Home sales mixed amid higher prices on neighbor isles

Median prices for homes sold in July on Hawaii island, Kauai and Maui were mostly higher, while the number of sales was more mixed, according to the most recent statistics from Hawaii Information Service and the Realtors Association of Maui.

The biggest price gain was for Hawaii island condominiums, which sold for a median $217,500 last month, up 40 percent from $155,000 in the same month last year. Helping drive the increase was fewer sales at the low end of the market in South Hilo, where three condos sold for a median $85,000 last month compared with a year earlier, when there were eight sales for a median $98,007.

The median is a point at which half of all sales were at a higher price and half at a lower price. Hence proportionally more sales in areas with pricier homes can elevate the median price.

The high end of Hawaii island’s condo market is South Kohala, where there were 18 sales last month for a median $310,000. This area median was down from $400,000 in July 2011 based on 19 sales.

Sales in North Kona also helped push up the island’s median condo price. There were 33 sales in this area for a median $168,000 last month compared with 30 sales for a median $137,000 a year earlier.

Islandwide there were 54 condo sales in July, down from 57 a year earlier.

In Hawaii island’s single-family home market, the median price was up 13 percent to $256,500 last month on 134 sales compared with a $227,500 median on 126 sales a year ago.

On Kauai the median condo price rose 22 percent last month to $252,800 on 17 sales compared with a year earlier when the median was $207,450 on 22 sales.

Kauai’s single-family home median slipped 5 percent to $407,500 last month based on 37 sales. A year earlier there were 35 sales for a median $430,000.

On Maui the median condo price was unchanged at $320,000. The number of sales was down 26 percent to 73 units in July from 98 units a year earlier. Maui single-family homes sold for a median $491,000 last month, up 24 percent from $394,500 a year earlier. There were 71 sales last month, up from 68 a year earlier.