Oahu home sales growth stays strong

Oahu home sales started this year fast, and they’ve kept on going, with the most recent reports showing limited isle inventory is selling faster and for a greater percentage of the list price.

Single-family home sales rose 9.5 percent to 266 last month from 243 the year prior, according to statistics released Friday by the Hono­­lulu Board of Realtors. More than half of those homes sold for $630,000 or more, representing a 5.1 percent price drop from the $664,000 median home price achieved on Oahu in May 2012.

Meanwhile, Oahu condominium sales soared 21.8 percent to 452 from the 371 that changed hands in May 2012. The median price paid for a condominium rose 5 percent to $315,000 from the year-ago $300,000.

"May was an especially strong month for condominium sales. Not only did we see both sales and the median price increase, but sellers also received, on average, 99.1 percent of their original listing price," Kevin Mi­yama, a Prudential Locations agent and president of the Hono­lulu Board of Realtors, said in a statement. "Additionally, sales of single family homes continue on an upward trend and we’re excited to see where the market goes."

John Riggins, owner of John Riggins Real Estate, said he was pleased to see the pace of residential real estate continue to improve on Oahu. According to the Days on Market indicator, sales of both single-family homes and condominiums sold faster last month compared with a year ago. Single-family homes were on the market for 25 days, and condominiums for 27 days.

"It only took us 30 days to move a property on the market that had live termites," Riggins said. "It’s better to list properties that show well, but we’ve hit the point in the market where even properties that don’t are moving fast."

Still, while May’s market performance was worthy of continued celebration in the real estate community, it represented a slight pullback from April’s numbers. May’s single-family home sales were down 5 percent from the prior month. The median price paid for a single-family home in May of this year was 0.8 percent higher than it was last month.

While May condominium sales were down a scant 1.1 percent over the prior month, the median price dropped 5.9 percent during the same time period.

Riggins said he’s not worried because year-to-date demand has strengthened.

"I’m not selling any of my investment properties," he said. "I still think that we could hit a single-family home median of about $800,000 next year."