Nick Kawakami

Residential Real Estate, Photography, and Life in Honolulu, Hawai‘i

Island Living

Proof of Concept: Raspberry Pi FM Talking House

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Manoa has always had its fair-share of decorations during the holidays. From haunted houses on Halloween, to winter wonderlands during Christmas, I’ve always enjoyed the time and effort that people put into the holiday spirit.

This year, while trick-or-treating around Manoa with my nephew, I had an idea to create a “talking house” that could give prospective Buyers a quick breakdown of the house, without actually going inside. My idea was to create a small FM radio broadcaster, and when people drove by the house, they could tune their car radio and listen to a 30 sec clip of me, describing the home. My hope was that it could be an added value to my clients, and allow more exposure to their homes.


(Jump to 7:54 for the good stuff)

Luckily for me, I had begun to explore a mini-computer called the “Raspberry Pi.” Using that tiny computer, paired with some nerdy programming and software found online, I got a prototype working and broadcasted one of my brother’s songs to an emergency radio I wound up! It was kind of exciting, and proof that my initial idea could work!

Unfortunately, this is the part of the story where reality sets in. In refining my transmitter, I discovered heaps of warnings about FCC regulations on “pirate broadcasting.” The government is very concerned about radio interference and strictly governs the use of radio frequencies. This meant that, while an interesting concept, it would have to stay a concept for now.

That’s not to say all is lost, as it was a valuable learning experience and inspires me to explore new technologies and strategies. I learned a lot about the capabilities of this small computer, and have already begun working on future (legal-er) uses for the device!

Ho! Ho! Hoooomes Continue Up! How Far Can This Trend Go?!

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Happy holidays everyone! I hope you are finding yourself happy & healthy as we enter the end of 2016 and into 2017! I can’t believe this is my last post for 2016 already…these years fly by! Speaking of flying, November stats continue to show a “flying” real estate market here on the island, and it doesn’t look like it’s slowing down heading into December. Let’s take a look at the numbers…

Yup, median prices are up, closed sales are up, and days on market are down. All signs continue to point to a strong Seller’s market, as inventory continues to fall. Some of the biggest changes occurred in the number of closed sales with both homes and condos up 19.5% and 17.6% respectively, over last year. We continue the trend in 2016 with more properties selling than coming on the market.

Condos also showed a 13.7% jump in median price over last year, while single-family homes rose 4.8%. In dollars, that’s roughly a $34,000 jump in homes and $48,000 in condos. I think the rise, especially in condos is due to more higher-priced units selling (due to the lack of inventory). The average sales price of condos sold rose 11.4%, which further enforces my feeling.

So what’s in store for December and heading into 2017? Well, it’s pretty obvious that low inventories continue to drive a competitive market here on O‘ahu. Properties are also selling faster despite the holiday season approaching, indicating that Buyers are still aggressively shopping in the market. It doesn’t seem like it’s slowing down any time soon!

I’ll continue to monitor the numbers, especially as President-elect Trump takes office. The Fed has already indicated a rise in bank rates next week, and possibly again through 2017 to offset inflation. Most experts are indicating a rise in mortgage rates to the mid-four percent range, so if you’re on the fence to purchase something, this may be a better time than waiting!

Have a good finish to 2016, and I hope you have a great start to 2017!
ALOHA!
Nick

The Market is Gobble-Gobble-Gobbling Homes!

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Hi Guys & Gals, I hope your holidays are kicking into gear and 2016 is finishing strong! The Kawakamis are all preparing for a busy season, and it seems that the market is following suit!

msr_oct2016

Homes, both house and condo, continue to fly off the market as inventories continue to drop and days-on-market fall. Median prices for condominiums increased by 7% over last year to $396,000, while single-family homes increased by 3.1% to $742,000. Days-on-market, the statistic that accounts for how long an available home sits on the market, dropped to 19 days for single-family homes and 20 days for condominiums. Considering these stats include the finicky multi-million dollar listings, it’s a really strong indication that things fly quickly!

