Diana Woods - Big Island Hawaii

You've once again returned home from vacationing on the Big Island's Kohala Coast thinking about buying a second home in the area. You stayed at a fabulous hotel, and you played golf at Mauna Kea Resort. While you were there, you saw the oceanfront tennis courts and Kauna'oa Beach - the best beach on the Big Island. Hmmm. Maybe this is a good place to buy your Hawaiian vacation home, or company retreat. But you're not sure.

Try before you buy! Many Mauna Kea Resort luxury homes are available to rent. Condos with huge ocean views located on the golf course start around $500 per night. Very large ocean view homes are also available. If you would like a brochure describing the available properties, just give me a call. October is the time to book accommodations for the holidays. I would be happy to suggest a variety of things to do and see while you are here. A hui hou!

I just read the October/November edition of The Robb Report Vacation Homes magazine. The article "insuring your vacation home against visitor mishaps," by John Morrell and Nikki Swink, had some very good information for second home owners.

We know home insurance protects us when a guest hurts herself while visiting. But did you know there is insurance specifically for vacation homes? If you don't have it already, it's a good reason to touch base with your insurance broker. Your broker will want to know if the home will only be used by you, or will you rent it? How many days a year will it be used thus?

You may have decided to insure your vacation rental as an owner-occupied residence to save money on the premium. Your policy may then be void should a tenant injure herself. What if you don't rent it, but you occasionally loan it to friends? Then your policy needs a guest provision. You may want this provision to cover your guests against wrongful entry or eviction.

If you own a condotel or conhotel, be sure to provide your insurance broker with copies of that neighborhood's bylaws and rental management agreement. You want to be certain your policy is written to accommodate this new breed of real estate.

Do you already have the correct policy on another vacation home? Ask your insurance broker if an umbrella policy would be a good fit. Be sure to share how the properties are held. Are they in a trust, LLC, partnership or corporate entity?

As you know, how your vacation home is used may also have tax consequences, either now or when you want to sell. If you are on the ball with your 2008 taxes and are talking to your CPA this month, you might check to make sure you are on the same page in this respect.

If all this has got you thinking about your next visit to relax in your beautiful Big Island vacation home, please don't forget to stop by my Mauna Kea Resort office on the Kohala Coast and say hello! I love to talk story.

Last week I returned from a short Moloka'i neighbor island vacation to a crashing stock market. I was glued to CNN for two days. I was at the office on Saturday (with the CNN live video feed on my monitor), and I saw an interesting Pacific Business News article in my inbox: "Home sales volume falls across the state, but prices hold steady." I was doubtful. Yes, resort home and condo prices are pretty much holding steady, but what about the other neighborhoods? I have been watching prices slip in North Kona and South Kohala.

To determine which price points are relatively hot, I took a look at what properties are currently under contract in South Kohala. This area includes the Big Island's Kohala Coast and its luxury resort and second home neighborhoods. It also includes the two large primary resident neighborhoods of Waikoloa Village and Waimea (aka Kamuela).

The price point most condos are selling at is $250,000 to $350,000. Most single family homes are selling in the $400,000s. Yes, there are pending sales all around these prices, but these numbers were most numerous in their respective bells curves. I expected them to be mostly short sales, or pre-foreclosures. But this is what I found:

Of the 15 pending condos, four are short sales and six negotiated developer incentives. When it comes to condos in South Kohala, the Seller concessions appear hefty enough to get Buyers to buy, even during our volatile 2008 market conditions.

Of the 25 pending single home sales, three are short sales and five negotiated developer incentives. The large majority of these pending home sales are not distressed properties. I was surprised by that. Most of the 25 homes are located in Waikoloa Village, which both local residents and second home owners like. The Village's 15 minute drive to the nearest Kohala Coast beach, activities, shopping and good restaurants is most likely a key reason. The next most popular "affordable" neighborhoods are leeward and windward Waimea. I recently learned that the Robb Report named Waimea as one of the 10 most desirable places to live in the country in 2000.

Regarding Kohala Coast luxury homes, defined as those listed above the area's median sales price, there are three pending condo sales and four pending home sales. The pending luxury condo price range is $1.8M to $4M. The pending luxury single family price range is $3.4M to $9.5M. Since my primary market niche is resort luxury, my educated guess is there are considerable concessions being negotiated for these homes as well.

Overall, though, I agree with Friday's Pacific Business News article. Hawaii real estate is holding steady. Yes, sales volume continues to slip, but because so many homes were purchase with a lot of cash, the state's real estate market is in a pretty good position. That said, for those who purchased at the end of the recent boom, now is a great time to seek out those Sellers and discover who is truly motivated. If your dream is to "live Hawai'i," this is a good time to ask your trusted Realtor to start identifying the opportunities. If Big Island Hawai'i tennis and golf resort properties are high on your list, I have the data you need for your favorite neighborhood or price range. Aloha nui!

I was watching PBS last night and saw an advertisement for the Independent Lens documentary "The Men of Na Kamalei." It is one of the best programs I have ever seen about men's hula. The first broadcast in Hawaii was three weeks ago, and it is being aired again this week.

If you would like a treat, check to see if your PBS station is still airing the show. It's a good one. For those of you off island, if you are thinking about visiting next April to see the Merrie Monarch Festival, make your accommodation reservations now. Rooms can be tough to get.

Last week we took a Captain Zodiak snorkel trip to Captain Cook's Monument. Wow was it busy! But the fish didn't seem to mind all the people. They just keep munching away at the coral and algae.

We received a great tip from Captain Chris which I want to share. Like the Mauna Kea Resort, the Sheraton in Kona has flood lights pointed on the water for manta ray viewing. He said a public access shoreline trail is just a stone's throw from the viewing area.

Michael and I are going to buy a diver's night light to snorkel with the mantas. I'll let you know how it goes! If you've already done it, I love to hear about it.