By Hussey Appraisal Group Hawaii– It’s been an uneven start to the new year for the East Hawai`i housing market.
According to data from Hawai`i Information Systems, real estate sales surged in the Puna district during the first quarter of 2014, while the Hilo housing market showed signs of slowing down.
The number of residential home sales in Puna increased an impressive 27.5% in the first three months of 2014 when compared with sales a year earlier, and the number of vacant land purchases in the district rose 46.1% during that same time period.
While the increase in activity pushed Puna home prices up 21.2%, prices for vacant land remained unchanged, with parcels in the district averaging $20,000 each.
The South Hilo residential housing market, by contrast, saw a 14.8% drop in the number of homes sold in the first quarter of 2014, while the number of vacant land sales remained mostly unchanged.
Prices of South Hilo homes sagged 9.5% in the first three months of 2014, while average prices for vacant land in the district increased 17.5%.
Kona Housing Prices See Steep Increase
Market activity on the west side of the island was also mixed. South Kona home sales dropped 31.3% when compared with a year earlier, while prices spiked 73.7%. While the number of vacant parcels sold in the area doubled, the average price of vacant parcels sold dropped 28.4%.
North Kona home and land sales, by contrast, remained relatively stable.
Ka`u Vacant Land Prices Drop
The first quarter of 2014 saw a 33.3% increase in the number of homes sold in Ka’u when compared to a year earlier, while the average price of houses sold in the district fell 13.2%.
The number of vacant parcels sold in the first quarter rose 9.5%, while the average price of land sold in the region dropped significantly, falling 42.9% when compared to the first quarter of 2013.
The Hussey Appraisal Group Hawai`i, Inc. is a team of certified and licensed real estate appraisers specializing in the valuation of residential, commercial, industrial, agricultural, vacant land and mixed-use properties in the islands since 1989. Hussey Appraisal Group Hawai`i issues quarterly trend reports on Hawaiian real estate as a no-cost public service. See more at https://www.husseyappraisalgroup.com/