Low-Inventory, High Competition and Rising Prices in West Oahu Housing Markets

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Anne Cicero

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Low-Inventory, High Competition and Rising Prices in West Oahu Housing Markets

Number of Mililani homes for sale falls 79 percent over last year

HONOLULU – (October 29, 2020) – Locations’ research analyzed Oahu single-family home and condo sales for the month of September 2020 and found:

• Active listings are down in all Oahu single-family home markets. 
• Mililani had the fewest homes for sale last month, with just seven homes compared to 33 as of September 2019—a 79 percent decrease; Mililani’s median home price reached a record $810,000. 
• The Ewa and Leeward markets also had significant decreases in homes for sale, with a 79 and 73 percent drops, respectively. Bid ups increased by 58 percent in the Ewa market (which includes Kapolei) as of September, while the median price reached $700,000—another record. 
• Competition was also higher in the Leeward market, which includes Waianae, with just 22 listings and nearly one in four homes bid up over asking as of September. With a median price of just over $500,000, the Leeward market is the only Oahu local market with a median price below $700,000. Condo active listings are down in most markets, with increases in Waikiki, Ala Moana-Kakaako, Kapiolani-University and Kailua.
• Ewa and Pearl City-Aiea were the most competitive condo markets as of September, with one in five sales bid up over asking. There were less than half the number of Ewa condos for sale as of last month than in September 2019, while Pearl City-Aiea had 20 percent fewer condos for sale, with just 38 listings. The median list price for Ewa condos as of September was $630,000, a 10 percent increase. 
• The median list price for Pearl City-Aiea condos reached $412,500, a nine percent increase. 

“Mililani has historically been a very competitive market, but it’s gotten even more competitive this year, with more than one in three homes selling for above asking, compared to slightly less than one in four a year ago,” said President and CEO of Locations Jason Lazzerini. Lazzerini went on to say that while the condo market is not as hot as the single-family home market, it is still competitive.

“While there are nearly three times as many condos for sale as single-family homes, we did see a six percent decrease in condos for sale last month, compared to a year ago—with the biggest drop in condo inventory in the Ewa market,” Lazzerini added. With both record-low interest rates and reduced inventory contributing to extremely competitive market conditions, Lazzerini advised would-be homeowners to get pre-qualified for a home loan and to partner with a knowledgeable Realtor® who has access to neighborhood-level market data.

“Be prepared to be out-bid a few times before you find your home, and if you can be flexible on your neighborhood of choice, that’s helpful, too,” Lazzerini added.  

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About Locations As the state’s oldest and leading independent real estate firm, our trusted Neighborhood Experts have served Hawaii’s families since 1969. For more than 50 years, Locations has helped more people buy or sell their homes than any other real estate firm in the state. With our rich kama’aina roots, innovative technology and dedicated market-research department, Locations continues to be at the forefront of this ever-changing industry. Today, Locations has 300 agents in five offices across Oahu. Through our non-profit, the Locations Foundation, our agents and staff support more than 100 Hawaii non-profit organizations both through monetary donations and volunteer hours. Visit LocationsHawaii.com/about-us today to learn more. For up-to-date Hawaii real estate updates, follow Locations on Facebook at: www.facebook.com/LocationsHawaii, Twitter at @LocationsHI, Instagram at @LocationsHawaii, and LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/company/locations-hawaii. Read the Locations blog at: www.LocationsHawaii.com/news.