Kauai Home Sales

*****Kauai Real Estate*****Hawai’i representatives Neil Abercrombie and Mazie Hirono both helped to pass the historic 700 million Bailout Bill.  Abercrombie stated that the revised plan provided more protection for the individual taxpayer, increases the FDIC’s coverage from $100,000 to $250,000 and it provides income tax relief for some 91,000 Hawai’i households.  Hirono stated that the bill is “far from perfect” but contained noticeable improvements over the initial measure.   Senator Inouye and Akaka both voted in favor of the the bill when it reached the Senate.  History shows us that this is not an immediate fix as we saw with the 1 year turnaround timeframe for the 1989 savings and loan crisis and subsequent government bailout.  For our weekly report here are last week’s new listings and closed transactions: CLICK HERE FOR EXCEL SPREADSHEET

*****Hawaiian Airlines To Add More Jets*****

In spite of the sagging tourism industry Hawaiian Airlines is investing in 4 new fuel efficient jets with the first one taking to the sky last Thursday.  Hawaiian Airlines is adding 111 more Oahu flights to the outer islands by the year’s end; 40 to Lihue, 27 to Kahului, 25 to Kona and 19 to Hilo.  Kauai clearly dominating the lion’s share of the new flights.   

On a related note….. Lihue Airport is going solar and have entered into a series of agreements with Hoku Solar Inc.  The state will not have to lay out any monies for the upfront costs of installation of the solar panels, Hoku Solar will own and operate each system and sell the energy to the state at a predetermined rate for 20 years.  The rates will be different for each island and the baseline rate for Kauai is 38 cents per kilowatt-hour and would rise 2% per year for the length of the contract.  Completion of the installation is to be completed at the end of this year.

*****Hilo Hatties Files For Bankruptcy*****

Citing high oil prices and the weakening of Hawaii’s tourism Hilo Hatties said it had not choice but to file for Chapter 11 said CEO Ted Nelson.  The store manager in our one Hilo Hatties did not make a comment to our island newspaper but it was business as usual on Thursday with the Hilo Hattie shuttle bus making the rounds as usual.  The chains 256 employees will not be affected and all 9 retail locations will remain open.  The company is also moving forward to open a new flagship store in the Royal Hawaiian Center in Waikiki with a tentative opening in the summer of 2009.  The company is deeply committed to ushering the chain which started in 1963 into a new era.

*****Home Blows Up In Wailua!*****

 Residents that have lived in their Wailua home for 53 years found themselves, along with the rest of the neighborhood, rocked by a huge explosion that sounded like a jet breaking the sound barrier.  Early Sunday morning the two residents of this home were watching a football game on television when the explosion went off.  Both escaped with little more then the close on their backs and their lives as the entire house burned up in just a matter of minutes.  They were both taken to Wilcox where they underwent smoke inhalation treatment and were released.  The resident speculated that the propane tank had a slow leak in it which allowed gas to pool under the house and ignited when it reached the pilot light, however the fire inspector said the fire was not caused by that and is bringing investigators to Kauai to determine the cause.  Firefighters had arrived on the scene within 5 minutes but the nearest fire hydrant was 100 yards away and took 5 to 7 minutes to even start to put the blaze out.

*****Visitor Drowns Off Lawai Beach*****

A 73 year old Pennsylvania tourist who was spending the day on Kauai while on a cruise died while snorkeling on the South Shore.  The man was found to be struggling in the water by a surfer who brought the man to shore and moments later the man collapsed and a resident preformed CPR on him until an ambulance arrived to take over.  The man died en route to Wilcox Hospital.  Cause of death is being determined.

*****Tentative Housing Bailout Agreement Reached*****

BREAKING NEWS: BILL NARROWLY REJECTED AS ON MONDAY MORNING STARTS PANIC SELLING ON WALL STREET (posted after blog was published on Monday)

The government housing bill has been of great interest us Real Estate agents, those owning real estate or wanting to own.  It’s no secret that nationally various sectors of the housing markets are in a slump as are some banks.  I say various because this is a national issue and real estate and banking conditions will vary on a neighborhood basis.  The bailout affects the confidence of the general public so in that regard all of the sectors are affected.  The tentative bailout was put together on Saturday with the House expected to vote on it Sunday and then it’s on to the Senate on Monday. 

