Wailea/Maui Meadows on Caravan

Today I just selected a few of the great properties on caravan to go to. I currently don’t have any buyers in the $1.5 million range so I skipped all except the one where they were serving Komodo donuts! (I hear they are closing soon so go visit them TODAY!).

Certainly a BEST BUY is located at the Palms at Wailea 1, unit 405 (MLS 329109). It is a spacious (over 1000 square feet!) ground floor unit with 1 bedroom and 2 baths for just $649,000. It is a short sale, so it may be a complex purchase but so far there are no offers. It is currently in the Outrigger vacation rental program and I’ve requested rental history. It only has a peak of ocean view but is convenient to pools. It is a nice unit and great deal!

I’m not sure the agent had to bribe us with great donuts (including to-die-for cream puffs) but the home I’d most like to live in was in Kanani Wailea at 80 Po’alilani Place. (MLS 331189) It is a new development so the street doesn’t show on the map but it is off Kapilli Street. From the street, it appeared to be a small home. I don’t care for the narrow streets and limited parking in this gated community but I was blown away by the exceptional layout and beauty of this home.

It has several bedroom suites that all enter into a private garden courtyard. Although just 2,242 square feet on a small lot, it is very spacious and currently offers great ocean views. Some ocean view might be preserved even if there is further building, but there is no guarantee. 4 beds/4 baths, stunning home for just $1,938,000. As I look at comparable sales though, this unit is overpriced by several hundred thousand dollars.

Maui Meadows is a community on the mauka side of Pi’ilani highway right where Kihei meets Wailea. Minimum lot size is 1/2 an acre and many lots have wonderful ocean views so it is a popular place to live. You get a lot of variety in Maui Meadows, ranging from old to new, and pristine to barely liveable. (MLS 331062) The home I saw today was a bit dated had and an awkward layout but spacious room and beautiful ocean views. Located at 620 Kumulani Drive, it has very little curb appeal. You enter into what looks like a converted garage/family living area. From there is a doorway to the kitchen, and a side door to a very large spacious bathroom. The kitchen is spacious but the green/blue painted cupboards are “interesting”. The kitchen opens to a great room which in turn opens into the pool area. The pool is smallish and L-shaped, but has nice ocean views. All the rooms are spacious. The master suite has an old dated bathroom. If it were up to me, I’d upgrade the other large bedroom to integrate with the nice bathroom and make that the master suite. One area of the house was configured so that it could be used as an Ohana with small kitchen and separate entrance. Priced at $1,485,000. Virtual Tour

Caravan: A Look At 3/2’s In $500-$600K Range

Last week at an Open House someone asked what a 3/2 meant. This is just common terminology for 3 bedrooms and 2 baths. Although a 3/2 is the most common type of home, there are lots of variations.

This week, I hit my own neighborhood of Ka’ono’ulu and Kenolio Estates in North Kihei. It is a very nice neighborhood that is an easy walk to Sugar Beach. Prices have dipped significantly here, making for some very good deals. Except where noted any of these home are in move-in-ready condition.

Reviewed Homes (View MLS Listings)

My BEST BUY of the week would have to be 693 Imahale St. which is listed at $525,000. It has only been on the market for 5 days and won’t last long. This 3/2 with only 1282 square feet was well laid out and felt spacious. A little color on the walls would make it feel more comfortable, but it was in good condition. You enter into a great room with living, dining area and kitchen with well-done laminate flooring (I did a double take because it looked and felt like real hardwood!). Kitchen has ceramic tile and is nice and open. Two small bedrooms are at the front of the house and the master is at the rear with sliding glass doors to the backyard. The bedrooms are small and the bathrooms are simple. The yard is large and simply landscaped. Lot size is 7559 sq ft which is why I made this a best buy over the next home. The home was built in 2002.

Another good buy is 132 Kawailani Circle listed at $505,000. This is the only one not in the estates but is in nearby the Pi’ilani 2 neighborhood and was built in 2001. The biggest drawback to this one is that it is close to the Pi’ilani highway. It doesn’t back directly up to the highway but a tip of the back wall does. Pi’ilani is a true highway with a good eal of noise. I live 2 blocks away and hear the traffic all day and night when our windows are open. This home is a little larger with 1256 sq ft but lot size is 5141 which makes for a small back yard and close neighbors! The seller is providing a credit to put in sound-insulating windows.

698 Alulike St. is a 3/2 home with 1318 sq ft and a large 8539 lot. The list price is $569,000. This one has the best curb appeal and would be a very livable family home. You enter into the great room with the large kitchen off the the right. The biggest drawback to this home is that there is no formal dining area although the kitchen has a large area for a table. Mature landscaping makes for nice outdoor living. The master suite features walk-in closets and a large bathroom with separate tub/shower which isn’t common in this price range.

133 Makalauna St. is a well maintained home. There is a nice front entrance into a compact living area. The kitchen has been fully redone and is adjacent to the living/dining area but does not have that “great room feel”. Bedrooms are small but the layout is nice. Nice backyard but it does back to a street that tends to have some traffic. This one has been on the market for a while.

