Any plans this Fourth of July? Your Neighborhood Experts at Locations have created a family-friendly and firework-filled list of activities and events to celebrate America’s birthday. Falling on a Wednesday this year, there is still a variety of annual firework shows, parades, and performances to enjoy with your friends and family. Waikiki Ala Moana Beach Park 8:30 p.m. The 27th annual fireworks spectacular, sponsored by Ala Moana Shopping Center, kicks off at the beach park at 8:30 p.m. From July 1-4, shoppers can enjoy exclusive Independence Day deals, along with live music and performances, at the shopping center. Pearl Harbor Pearl Harbor-Hickam 9 p.m. Pearl Harbor’s 4th of July celebration offers kid-friendly activities, including a petting zoo, archery, an Xpress train, inflatables and other carnival games. Local food stands and a beer garden will be available for adults. For a detailed list of activities and events at Ward Field, click here. Picnic on the Pier, Battleship Missouri Memorial 9 p.m. Picnic on the pier! Enjoy the Pearl Harbor-Hickam fireworks alongside the Battleship Missouri Memorial. Guests are welcome to BYOFD (Bring Your Own Food and Drinks), chairs, and picnic blankets. Doors open at 6 p.m., and activities include keiki activities, raffle prizes and a live performance by Hawaiian Soul. For event details and to purchase tickets, click here. Ko Olina 4th of July Dinner at Longhi's Ko Olina6:30 - 9 p.m. Longhi's Italian restaurant at Ko Olina is hosting a special four-course dinner with a prime view of the firework show at 8:30 p.m. For menu and reservations, click here. Wahiawa 4th of July Spectacular, Schofield Barracks10 a.m. - 9 p.m. Fireworks begin at 8:30 p.m., but arrive early to enjoy food, drinks, games and live performances by Anuhea and David Nail. Visit the event's Facebook Page for more information and to reserve a picnic space for $95. North Shore 40th Annual Da Hui Paddle Race10 a.m. Register to participate at this year’s Da Hui Stand-up Paddle Race or pack a picnic and have a cruise day at Waimea Bay to support the paddlers crossing the finish line. Lifeguards will host free keiki races and events on the beach. 4th of July Events at Turtle Bay Resort Noon - 9:30 p.m. Turtle Bay Resort will host a variety of events for the whole family this Independence Day. At Kuilima Point, from noon to 4 p.m., there will be pie-eating contests, bounce houses, face painting, games and local food vendors will be on site from 2 - 8 p.m. From 5 to 9:30 p.m., enjoy a panoramic view of the sunset and firework show at The Point - Sunset & Pool Bar, with live music by Big John Blues and Kapena. To reserve a table, click here. Turtle Bay will also offer a VIP four-course dinner on the Pa'akai Lanai, with premier viewing of the entertainment stage and the best view of the fireworks. To reserve a table on the Lanai, click here. These events are open to the public, while spaces last. For more event details, click here. Kailua The Epilepsy Foundation Freedom Run7 a.m. The annual Freedom run/walk begins at Kailua High School and includes the Freedom 5K, 10K or 1 mile walk. Help the fight to overcome the challenges of living with epilepsy in Hawaii by joining the race or supporting runners. Register here. 72nd Kailua Independence Day Parade10 a.m. – noon Sponsored by the Kailua Chamber of Commerce, the Annual Kailua Independence Parade, featuring bands, military and veterans marching units, horses and more, begins at Kainalu Drive from Palapu Street and ends at Kailua Intermediate School. Find a spot early for the best view, and don’t forget to pack sunscreen and water! For a map of the parade route and more information click here. 67th Annual Kailua Beach Fireworks 8 p.m. Festivities begin at 5:45 p.m., and include an acrobatic air show with SkyDive Hawaii, - presenting, Colonel John Bates and the Flying Leathernecks. For event details, click here. Have a safe and fun-silled Fourth of July! And don't forget, aerial fireworks are illegal without a valid permit.
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Oahu single-family home and condo median prices rose in the second quarter of 2018 compared to the same period last year, while inventory continues to grow. Both single-family home and condo median prices rose in Q2 2018. Single-family home median prices rose at a moderate rate of 4 percent to $785,000, and condo median prices rose by 5 percent to $427,750. Days on Market rose for both single-family homes and condos. Days on Market for single-family homes also increased from 15 days to 17 days, while Days on Market for condos increased from 15 days to 19 days. Both single-family home and condo inventory rose in nearly all price points. The greatest increases in inventory occurred in the $750,000 to $999,000 range for single-family homes and the $250,000 to $499,000 range for condos. Featured Single-Family Home Neighborhood Featured Condominium Neighborhood
A Brief History of Kapolei
The development of Kapolei can be traced back to the 1850s, when James Campbell purchased more than 40,000 acres across the Ewa Plain for only $95,000, or about $2 million in today’s money. Campbell drilled a well and transformed Kapolei's dry ranch land into thriving sugar and pineapple fields.
When the sugar business became less profitable in the mid-century, the estate of John Campbell outlined plans for a mix of agricultural, commercial, industrial and residential use in 1955. The City and County designated Kapolei as Oahu’s “Second City” in 1977, and construction of the first homes in this master-planned community began in 1990. Kapolei's planners envisioned plenty of green space, environmentally friendly buildings, and lots of pedestrian walkways and bike paths to encourage a healthy, live-work-play lifestyle. Kapolei's Growing Value
Thanks in part to Kapolei's reputation for newer, larger and more affordable single-family homes, the Kapolei market has been heating up since 2010. The median price for single-family homes in Kapolei just seven years ago was $478,500--the lowest point following steady price acceleration between 2000 - 2006.
