Maui Gas prices are the highest

 

Hawaii generally has the highest gas prices in the United States.  Maui, Kauai and the Big Island gas prices are normally higher than prices on Oahu.  In past weeks Maui's price went up to $3.95 per gallon for regular and $4+ for the premium fuels.    People on the outer islands (the islands other than Oahu) sometimes feel that they're getting ripped off.  The truth is, nearly everything shipped to Hawaii arrives on Oahu first.  From Oahu, freight is reloaded onto ships and sent to other islands.  The same is true with fuels.  Crude oil arriving from Alaska and Indonesia is refined on Oahu and then shipped to the Kauai, Maui and the Big Island.  And to be fair, let's not forget Molokai and Lanai.  The extra shipping… Read Full Post

Be careful about MLS violations

Last week I received an e-mail from the local Board of Realtors, informing me that I had committed an MLS violation.  That caught me completely by surprise.

The infraction: Posting a link in Tempo to my video of a listing.  That in itself wasn't an infraction, but including my contact information in the video made it a violation.

Wow!  Were you aware of this? I remember our Board having informed members about putting contact information in the remarks section of a listing.  That info was distributed about two years ago.  From that point on, we were subject to penalties if we included our name, phone and/or e-mail address in the information viewable by the public.

The purpose was to even the playing field, so that…

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Tax information for Hawaii homeowners

Selling your principal residence

A single homeowner can claim up to $250,000 from the sale of a principal residence as a tax-free profit. A qualified married couple filing jointly in the year of a home sale can claim up to $500,000 tax-free profits.

To qualify, Internal Revenue Code 121 requires owning and occupying your principal residence at least two of the last five years before its sale. However, if you acquired your home in an Internal Revenue Code 1031 tax-deferred exchange and later converted it into your principal residence, for sales after Oct. 22, 2004, you must have owned it at least five years (but only two years of occupancy is required).

Buying your principal residence during the year

This is the…

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Oahu low flush $100 toilet rebate will expire this year

Have you replaced your toilet lately?  If you've been thinking about it, now is a good time to get it done.

Ten years ago, the City and County of Honolulu decided to offer a rebate to people replacing their toilets with a low-flush toilet.  The rebate is $100 for toilets installed no later than June 30, 2008.  The application form must be filed with the City and County no later than July 1, 2008.

The new generation of low flush toilets works great

You may remember the first generation of low-flush toilets didn't work very well and often required more than one flush to clear the bowl.  I'm happy to say that the newer toilets work great!  I'm no toilet expert, but professionals told me to buy a…

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Deadline for filing Oahu tax appeals is 1/15/08

If you're a homeowner on Oahu and want to appeal your assessed property value, the deadline is next Tuesday!  Your letter must be postmarked by that date or you'll have to wait until next year and try again.  The tax assessment office does not accept appeals sent by fax. 

The form for filing appeals is BFS-RP-P-51.  You can download it at our website: http://www.oahumls.net/realestatefaq.php.

Please note that there's a $25 fee payable to the City and County of Honolulu for filing an appeal.

Good Luck!

Mike Bates

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Heavenly Hana is happening!

Why do I say that?  Because Hana is a favored area for people that want to be away from the crowds.  The most famous example is probably Oprah Winfrey.  Olivia Harrison (George Harrison's wife - George passed away in 2001) also has property in Hana.

I've been looking at properties with customers in Hana lately and it's interesting to see people that like this life of seclusion.  Okay, Kahului is a 2-hour (or less) drive and only about 20 minutes by airplane.  Being a Honolulu resident, I am more used to driving a couple of miles and getting what I need at the big box stores.  Also, work is plentiful in Honolulu.  In Hana... there probably aren't so many jobs.

Hana town has a population of about 1,000 and another 2,000 or so…

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Makaha Valley recovers from a recent fire

A month ago Oahu was lacking rain and the leeward areas of the island were drying up.  At times like this brush fires are common events.

One month ago today a fire spread in Makaha Valley.  Residents of Makaha Valley Towers got a spectacular view of the fire.  I spoke with some residents yesterday and they said it caused some dust and odor but otherwise was not a scary situation.

Since the fire we've had some rain and oh, what a difference.  Here's a photo of the Makaha mountainside that was burned to a crisp last month.  Now it's lush and green again. 

Makaha is a great location for getting away from the big city (Honolulu) and you'll also find that homes and condos are more affordable.  It's a 35-mile…

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Hawaii's real estate statistics for September 2007 were published last week and foreclosures have doubled compared to a year earlier.  Shocking?  It sounds bad but Hawaii still ranks as the state with the 10th lowest rate of foreclosures in the U.S.

In September there were 135 foreclosure filings in Hawaii, or one filing per 3,638 homes.  Nevada had the highest foreclosure rate with one filing per 185 households for a total of 5,504.  Total foreclosures in the nation for September were 223,538.

Okay, let's get back to Hawaii.  Prices are high here and they always have been, compared to the majority of mainland cities.  What can we do to find a good deal on a home?  Are foreclosures the way to go? 

Beware of foreclosure advertisements placed by real…

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