As an investor, I often look at short sales as potential deals (depending on your exit strategy). 671 MaliMali is a short sale. It is a nice 3/2.5 home with a good sized 8111 sq ft. lot. The lot backs to open space which is designated as a road thoroughfare. Just behind this space is the Pi’ilani highway so I would guess you get significant highway noise. The house is in good condition but the yard needs a little more work. The list price is $539,000 which doesn’t make it much of a “deal” given than short sale processing can take up to 6 months.

All Homes on Caravan (View MLS Listings)

I also took a quick look at some vacation rental condos. The Kihei Holiday unit is one of the lowest priced 2 bedroom units available. The complex doesn’t offer lush surroundings but it is a nice unit with good ocean views (through electric wires) for just $439,000!

Another good buy is the large 1 bedroom at Koa Resort for $367,000. Koa Resort is one of my favorites because of its large spacious grounds and amenities.

If it is the world famous Maui views you are after, check out Menehune Shores 2/2 for $675,000. It on the 6th floor with really fabulous views. Good condition, great price for these views that would cost over a million in South Kihei!

To find out more about these or similar properties, contact me!

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Ka’ono’ulu in Hawaiian means “The Delicious Breadfruit” — three words in the right order! Once you learn a little Hawaiian, the names start making a little more sense. It’s helpful to try and break up a word into its individual parts. For example, the upcountry town where our local winery resides is Ulupalakua, which means Breadfruit (Ulu) ripens (Pala) on the back (Kua)!

Intro to Weekly Caravan

This is the first of what I hope is a weekly blog highlighting some of the houses and condominiums that I see on caravan. A caravan or a broker’s tour is a weekly event where agents are invited to go from house to house in a certain area. It is a great way to see a lot of properties in a short period of time.

In Maui, we have caravans running in the different districts most weekdays, so you could spend most of your time on caravan if you wanted to. Just as an example, here is what our current caravan schedule looks like:

• Tuesday is South Maui and rotates each week between Wailea, South Maui and North Maui (including Ma’alaea).
• Wednesday is West Maui (covering Lahaina, Ka’anapali and Kapalua and rotating between North and South).
• Wednesday is also Central Maui every other week.
• Thursday is Upcountry and North Shore rotating between Kula, Haiku/Pa’ia, Makawao/Pukalani/Olinda.

On each caravan we normally have 10-20 properties and about 2 hours to tour them. Agents don’t always go to every property or in the planned sequence.

Why can understanding caravans benefit a buyer or seller?

• Agents who attend caravan regularly know their inventory! It is one thing to see an MLS listing and pictures. It is a totally different experience to experience a property. An agent who previews properties and knows the inventory will save you tons in time. When interviewing agents, ask them when they last attended a caravan. Many “experienced” agents never attend caravan but the top agents usually do!
• Ask your local agents about when caravans are held in your area. Although they are designed for agents only, they are usually “Open Houses” that are open to the public too. Here in Maui, you may be able to see places that are rarely available for regular opens due to having renters and bookings for vacations rentals. While this may not be as effective as having an agent set up a tour of homes, it may be good thing to consider if you are “just looking”. You can talk to the hosting agents and listen in on comments from other agents as they tour homes.
• Agents work to entice other agents to see their listings. Food and prizes are common. When you interview an agent, ask them about plans to put your property on caravan. For example, I had a listing last year in a condominium that most agents know well. Knowing that it would be tough to get people to see it, I offered a prize drawing and had 23 agents come through! Without the prize, I may have had 5. Of the showings that I had, about 75% were from the agents who saw it on caravan, and I sold the place in 77 days through one of those agents.

Aloha and happy caravan!

Options In Paradise (Part 1)

I haven’t met a single visitor to Maui who doesn’t dream of owning a home here at some point. Who can blame them? Our lovely beaches, lush flora, cool trade winds and abundant sunshine are enough to make anyone want a vacation to last forever.

There are ways this dream can become a reality. This is the first in an ongoing series called Options in Paradise, where I will offer things to consider when buying your island home in small, digestible segments to ponder over a mai tai.

Condominium vs. Single Family Residence

• Condominium
• Pros:
• Don’t have to do yardwork, as much of the maintenance handled.
• Some condos have as much living space as a single family home.
• Amenities such as pools, workout rooms, etc.
• Locations are often close to shopping areas and beaches.
• Cons:
• Close proximity to neighbors.
• Maintenance costs.
• Rules and regulations
• Often limited outdoor living space.
• Some older condo’s have special assessment costs to cover items such as roof replacement and elevator upgrades.
• Single Family Residence
• Pros:
• More flexibility in features.
• Ability to make change and upgrades easily.
• More outdoor living space.
• In Hawaii, many residential homes have attached or detached Ohana units (extra space for guests, offices, rental units, etc.)
• Cons:
• Responsible all maintenance and yardwork.

Future related blogs will compare short-term (vacation) rentals to long-term condominium living, discuss timeshares, fractional ownership and compare fee-simple to leasehold properties. Don’t let the beauty of Hawaii allure you without having the knowledge to make great decisions.