The bill includes:

1)      Treasury Department to buy deeply discounted mortgage-backed securities and other bad debts held by the bank.

2)      Money for a program that would encourage distressed mortgage holders to keep them and buy government insurance to cover defaults.

3) Government would receive stock warrants in return for the bailout giving taxpayers a chance at future profits from those companies.

4) Government to try renegotiating bad mortgages to lower payments so people can keep their homes.

5) More Congressional oversight, more taxpayer protections, help for homeowners facing foreclosure and restrictions on executives compensation.

The insurance provision listed in item 2 was added as an alternative to having government buy distressed securities and it will require less taxpayer spending for the bailout.

Here on Kauai real estate was pretty quiet for closing for last week and the number of new listings coming on the market has remained about the same. For an excel spreadsheet CLICK HERE

*****Police 5 Hour Standoff in Kilauea*****

Kilauea Road or “Lighthouse Road” was the scene of a 5 hour standoff between Kauai Police and Kaleo Martin on Monday.  Nearby residents were told to stay in their houses as Martin commandeered a police cruiser armed with a rifle and machete.

At  4:42 a.m. police got a domestic violence call from the Martins home on Kilauea Road and when they arrived Martin had already left.  At 5:15 a.m. Martin came back with a rifle and machete, entered an unlocked police cruiser that was still at the house.  Martin refused to leave and stayed in and around the police cruiser for 5 hours acting irrationally all the while maintaining contact with the police officers with the cars police radio.  He demanded to speak to Mayor Bill “Kaipo” Asing and at one point started hacking away at the inside of the police car with the machete causing a huge amount of damage.  At the end of 5 hours police saw an opportunity to use a Taser gun on him and it effectively knocked the gun out of his hand and he was taken into custody.  Officers said it was heavily suspected that Martin was under the influence of drugs or needed his medication.  Taser guns were introduced to our Police Department just last March.

*****Hapa Performs At Kauai Community College*****

Hapa, the award winning duo from Maui, gave a benefit concert for Kalaheo Elementary school to get a  new sound system.  The event was held at Kauai Community College on Saturday night and I was fortunate to go.  The event received very little publicity and it was obvious why; with little to no publicity the place was packed with the Kauai community at large in attendance!  The venue was Barry Flanagan playing his hypnotic slack key guitar and the soothing vocals of  Nathan Aweau who also had won Hawaii Male Vocalist of the year for 2007.  The venue was over two hours long with Hawaiian chants by Charles Ka’upu  and hula preformed by Malia Petersen.  One of the things I love best about living here is the accessibility to events here.  Even a an extremely popular event like this getting in and out of the parking lot was easy, the crowds calm and respectful and the price right ($40.00!).  For more on Hapa go to: http://www.hapa.com  and check out a show of theres in your neighborhood if you can, you won’t be sorry!  

 *****Hawaii Gas Prices Drop***** 

Hawaii’s statewide average price for regular unleaded gasoline continued to fall to $4.275, down 12 cents from a month ago.  A month ago it was $4.39 while a year ago it was $3.20, according to the AAA’s daily fuel gauge report.  Gas prices in Hawaii are the second-highest in the U.S., just slightly behind Alaska, where the average prices are $4.277. Gas is cheapest in Oklahoma at $3.38 a gallon.  The price for a gallon of diesel in Hawaii, meantime, dipped 15 cents from a month ago to $5.13 a gallon, the highest rate in the country. 

*****Kauai Real Estate And Local News Update*****

New listings are down a little from the previous weeks while the number of closed transactions remains about the same.  The Poipu Beach Estate lots here on the South Shore are closing escrow so if you see land sales with “0” days on the market this is why.  These lots range from 6000 square feet to over an acre and are in the VDA area, if you would like more information on these give me a call.  For now here is an excel spreadsheet on what was listed and what sold last week CLICK HERE     

*****Lawsuit Against Grove Farm Owner Steve Case Dismissed*****

A lawsuit brought by former shareholders of Grove Farm relating to AOL’s Steve Cases acquisition was dismissed by the Federal Court on Wednesday.  The U.S. District Court Judge Robert E. Jones said that Steve Case, founder of AOL, had not engaged in federal security improprieties.  The former shareholders were stating that Case and his companies got confidential inside information to purchase all of Grove Farm shares.  Their suit was filed in 2005 and they were seeking damages of $2.5 billion, after fifty witnesses testified in a month long trial the verdict was the claimants failed to prove their claims.  There had been another suit filed in recent years and was dismissed and a third lawsuit had gone to trial but the jury decided against the plaintiffs.  Two other lawsuits were consolidated in the 5^th Circuit Court on Wednesday and that case is going to be heard in June of 2010.

