Kauai condo prices tied record in 2019

Condominium prices on Kauai last year tied a more than decade-old record that stood out as a highlight in data from two neighbor island housing markets released Sunday.

The median price for Kauai condos sold last year surged 23% to $565,000 to match a record set in 2007, according to a report from Hawaii Information Service based on data from the Kauai Board of Realtors and Hawaii Island Realtors.

The tie represented an end to a long rebound for one of Hawaii’s smallest housing markets, heavily influenced by vacation-home buyers following an implosion triggered by the great recession in 2008.

At its post-recession low, the median price for Kauai condos was $227,000 in 2011. Since then the recovery has been steady.

Kauai’s single-family home market set a record in 2018 at $699,500 but slipped 6% to $660,000 last year to match the 2017 median price figure.

Sale volume on Kauai was lower last year. The number of condo sales fell 15% to 430 last year from 503 the year before. The number of single-family home sales slipped 3% to 579 from 598 in the same period.

On Hawaii island, median prices were still well off of peaks reached more than a decade ago.

Single-family homes on the Big Isle sold for a median $378,920 last year, up 6% from $358,470 the year before. The record was set at $421,000 in 2006.

Hawaii island condos sold for a median $362,000 last year, up 3% from $350,000 the year before. The record is $426,498, set in 2006.

Sale volume on Hawaii island was up last year. There were 2,424 single-family homes sold on the island last year, up 4% from 2,342 a year earlier. Condo sale volume edged up 3% to 861 last year from 833 the year before.

The report also showed that the two neighbor island housing markets had mixed results in December.

For the last month of 2019 on Hawaii island, sale volume for single-family homes rose 9% to 205 last month from 189 in the same month the year before while condo sale volume fell 10% to 70 from 78 in the same period.

Median prices on Hawaii island fell 11% to $357,000 last month from $399,000 a year earlier for single-family homes, and for condos fell 8% to $352,500 from $384,000.

Sales on Kauai in December fell 9% to 41 from 45 a year earlier for single-family homes and rose 7% to 45 from 42 for condos.

The median sale price on Kauai in December rose 14% to $715,000 from $625,000 a year earlier for single-family homes and rose 5% to $689,660 from $658,938 for condos.

Median prices often can be more volatile on the neighbor islands compared with Oahu because relatively few sales are involved. The median price is a point at which half the sales were for more and half for less. The location, size, age and quality of homes can affect this measure. Also, the trade associations for real estate agents on Hawaii island and Kauai include sales of new and previously owned homes in their data. On Oahu, sales of only previously owned homes are counted.