For an example, let’s take a nice round number of $500,000 as the assessed value of a home or condo you purchased in Maui county (Maui county includes the island of Maui, Lanai and Molokai).  If you live in the home full-time, you get to take an owner-occupant exemption of $200,000, or $2/thousand.  This makes the annual owner tax on a home with an assessed value of $500,000 a total of only $400.

Perhaps you plan to purchase your Maui home/condo as an investment to lease to long-term tenants, or leave unoccupied, the taxes are still relatively low!  The same assessed value on a property owned by a non-owner occupant would be taxed at $4.85/thousand, (with no owner-occupant exemption) for a total of $2,425 in annual real property taxes.  Still low when compared to the mainland!

And if you purchase a condo that is rented out in a resort vacation-rental pool, the annual real property tax is now $4,100 on an annual basis.  The time share tax rate is even higher at $14/thousand, for an annual real property tax of $7,000 for your $500,000 purchase.

Effective July 1, 2009, the Maui County real property tax rates per one thousand dollars of net taxable assessed valuation for each class of property is:

• Homeowner: $2 per $1,000 of assessed value
• Improved Residential: $4.85 per $1,000 of assessed value
• Apartment: $4.55 per $1,000 of assessed value
• Commercial: $6.25 per $1,000 of assessed value
• Agricultural: $4.50 per $1,000 of assessed value
• Conservation: $4.75 per $1,000 of assessed value
• Unimproved Residential: $5.35 per $1,000 of assessed value
• Hotel: $8.20 per $1,000 of assessed value
• Timeshare: $14 per $1,000 of assessed value

Any way you choose to purchase; as an investment, as your retirement home or a Maui vacation rental, Maui is one of the best deals around for real property taxes.

Gary Bland is a real estate expert enjoying low property taxes, living on the beautiful island of Maui.

“Maui investors and first-time home buyers, are now in the right place, at the right time.”

In the eleven years I’ve spent on Maui, I’ve seen the real estate market climb, fall, hold steady, rise to unrealistic heights and now – we’re nearly at the bottom of the latest trend. What lessons have I learned from Maui’s real estate market? I know that finding the right realtor, an experienced realtor, one who knows the local market and can help find the property with the best value is your key to obtaining a great investment.

I feel that we are near the bottom of the Maui real estate market. There are some incredible deals out there. I haven’t seen prices this low since 1999/2000. That was right after the Japanese yen declined. Many Japanese buyers pulled out of the Hawaii real estate market causing a minor bubble burst. I sold many homes during that era that came completely furnished, top-to-bottom with, not only furniture but golf clubs, silverware and computer/fax office equipment. Some homes even came with a car as part of the package! All included in the purchase price.

As a former engineer, I’m a numbers guy. Interest rate fluctuations and unemployment rates have traditionally been the markers of a real estate rise and fall. Here on Maui we’re experiencing low home prices – not from high interest rates (they’re low!), but from unemployment and de-valued foreclosed homes and condos.

I’m not just referring to properties where the owner has foreclosed and is now priced low in pre-foreclosure or bank-owned situation. There are some great deals on foreclosures but that is not, believe it or not, where some of the best buys are! Sellers who own their properties outright, who have never been in trouble with their mortgage, are now forced to under-value their homes just because similar homes in their neighborhoods sold low at foreclosure.

This is the domino effect that foreclosed homes have in neighborhoods where sellers are not in danger of a foreclosure. A home value is determined by a true value from an appraisal. When a foreclosed home closes in a neighborhood, it de-values all the surrounding homes in that neighborhood. For instance, if Joe paid $600,000 for his home 5 years ago, and Bill buys a foreclosed home in Bill’s neighborhood at $400,000, now Joe is forced to sell his home significantly lower than he had planned.

At this time there is no way to change this process. That’s why I work to help both sellers and buyers understand the numbers in this real estate market so that we may all come to a more realistic figure. In short, it’s not a great time to put your home up for sale (unless it’s priced right!). It is, however, a wonderful time to buy. First-time home buyers and investors on Maui are now in the right place, at the right time.