 *****Inappropriate Emails Gets Tourism Executive Into Deep Water*****

 Alphonso Braggs, president of the Hawaii branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People is not happy with Rex Johnson, Hawaii’s top tourism executive.  Mr. Johnson was using his state’s computer to forward X-rated movie clips, slideshows and photographs via email, this discovery being made by a state auditor.  Mr. Johnson was reprimanded and had a pay cut along with his four year contract being reduced to 1 year.  The latest batch of emails that were sent by Johnson to friends using the same computer were racial and political jokes which Governor Linda Lingle says goes directly against what Hawaii stands for and who we are as a people.  While these emails were not written by Rex Johnson they were forwarded by him and civil rights groups are demanding his resignation.  The email “jokes” were involving colored people, Obama and women.  The Hawaii Tourism Authority is under unusual scrutiny now that the tourism industry needs a boost prompting a rededication of this branch to market Hawaii as a vacation destination.   

 *****Illegal Kennel Has Sad Ending For Dogs*****

Last Tuesday night the Kauai Humane Society received the call about the demise of a dog in an illegal dog kennel in Kekaha.  The property is owned by Amfac Development Corporation and the kennel is located on a parcel of land that is currently unrented and was there illegally.  So why did this situation get so out of hand?  An eviction plan was going to be discussed in October between Amfac and the Kauai agricultural division after 2 eviction notices left on the kennel door was torn down and the dogs remained.  Historical agreements going back to the Kekaha sugar days allows people certain access to property for kenneling of animals and in the past this area had been used as a piggery and was home to goats.  The remaining dogs have been removed by the Kauai Humane Society and the kennel operator will be charged.

 *****Burial Law Was Not Followed*****

The California man who is building a home in Ha’ena is back in the news.  A group of citizens have filed lawsuits and have done demonstrations protesting the house building on the site of ancient Hawaiian burials.  Judge Watanabe ruled that the builder can keep building provided that doing so causes no irreparable damage to the burials and that there’s clear access to them.  The attorney for the builder said he’s not an architect and will speak with his client before commenting on what those restrictions mean for the current construction plans which call for the body of the house to be 8 to 8 ½ feet above ground.

*****Kauai Gets Out And Votes!*****On Saturday Kauaians turned out and voted in our primaries.  With the unfortunate passing of our former Mayor, Bryan Babtiste, there was an added election for the position of Mayor to serve for the remaining two years of Babtistes term.  Bernard Carvalho, a Kauai born native, received 39.9% of the vote and former Mayor JoAnn Yukimura received 29.9%, JoAnn Yukimura was Mayor during hurricane Iniki.  Both will now proceed to our November 4^th election.  All of the incumbent Council members who ran received enough votes run on November 4^th along with 9 newcomers. 

*****Kauai Real Estate Update*****

For the second week in a row we’ve had fewer new listings and about the same amount of sales.  For a list of what has come on the market and what has sold CLICK HERE FOR KAUAI NEW LISTINGS AND SALES FOR SEPT. 8 TO SEPT. 15

*****Safeway Seeking Permits For Puhi Shopping Center***** 

Safeway has plans for a “lifestyle” shopping center in Puhi, across from the Chiefess Kamakahelei Middle School.    In addition to a new Safeway Lifestyle store, which includes a wide variety of prepared foods and locally grown produce, there will be two or three sit down restaurants, possible gas station, clothing stores and more.  The company is seeking permits from the Kauai Planning Department and is reaching out to the community for comments and concerns with their new shopping center.  Safeway is also “going green” with their new building and will be using renewable and recycled building materials and will explore renewable energy sources also.   Safeway has been operating in Kapaa for 20 years and in the state of Hawaii for 40 years.  Currently they have 19 stores across the islands.