So what does this mean for my clients, especially as we head into the traditionally-slower winter months? If you’re thinking about selling, there are still plenty of Buyers looking for a home. It’s my opinion that the shortage of housing throughout the summer months will give us a good group of healthy Buyers for the foreseeable future. For my clients looking to buy, there are still a lot of great opportunities, especially with these low interest rates. If you’re even considering purchasing something in the next couple of years, keep an eye on those interest rates! With a new president coming into power, and an sensitive bond market, it will be interesting to see how rates react.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Looking towards to the end of the year, I hope everyone has a safe holiday season!

Nick

Kapiolani Residence Announces Market Units!

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With the successful completion of their affordable release, Korean developer Samkoo has just released the market-priced units for its newest development, the Kapiolani Residence. Located on the makai-side of Kapiolani Blvd, and across the street from 24-hour fitness, the Kapiolani Residence is a 484-unit building geared for people looking for a low-cost, no-frills style of living.

kapiolani_residence

A quick-look at the market pricing shows 1-bedrooms starting at $486,500. Since these are market-priced units (and not a part of the affordable program), buyers only need to qualify under the following specs:

(1) Is a citizen of the United States or a resident alien;
(2) Is at least eighteen years of age;
(3) Is domiciled in the State of Hawaii and will physically reside in the unit to be purchased;
(4) Has a gross income suffcient to qualify for the loan to finance the purchase

If you qualify, and are interested in this project, let me know and I will hook you up with a bunch of information to get you started!

Home sales flatten, but condos still ablaze! 🔥🔥👍

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Happy October Everyone, and happy beginning-of-holiday-parties season! It’s crazy to think we are here already, and I hope you are all gearing up for Halloween and other fun things as we close out 2016! The stats for September 2016 are out, and here’s my take on the local market…

Single-family homes saw a stall in growth versus last year, as the number of closed sales remained the same. It’ll be interesting to watch this number as we end the year, and see if the trends continue “normal.” We did see a slight bump in median prices versus last year, but it remains inline with the growth of the overall year. The “outlier stat” for September single-family homes was the days-on-market (DOM), which has remained at 16 days for the third straight month. Usually in September, we start to see a little longer DOM, but not this year!

As for condos, number of sales climbed for the third month in a row and rose 6.7% versus last year. It’s hard to predict where condos will go month-by-month, because their production is so heavily tied to market factors and the products vary so greatly. In fact, median price is down versus last month, while last September saw a bump versus that August. DOM are back up to 20, and look for that to shorten again as less new inventory came on the market.

Like I said, it will be interesting to see how the year will fill out. There some factors that seem to follow market trends, and some that don’t. I’m also going to be watching the election results to see if that has any affect on our little island home as well!

Happy Halloween everyone, and a quick note of love to my friends and family in Florida! Hurricane Matthew sucks, but we are here if you need us!

As the Summer Finishes, Price Strength Continues

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Happy August everyone, and as the mainland braces for the coming fall, we continue to see a strong sales market here in Paradise! As expected, the low inventory has restricted the number of sales last month and pushed median prices higher than last year!

hbr-july-2016-housing-stats

While median prices dropped slightly versus our record-breaking June, both Single-Family (SF) homes and condos are up 6% and 14% over July last year. On top of that, both SF homes and condos are seeing close to 100% listing-to-sold pricing, meaning that even though Sellers are pushing prices, Buyers are willing to pay. The inventory trend will probably soften a little, especially as we enter the cooler winter season, but don’t expect to see a shift from this up market anytime soon.

5 Ways Marijuana Legalization Affects Hawaii Real Estate

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Change is coming (whether you like it or not), and the legalization of marijuana will have an impact on the local real estate market. Over the next couple of decades, and with earnings estimates in the hundreds-of-millions of dollars, it will become a legitimate business and a part of our daily lives. Here are five major ways that it will affect Hawaii real estate, and what to look out for in the years to come. [Read more…] about 5 Ways Marijuana Legalization Affects Hawaii Real Estate