Maui Real Estate & Development

If there is only one issue or news that the residents of Maui should be paying attention to with regards to the Maui Real Estate and Development, it would be the County Council’s review of the General plan which covers the Countywide Policy Plan and the Maui Island Plan. I believe that Maui’s future (or at least a big portion of it) lies on the final result of these plans.

The County of Maui is currently updating its General Plan, consistent with the requirements of the Maui County Charter and Maui County Code.  The process of General Plan update has many components, so it is best try to understand each one separately, and then consolidate. 

This coming week, January 9 to 15, 2010, two components of General Plan update will be discussed in public.  It is to be heard separately at different times and locations. Both these meetings are open to the public.

On Monday, Jan. 11, the Maui County Council’s Planning Committee will conduct the first of a series of community public meetings on the Maui Island Plan, convening at 6 p.m. at the Lahaina Civic Center. The Maui Island Plan is a regional planning tool, covering Maui’s six community plan areas, and is a new component of the General Plan update process that was established by the Council in 2004.  This Maui Island plan is actually a second element of the General Plan update is the Maui Island Plan. The first component is the Countrywide Policy Plan which is scheduled on Friday.

On Friday, Jan. 15, the Maui County Council will conduct a public hearing on the Countywide Policy Plan at 1:30 p.m. in the Council Chamber, County of Maui building.  The Countywide Policy Plan will establish the County’s long-term goals.

I am planning to attend the Friday meeting at the Council Chamber.  As for the meeting in Lahaina, I think will wait for them to come to Kihei.  I will be posting the full schedule of the Maui Island Plan review shortly.

A recent report revealed that in November, Condo sales had more than doubled!  The Realtors Association of Maui reports 69 condos selling in November 2009 compared to 29 units sold in November 2008.  We’re on track to sell about as many condos this year as last year.  This is a sign of a buyers market and hopefully the beginning of the market coming back.

At the same time, November was up 122 percent in foreclosures across the state of Hawaii, according to sources with the Associated Press.  Maui was noted as having the worst month for foreclosures with 197 in November.

People are still hurting and are losing their homes.  This makes for a ripe time for those that can buy a home or condo.  In our honest opinion, these are all signs that things are changing soon.  Our island has been through some very difficult times, but 2010’s real estate outlook seems to be sunnier on Maui.

The following is a press release issued today from the County of Maui which was posted on the Maui County Website:

WAILUKU, Maui, Hawai`i -– Maui County’s vision for the next 20 years is coming into sharper focus – and it includes a diversified economy, sustainable environmental practices and recognition that the Hawaiian culture is “a vital force in the lives of residents.”

The Countywide Policy Plan - the first phase of Maui County’s General Plan update - was passed out of the Planning Committee today and will be sent to the full Council for adoption, Committee Chair Sol P. Kaho`ohalahala announced.

The Countywide Policy Plan is the County government’s overarching statement of vision, objectives and policies, Kaho`ohalahala said. He added that enactment of the document - designated as “Countywide Policy Plan 2030” - will mark the first comprehensive overhaul of the County’s General Plan since 1991.

The Planning Committee spent most of the summer and fall reviewing the draft Countywide Policy Plan in a series of nine meetings in Wailuku, Hana, Lanai and Molokai, Kaho`ohalahala said. The next phase of the General Plan update is the first-ever Maui Island Plan, which the Department of Planning sent to the Council last month.

“I want to thank the Planning Committee Members for being diligent, steadfast and supportive of the work presented to us by our General Plan advisory committees, planning commissions and advisory bodies from Lanai, Molokai, Maui and Hana,” Kaho`ohalahala said. “Everyone’s collective time and commitment to the General Plan update are valuable to the long-range vision for Maui Nui.

“We are looking forward to the Maui Island Plan.”

The draft Countywide Policy Plan was proposed last year by the Department of Planning after years of work with community groups and professional consultants. Kaho`ohalahala said the plan’s themes were largely endorsed by the Planning Committee, but in some cases, substantive revisions were necessary because of new information or policy differences.