 *****Gay and Robinson To Exit Sugar Industry***** 

Gay and Robinson, Kauai’s last operating sugar mill, announced to their workers on Wednesday that they will continue to harvest the cane that’s in the ground through August of 2010 but will stop sugar production at that time due to the rising costs and shrinking profits.  Good news is the company is negotiating with Pacific West Energy LLC who intends to grow even more sugar then what is now being produced for ethanol and electricity and they will hire all of the existing 227 workers and will be needing even more.   Pacific West Energy said progress depends on Gay and Robinson ability to acquire even more lands for additional planting.  Currently G&R has 7,500 acres of sugar and trying to round up that much more, without those additional lands the banks and lenders won’t sign on to Pacific West Energy’s new venture.  Governor Linda Lingle and Kauai’s Mayor Bill “Kaipo” Asing said they are both committed to expediting all permits and approvals necessary to facilitate the sale.  

*****Makaweli Post Office Burglarized*****

Sometime during the first weekend of this month the Makaweli Post Office was broken into and thieves made off with the safe which contained about $1000.00 in cash and over $14,000.00 in stamps.  The burglars first tried to break into the safe as evidenced by the broken handle left on the floor.  They wound up taking the entire safe after cutting the telephone lines and an unsuccessful attempt at pulling the electrical box off the wall.  Office computers and other items were left behind.  Anyone with any information leading to the arrest of the perpetrators’ is being offered $10,000.00 reward. Also…..around that same time……$150K was taken from the Gold and Silver Trading Co. located on Hardy Street (right off of Rice street) and a total of four stores were involved to pull off the major heist.  The thieves actually broke into Ray’s Shoe Repair Shop and tried to pry the jewelry stores back door off, that being unsuccessful they kicked in the door to Beltone Hearing Aid and used a tool from the shoe shop to rip a hole big enough for the thieves to get into the jewelry store.  After filling their bags with literally all they could carry the thieves dragged the jewelry stores safe through the Makena Miyaki Inc., a book keeping operation.

*****Courts Uphold Superferry Protestor Ban***** 

The 9^th US Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the decision to bar all protestors from Nawiliwili Harbor.  Over a year ago surfers and canoe paddlers prevented the Superferry from entering the harbor where a multitude of protestors waited with banners and signs protesting the Superferry.  There are no immediate plans for the new mode of transportation to come back to Kauai.  There are still two other court cases pending before the state Supreme Court that were brought about by People for the Preservation of Kauai.

 *****Where’s My Stimulus Check?***** 

Well if your behind on your child support the federal and state government has it!  $5.4 million dollars in stimulus checks that were going to parents who have not kept up on their child support payments here in Hawaii have been intercepted and given to the custodial parent.   

*****Freddie Mac Fannie Mae Government Takeover*****

On Sunday the federal government took control of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to keep the two leading mortgage companies from failing thus avoiding a catastrophe that would have made home loans harder to get and taken the nation’s housing situation to a new level of crisis. The federal government will put billions of taxpayer dollars into Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and assume responsibility for trillions of dollars of their debt and control of the companies will belong to the federal regulators.  This serious move was done because the fall of these two giants would have had a devastating effect on the rest of our economy.

Experts said the takeover could stabilize the home loan market making mortgages cheaper and easier to get and that in turn would have a positive effect on the housing pricing.  “The housing and mortgage market should benefit from the actions,” said Sung Won Sohn, an economist at California State University Channel Islands in Camarillo. “Mortgage rates should be lower than they would be without the government guarantee.”

On Oahu the number of houses and condos dropped but the median price for a home dropped 2.3 percent and condos rose 0.9 percent.  For a list of what was listed and what sold here on Kauai last week CLICK HERE FOR KAUAI REAL ESTATE SPREADSHEET

*****Turn Off Those Lights!*****

Kauaians pay the highest in the state for their electricity at a rate of $0.466 per kilowatt hour as opposed to Oahu who pays $0.297 an hour.  Statewide the rate averaged $0.333 per hour.  So why is out electric so high?  Kauai Island Utility Cooperative because they do not burn coal or heavy oils which is cheaper then diesel or naptha.  Also; Kauai has fewer customers to share the cost, we only have 64,000 residents to share the cost of power generation and we are still paying for post Hurricane Iniki infrastructure.  The Co-op board said the price should go down due to the decrease in oil prices which dropped to $109.71 a barrel on Tuesday way down from the high of $147 a barrel. When visiting Kauai turn the lights off if not in use, it’s appreciated by everybody!