In 2017, the median price for single-family homes in Kapolei has risen to $669,000, making for a median increase in home value of $190,500 (which is significantly higher than the island-wide single-family home median price appreciation of $158,000 since 2010) - giving Kapolei homeowners a nice chunk of home equity.
According to Locations' Research, the Ewa Plain, on which Kapolei is located, was affected more by the nationwide housing recession in the late 2000's than other parts of the island. In 2006 - the peak of the last cycle of appreciation in Kapolei - the median price hit $575,000. Those who purchased at the height of the last cycle saw home values dip for a few years, before shooting up again in the years following 2010. By 2014, the median price rose above the peak 2006 price to $585,000, and it's only continued to climb since then. The number of sales for Kapolei homes peaked in 2004 with 158 homes sold annually, but are now climbing back up, with 126 and counting at mid-year for 2017--the most sales in one year since 2006. Homes are also selling faster in Kapolei than ever before, another indicator of very strong demand. While Kapolei homes remained on market for a median of 70 days in 2008, they are now selling in only 13 days--the shortest Days on Market in the Second City's entire history!
Where are Kapolei's most and least expensive homes?
Median home prices in Kapolei have yet to top $1 million, but when they do, odds are that the Kapolei Knolls neighborhood will lead the way. Of Kapolei's eight neighborhoods, only Kapolei Knolls - built in 1998 - has seen median prices above $750,000, putting homes there on par with Oahu's overall median price. Lower-priced neighborhoods of Kumu Iki (built in 1990)and Kekuilani (built in 1994), which just last year (2016) had median prices in the $560,000's, now fall into the $600,000 - $650,000 range. Kapolei's remaining five neighborhoods - Malanai (built in 1992), Aeloa (built in 1994), Iwalani (built in 1994), Kapolei Kai (built in 2002)and Mehana (built in 2011) - fall somewhere in between at $650,000 to $749,000.
The Aeloa neighborhood boasts the second-highest median price, at $747,500--just slightly below the median in nearby Kapolei Knolls. Many Aeloa homes have the luxurious benefit of golf-course frontage. What's Next For Kapolei?
Urban planners say Kapolei is still in its early stages of growth. Much more development - including housing - is slated for the Second City. Kapolei is the starting point for Honolulu’s rail transit system, which, once complete, promises to transport Kapolei residents to downtown Honolulu in only 38 minutes.
Today, Kapolei is home to nearly 12,000 homes and condos, and the Honolulu Department of Planning and Permitting anticipates that number will exceed 50,000 by 2035 with the addition or expansion of developments like Ho'opili, Mehana, Hoakalei, Seabridge and more. Click below to learn a little more about the new developments in Kapolei/Ewa. What do Waimanalo, Waipio Gentry and Manoa have in common? If you guessed home prices, you'd be wrong.Home values in these three neighborhoods range from an average of $650,000 in Waipio Gentry to an average of more than $1,400,000 in Manoa, with Waimanalo's average about in the middle. What these neighborhoods do have in common is a lot of long-time residents and very little turnover. In the past year, less than 1 percent of Waimanalo's nearly 2,000 single-family homes changed hands. In Waipio Gentry last year, there were only 19 sales--a little over 1 percent turnover. And in perennially desirable Manoa, there was only a 1.3 percent turn over last year. While 1 percent turnover is very low, there are actually several Oahu neighborhoods with even less turnover--and a handful of neighborhoods that had no sales at all last year (however, most of these neighborhoods are very small, such as the Waimea neighborhood in Haleiwa, with only 18 homes). The bulk of Oahu's more than 350 neighborhoods saw between 1 - 4 percent turnover among single-family homes.
*Excludes the neighborhoods with no sales in the past year and neighborhoods that are designated Hawaiian Homestead communities. What does this mean for home buyers and sellers? If you're looking to buy in a neighborhood with low turnover, like Manoa, be prepared to be patient and pay a premium for this sought-after area. On the other hand, if you're looking to buy and aren't tied to a particular area, you may want to focus your search on high turnover neighborhoods--like those in the Ewa region--where you may be able to score a better deal. Sellers in low-turnover neighborhoods have an advantage, too--particularly if the neighborhood has other desirable attributes, like ocean frontage. Sellers in neighborhoods where there is higher turnover are not necessarily at a disadvantage, however, as overall housing inventory remains very low, as does the median Days on Market. In these higher turnover neighborhoods, sellers should be sure to have their properties ready to show in good condition and priced appropriately. A qualified Realtor, like The Dream Team Hawaii, can advise sellers on how to show and price homes in competitive areas. Want to know what the turnover is in your neighborhood? Contact us for your custom neighborhood report. Simple Economics. Too many people, not enough homes When median prices are $742,000 for Single Family Homes (SFHs) and $385,000 for condos, you start to wonder how Honolulu Real Estate got so expensive. At Locations, we provide comprehensive monthly market reports on real estate trends which show that median prices are high. What you may not know is we also analyze the reasons why it has changed so dramatically over time. You may be thinking that this requires extensive research and complicated analysis. It's actually pretty easy to understand. We've had market conditions for the past few decades that have been slowly putting more and more pressure on the housing market until it reached the point we're at now. Years of shrinking inventory and increasing demand have created a highly competitive real estate market that resembles San Francisco or New York. Here is a simple formula that will explain the basics. These conditions have been intensifying for quite a while and that build up has led to the market we have now. Looking back at the past 46 years since Locations was founded and started collecting data, you can easily trace these high prices to a combination of factors. The Story of How we got HereThe market conditions described above kept putting more and more pressure on the market, forcing prices to adjust in order to keep up with demand. This is a great starting point for your education if you're starting to look at potential homes and a perfect resource to those who are curious as to how things got to this point. Read the "Story of the Market" in the slideshow below to see exactly how we got here. |