By Gary Bland, Maui Realtor, R(S)

Condos were down nearly 38% for sales volume and down about 33% in median price for May ’09 vs. May ‘08.  Although the numbers are down, it actually indicates a slight improvement when compared to the YTD sales volume for May ‘09 to May ‘08, which is down 56%.  This may be a signal that buyers are making purchases with the low prices and continued low interest rates.

Focusing on Single Family Homes for the Kona/Kohala Coast, there are currently 631 active listings for sale, 99 homes in escrow and 41 sold homes during the past month.  At the present buying rate, we have a 15 month supply of homes. For Kona/Kohala Coast Condo, there are currently 690 on the market for sale, 54 in escrow and 21 sold in the past month.  That’s about a 33 month supply of condos.

Information on May sales for the Big Island of Hawaii was provided by Kurt & Kirsten Carlson, Big Island real estate experts.

If you are actively searching for a property and have graduated out of the “Looky Lou browsing stage” working directly with an agent is a must. Most buyers do not realize the great importance and value and not to mention the countless hours of your time that can be saved by utilizing an agent’s knowledge.

Most buyers know what they want in a property, but sometimes there are unknowns about a property or the surrounding area that might not be contained within the information given for that particular listing that might change your mind on making that purchase. To get down to the point of it all, there are so many variable when searching for a property it is always best to speak to an agent for assistance.

Here are some key points that might be over looked if you have not utilized an agent.

Homes

• What type of condition are the surrounding homes in
• Are vacation rental allowed in this location?
• There might be a perfect property listed higher in price just out of your price search but the seller is very motivated and might accept an offer that falls in your price range.
• Do the pictures do this property justice? Sometimes pictures can mirror imperfections and make a property that needs a remodel look very livable.
•  “What Climate do you prefer” Hawaii has many micro-climates that vary from very rainy to very dry areas.
• Is this a short sale property, some short sales never get approved by the lenders and are not currently eligible for a purchase.
• There might be a property that is a perfect match and available but is not listed on the MLS or is temporarily off the market.
• Are there swimming beaches nearby?
• Is this the best property for my needs?

Condos

• What are the Maintenance fees?
• Are the maintenance fees for the condo association about to increase a large percentage for any work needed?
• Are vacation rentals allowed in this location?
• Does this come furnished?
• Is this the best property for my needs?

By Russull Tucker – Kauai Specialist

The decline in property prices have made it hard for home owners to refinance or sell their homes. The Hawaiian Islands now have the 15th highest foreclosure rate in the nation with 1 in every 621 households. Hawaii is still no where near the highest states like Nevada, California or Florida.

It is definitely looking a lot more attractive if you are looking to buy a home or making an investment here in the Hawaiian Islands. You can search for all the bank owned foreclosures in Hawaii on our website and sign up to get new listings emailed as they become available. Feel free to contact us if you would like to know about what opportunities are available on all the islands.

Both the banks that have to sell these foreclosures and the sellers that actually have to sell their home are going to be competing for the smaller buyer pool we have. This will give buyers more power and leverage when negotiating the price for their new home purchase. Mortgage rates are still at an all time low creating a great time to get a loan as well.

Feel free to contact us to help you find a great property that fits your needs.

Larry says home prices have held about even since the first of the year in the better neighborhoods. But, rents for houses for rent have increased over 10% in the last year. Evidently, Denver is experiencing a net gain in population because the economy is healthy and major companies are transferring employees into the market. Still, sales are down about 8% from the year ago period. So, not everyone who moves there is buying a home. Many are going into rentals.
Now, investors can actually expect positive cash flow with 10-20% down payment on single family homes in good neighborhoods. Most investment homes are rented as soon as a sign is posted in the yard. So, vacancy is not a cash flow issue there.

The bottom line is that Denver might be an attractive market for real estate investment so long as Denver relocation by major companies continues.

If you do plan to go buy a San Diego real estate investment you may want to consider checking out San Diego vacation rentals to stay in while you are house hunting.