*****California North Shore Builder Facing Challenges***** Judge Kathlen Watanabe said she will rule by September 15 on the preliminary injunction request to halt construction at a home in Wainiha where it’s known to contain 30 ancient Hawaiian burials which date as far back as the 1300’s on the property.  Evidence revealed that the concrete jackets have sealed 7 of the graves already.  The builders attorneys say their client, a California businessman, has met the State and County requirements all along the way and has been trying to build his home for 7 years and has had encountered financial setbacks in his building costs caused by the delays, example: $400,000 has been spent on foundation compared to the original quote of $255,000.  Judge Watanabe said this is an emotionally charged issue and nobody is going to leave the courtroom happy and also cautioned that the court’s jurisdiction in the matter is “very, very narrow”. 

*****Koloa Landing Going Vertical*****

What’s new in Poipu?  Koloa Landing, one of the new developments in Poipu, has started it’s construction. This resort is a 25 acre luxury condominium resort complex where prices range from $900,000 to 2 million. There has been many months of site preparation and the company is very excited that actual building is now underway. Actual occupancy is set for the fourth quarter of 2009.

Here is an excel spreadsheet for the new listings and sales island wide. If you have any questions I welcome your calls or emails. CLICK HERE FOR EXCEL SPREADSHEET

*****Three Car Accidents Over Two Days*****
Earlier last week there was an unfortunate rush of significant car accidents here on Kauai.  On Monday “Tree Tunnel” road which marks the historic entrance into the Poipu area was the scene of a two car accident that shut down the road.  Both drivers were transported to Wilcox hospital.

On Tuesday a two people lost their lives when a head on collision occurred between two cars on Kuhio Highway, both were residents of Kauai.  The wife and 6 month old child of the Lihue man that lost his life were in critical condition and were airlifted to Queens in Honolulu. The infant was discharged from Queens on Wednesday and the mother, who is at Wilcox hospital, was reported in fair condition as of Friday. Kuhio Highway was closed from 4:30 to 8:30 pm.

At the time of the Highway being reopened another accident occurred in Lihue by the Veterans Center where the driver of a Toyota flipped over onto it’s roof after being struck by a Chevrolet SUV.  The occupants of both cars appeared to not have any serious injuries.

*****Kukui’ula Breaks Ground On Clubhouse*****

A demonstration of commitment was held by Kukui’ula Development on Tuesday with a blessing and ground breaking ceremony for their $100 million recreational centerpiece to the 1,010 acre Poipu luxury development.  This “Plantation Core” phase includes a 20,000 square foot clubhouse and a 18 hole Golf course and Spa.  These are expected to be completed by 2010.  To position themselves in this economic downturn, both on a national and local level, Kukui’ula expects this will carry them through into 2010 and will provide local jobs for our island.  Work will continue on the home sites and the retail shopping center which will come online in 2009.  For more information on sales please contact me.  

*****Raft Made From Junk Crosses Pacific*****
Marcus Eriksen and Joel Paschal spent three months as sea on a raft that they made from junk and landed safely at Honolulu harbor on Wednesday.  The two “eco-mariners” had made a boat from 15,000 plastic bottles and the fuselage of a Cessna 310 and set sale from Long Beach Harbor in California on June 1 with the goal to raise awareness about plastic debris.  The men posted online videos and blogs all along their trip with the help of Eriksens fiancé who stayed home to take care of the online entries and fundraising.  But they nearly didn’t make it when the two nearly ran out of food.  At traveling ½ mile per hour the duo realized they did not have enough food for the trip, so they called Roz Savage who was crossing the Pacific in a rowboat and the three hooked up for a dinner and supplies exchange.  Savage’s portable water maker broker and so the men helped her out with an extra they had and she gave them some of her extra food.
Paschal and Eriksen are working on a documentary about their voyage along with their mission statement of banning single use plastics.

