 73% in the same month the previous year. In the condo market, the proportion of sales closing above the original list price decreased by 15% in February compared to 37% in February 2022. Among the sales this month, 36% received full asking price or more, in contrast to 56% of sales the previous year.

Despite 233 new single-family home listings and 463 new condo listings in the past month, these numbers were considerably lower than the listings brought to the market in February 2022, down 36.5% for single-family homes and 37.3% for condos. Both markets saw increases in active inventory across various price points, with the most substantial increase in the single-family home market occurring in the $999,999 and below price range, where the number of properties for sale doubled compared to 2022. For condos, the most significant increase was in the $600,000 to $799,999 price range, with 50% more active condos available than a year ago.

Sales volume for most price points in the single-family home market decreased in February, with the largest drop occurring in the $900,000 to $1,099,999 price range, down by 47.4% year-over-year. The ‘Ewa Plain region experienced the most significant decline in sales volume, falling by 40.4% year-over-year, followed by the Metro region, which saw a decrease of 55.2%.

In the condo market, most price points also witnessed a decline in sales, with the most notable changes seen in the $800,000 to $1,999,999 price range, which was down by 60% year-over-year, and the $500,000 to $699,999 range, experiencing a drop of 42.7%. The Kailua region was the only area where condo sales remained consistent with the previous year, with 10 condos sold. All other regions saw fewer sales compared to the same period last year, with the ‘Ewa Plain region declining by 45.7% and the Metro region decreasing by 30.1%.

Malia’s comments

“Higher interest rates combined with a slower market as brought the median sales prices for homes much lower year over year. meanwhile the number of sales of condos and single family homes are dramatically lower”

Hawaii House statistics real time

You can monitor the daily Honolulu housing market and follow home sales on Oahu with instant statistics, new listings for the day and links to neighborhood statistics and real estate data such as Kakaako neighborhood statistics. Visit it here: Daily Oahu real estate market watch

We also have instant housing statistics for Maui island. Visit it here: Daily Maui real estate market watch. When you click on a neighborhood it brings you to the pricing heat map for that area.

About Malia L. Meenderman

Malia is an award winning real estate broker. Born and raised in Kailua, Oahu, Hawaii.

Speak with Malia : 808-394-8779

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