*****Kauai County Fair*****

The Kauai County Fair is in full swing! Attendance has been huge and it’s evidenced by the abundance of parking at the mall and restaurants! You can see the rides towering from the highway and there’s also live entertainment, food, crafts, livestock judging, flower exhibits and much more.

*****Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae Stock Tumbles*****
The two holders of half of the US mortgage loans faces serious stock trouble as their shares fall more then 40% and are trading at a low not seen for two decades. Fears are mounting that the two companies will need government bailout. Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae have lost $3.1 billion (see my blog posting http://blogs.alohaliving.com/kauai-home-sales/2008/08/11/kauai-real-estate-and-local-news-update/ ) and it’s not believed that the losses will stop there.  On Friday Freddie Mac officials talked with investors about the possibility of buying it’s stock to raise some much needed capital.  Billionaire Warren Buffett said he passed on the opportunity.
Meanwhile IndyMac Federal Bank borrowers will be able to convert their loans to a fixed-rate mortgage under a new plan from federal regulators who seized the bank last month. Borrowers who are seriously delinquent or in default and have the proper documentation can switch to loans capped at a 6.5 rate.  We had a lot of new properties come on the market last week and the sales were a little slower then they have been, for an excel spreadsheet on all the real estate action  CLICK HERE

*****Fire On Kalalau Trail Leave Hikers Stranded*****
Last week a fire the size of a football field broke out on the Kalalau Trail which is also known as the Napali Trail. It’s believed that it was originally a campfire that got out of control. Hikers had to hike through hundreds of feet of thick smoke to reach the trail out of the troubled area. 28 hikers on Kalalau Beach were rescued by emergency crew employing Zodiak boats to safely get them to Ke’e Beach which is where the trail head is located.  The Napali Trail is 11 miles long and is one of the most scenic and popular trails on the North Shore.  The blaze continued to burn through the night and grew from 11 to 50 acres before it was contained, no injuries have been reported.  Fridays paper reported that they were still working on hot spots.

*****Superferry Update*****

Our local newspaper held an online poll asking people if the Superferry should return to Kauai. These results are not considered to be accurate as people can do multiple voting and many have the paper delivered to them and wouldn’t see this poll online. Here are the results:

Superferry To Return: 1166 votes

Superferry To Return Contingent On An Environmental Study: 519 votes

Superferry To Never Return: 842 votes

Superferry To Return While Environmental Study Is Done: 328 votes

Superferry Should Reach Out To Kauai People To Determine A Possible Return: 164 votes

On Friday a “Ferry Free Kauai” rally was held at Nawiliwili Harbor to celebrate the one year anniversary of the protest a year ago that Kauaians held at the Harbor virtually blocking the Superferry from docking. The rally organizer stated he is not against the ferry and that his position is that and EIS (Environmental Impact Study) study should be done first before the ferry starts service and not after the fact.

Meanwhile Tom Fargo, the Superferry CEO said coming back is not out of the question but it’s also a matter or hardware at this point. The companies second vessel currently is 80% complete and by the time it arrives to Kauai the existing vessel “Alakai” will need an overhaul.

It does not look like the Superferry will be docking anytime soon at this point.
*****Kauai Dogs Have Their Day*****
3 Dog Bills will go before the Kauai County Council for final approval this Wednesday. The controversial issue has had much public impute over these lasts months and has sparked quite a few letters to the Editor here in our local newspaper. But here is the final Legislature to be voted on:
1) An 18th month trial period will be created for residents to walk their dog on the county Eastside shared trail that runs along the coast.  Restrictions are placed on owners and their dogs during this trial period.
2) The committee was unanimous in having the County create a new “Dog Park” on some 2.8 acres of the 17 acres at Wailua Homesteads.
3) Bill 2266 would require dog handlers to pick up after their dogs “debris” and to carry with them the implements for doing so.

*****Pacific Ocean Properties Named Christie’s International Affiliate!*****

I’m really excited to report that the company I’m with, Pacific Ocean Properties, was named the exclusive affiliate of Christie’s Great Estates, a wholly owned subsidiary of Christie’s International which is the worlds oldest fine art auction house.  With Real Estate becoming more global every year this is a valuable affiliation with a very prestigious company.

Being a part of this network entails Pacific Ocean Properties to reach a wider audience in marketing its selection of high-end properties in Po’ipu thus increasing their exposure globally for all their properties.  Christies Great Estates is the largest international luxury network of real estate brokers and it’s network includes more than 850 offices and approximately 35,000 sales associates in more the 40 countries. 

And now for the real estate news for this week!  For an excel spreadsheet on what was listed last week and what has sold CLICK HERE FOR SPREADSHEET

*****Lihue, Kauai makes National Geographic “Move To” List*****
Lihue, Kauai was the only city in the entire state to make National Geographic’s list of places to move to.  What’s even better is it placed #3 out of 50 outdoor-oriented places for you to move to and live a better life.  National Geographic lists places that were “smart places” to live rather then hot spots.  So state the magazine: “A change of address can
bring instant gratification.  But a move is a long-term investment.  Not only do the selected towns have the action they’ve also got a plan.”  Here is what they listed about the town:  
3. LIHUE, KAUAI, HAWAII
Visitors come for Lihue’s heavenly Kalapaki Beach—perpetually ranked as one
of the world’s finest stretches of white sand. But residents in this
commercial hub (there’s even a Costco) have ample time to explore the
3,000-foot-deep, jungle-fringed Waimea Canyon too.
Population: 5,674
Median home price: $485,000

So who was #1 and #2?  Seattle Washington and Coo’s Bay Oregon,
respectively.

*****California Builder Stopped From Building Home*****
After a protest last week at a Ha’ena home site, which resulted in no arrests after a calm day of demonstration, a California builder is stopped for the time being from building his dream home.  Some 15 members of Ohana O Naue rallied at the Mokihana Building on Tuesday for the state to not allow construction of a single family home which is located at the site where some 30 ancient Hawaiian Burials have been identified.  The protesters asked the 17 member panel to revisit the burial treatment plan approved by the Kaua’i Island Burial Council.  The commission unanimously voted to direct the county Planning Department to investigate the accuracy of the plans. However, on Thursday Judge Kathleen Watanabe affirmed that construction may continue because the base of the home has already been poured and more disturbance to the grounds was not to be expected.  Protesters left the court room dejected and some were in tears.*****Hawaii Celebrates Statehood*****
On August 21, 1959 Hawaii became the 50th state and plans are already underway to celebrate our 50th birthday next year.  A 25 member commission has been formed to over see the “birthday” celebrations.  

*****Kaui Real Estate And Local News Update*****

Good news on the oil price front!  Oil prices dropped to $115 a barrel on Friday driven lower by a huge jump in the US dollar, moderating oil usage across the world and the belief that commodities may have peaked.  Not so good news for Fannie Mae: they posted loses at $2.3 Billion which is 3 times higher then Wall Street expected.  Fannie Mae also slashed their dividends to 5 cents from 35 cents a share.  Borrowers with good credit but no proof of income or those who have little to no down payment are projected to feel the brunt of Fannie Mae’s troubles.

Are you in the market to buy or sell?  Give me a call or email for “no pressure, ever!” information.  For an excel spreadsheet on what was listed last week here on Kauai and what has sold CLICK HERE

 *****Hanalei Bay Resort Resort Management Sold*****

Hanalei Bay Resort is classified as a “condotel” which may or may not be a familiar term to you. Condotel’s are individually owned condos that are put into a management pool and rented out like hotel rooms. The name condotel comes from the fact that they are individual condos in a resort that has the amenities of a hotel. Such is the case with the Hanalei Bay Resort, a 134 unit complex in Princeville on Kauai’s north shore whose management company was recently sold. Effective immediately Celebrity Resorts, which is a Florida based company, will take over from the former management Quintus Resorts. Celebrity Resorts manages 17 resorts spanning over 6 states and the Caribbean. On site of the Hanalei Bay Resort is Happy Talk Lounge and Bali Hai Restaurant and Quintus is in the process of selling the business’s outright to a local restaurateur who has plans to invest 1.5 million into renovations.

*****Obama Thinks Nation Can Learn From Hawaii*****

Presidential hopeful Barack Obama is visiting Hawaii which is where he was born and raised. To a cheering crowd he said that the nation can learn from the way that people live here in Hawaii. The Aloha Spirit which entails helping those in need, treating people with respect and taking care of the elders is needed by the rest of the nation, he said, along with Hawaii’s long standing tradition of working with people of many different backgrounds. He held a rally outside of Keehi Lagoon Beach Park and when asked what else he’s going to do here he said that “Surfs up” and he’ll also spend time with his grandmother who cannot travel anymore and the rest of his family.

*****Candidates Oppose Superferry*****
19 City Council candidates and four Mayoral candidates convened in a round table discussion with the community in attendance. One of the questions posed was their position on the return of the Superferry and all stated that they are against it. All candidates said they want an environmental study done first. The group also agreed on expanded bus service, curbside recycling and banning pesticides in county parks.
Superferry also made the news in the fact that their attendance was up 40% in July. The new attendance figures are less then half of the capacity but it was enough to make the Superferry people feel positive. The comparative low cost to outer island travel and interest in riding the ferry were the two main reasons people gave for choosing the new mode of transportation in a survey that was done from June 20 to July 29.
 

*****Hawaiian Airlines Raises Mileage Rewards Rates and Baggage Fee*****

Hawaiian Airlines announced Wednesday that they will charge and additional $15.00 for the first checked in bag on their mainland flights, the second bag already has a fee of $25.00.  This is for tickets purchased after August 1, 2008.  There will be no charge for the first piece of luggage on the interisland flights.  They will also adjust their frequent flyer program so now more miles are needed to get an award ticket; this will take place after September 1, 2008.  The minimum miles needed for a free flight is 10,000 and it will be increased to 15,000.  Hawaiian Airlines said the last time they raised their mileage program was 14 years ago.

Also in the news for Hawaiian Air:  Mesa Airlines, the parent company of Go! Airlines settled with Hawaiian on a lawsuit for $52.5 million dollars.  This lawsuit settlement allowed the company to have earning of $54.3 million for the last quarter.  Compared to the quarter before which had the airline at a net loss of $3.9 million. Mark Dunkerley, Hawaiian Airlines President,  said “The net beneficial impact of our competitors collapse and our raising of air fares offset by the costs of more expensive jet fuel was to leave us at roughly break even.”  So why the baggage fee instead of a fair hike?  According to Dunkerley “If we add $15 to our fares, bookings would slow down dramatically because online shoppers pick their tickets based on the lowest price.” 

*****Hawaii Information Service Gives Kauai Market Update*****
Hawaii Information Service is where we Realtors put our listings and document our sales.  It’s also where we go when to do market analysis when representing Buyers as tracking past sales, price reductions, days on market and current inventory is a huge key to making an offer.  Hawaii Information Service is a non-biased information collecting tool.  Here is what their data says about our Kauai market “Sales activity for single family residences, vacant land and condominiums are down 39%.  The combined median price for single-family residences, vacant land and condominiums are exactly the same as they were last year.  For sales activity in July 2008, median prices for single-family residences on Kaua’i are $655,000.  Median sales price for condominiums are $569,000 and vacant land is $617,500″ We had another healthy week for closed transactions, for a full excel spreadsheet CLICK HERE

 *****Hawaii To Test 4 Day Workweek*****
In an effort to cut back on expenses of keeping government offices open Governor Linda Lingle is testing a 4 day workweek for the next 3 months.  Employees will now work four 10 hour days Monday through Thursday.  On October 31 the State will evaluate this change to see if this change has made a difference and if they will continue.  Additionally Oahu’s Mayor Mufi Hannemann is ordering all city departments to cut their budgets by 2 to 3 percent and the city will also suspend job fairs and will delay filling vacant positions.  This all comes as a result of a decline in tax revenues. *****What do people look for in a home?*****
Did you know there’s an internal clock that you have when looking at property to decide if you like the place or not?  It’s true!  According to the National Association Of Realtors (NAR)  when people are viewing photos of a piece of property online they will decide if they like it in 3 seconds and when they are looking at a piece of property in person they will know in 30 seconds.  So what are people looking for in homes these days?  Currently here are the top ten things:
-Central air-conditioning
-Garage (2 or more spaces)
-Walk-in closet in master bedroom
-Backyard play area
-Cable/satellite TV-ready
-High speed internet access
-Separate shower enclosure in master bedroom
-Patio
-Fencing
-Home less then 10 years old