The revised bill adopting the Countywide Policy Plan will likely be initially reviewed by the full Council next month, with a public hearing and passage on two readings to follow. Kaho`ohalahala said that the revised bill will be posted to the Planning Committee website after technical and legal review by the Planning Committee staff and the Department of the Corporation Counsel.

Kaho`ohalahala said that the bill includes the following policies:

• Support emerging industries, including renewable energy, ecotourism and agritourism
• Encourage energy generation that utilizes wind, sun, water, biowaste and other renewable sources of energy
• Develop a streamlining system for urban infill projects
• Adopt a Green Building Code
• Develop networks of greenways, watercourse and habitat corridors
• Protect and restore near-shore reef environments and water quality
• Encourage conservation and recycling
• Reduce reliance on the automobile and fossil fuels by encouraging walking, bicycling and other energy efficient and safe alternative modes of transportation
• Encourage progressive community design and development that will reduce transportation trips
• Facilitate the creation of jobs that offer a living wage
• Ensure that residential workforce housing remains affordable in perpetuity
• Improve coordination among Federal, State, and County agencies
• Establish incentives for the display of public art
• Support community facilities such as museums, libraries, nature centers and open spaces that provide interactive learning opportunities for all ages
• Preserve resources for traditional Hawaiian cultural practices
• Encourage the use of the Hawaiian language and Hawaiian architecture
• Emphasize the importance of the Aloha Spirit

Kaho`ohalahala noted that the County Code states: “All agencies shall comply with the general plan.”

Here’s a Maui real estate scoop:  there is this new 18 lot subdivision in Kihei called Kenolio Makai. You will not find any advertisement anywhere. It was formerly known as Kaonoulu Phase V.  Spencer Homes bought the subdivision to keep their workers employed. Some houses are already built and  are now available for sale.

The models are similar to that of Waikapu Gardens and Piilani Village.  However, many of the homes  have ohanas attached.  If you live in Hawaii, you know what that means.  Ohana means family.  And ohana also implies a cottage (attached or detached) that the owner of the house can use for rental to help pay for the mortgage. We can talk more about that later.  In the meantime, my question is “Are you looking for a house to purchase”? I would say these houses are pretty good deals.  No, I am not a realtor, and I will not have any commission  if you buy a house here on Kenolio Makai.  I just would like to get this information to our readers here at Maui Real Estate and Development Blog.

I know there are a lot of houses to choose from at this time since foreclosures abound.  But there is something about buying a new house from a developer builder that is so attractive.  Actually it has a lot of benefits.  How do I know? From experience.

For more information about this subdivision and the new homes, call Spencer Homes, Inc. at 808-249-8822.

It did not come as a surprise to me when I read the Headline on Honolulu Advertiser the other day stating that “Isle Housing Cost  Is Now Highest In The US” .  As one  Hawaii resident said in the article “that’s the price of paradise”.  The article encompasses the all Hawaii islands but I want to focus on what it said about Maui.  Here’s the lowdown:

• Maui has the highest median value of an owner occupied unit with a mortgage at $636,800, followed by Oahu ($566,800) and Big Island ($417900).
• Monthly housing costs for owner-occupied units with a mortgage also were highest on Maui at $2,564, with Oahu next at $2,316 and Big Island t $1,848

According to Chuck Wathen, a retired developer and affordable housing advocate, home prices are high because of the scarcity of land open to development and because intense regulations prevent builders from responding quickly to sudden demands in housing. A resulting short supply of units jacks up prices.  I agree to Wathen’s observations. I work for a developer and it takes us years to get approval for a subsivision even though the intent is to build affordable homes.  On the other hand, proponents of open space and sustainability efforts would argue that restrictions that prevent a developer from converting agricultural land to urban residential are  good because it prevents sprawl and inappropriate us of ag land.  Whatever it is, the fact remains that housing is very expensive on the valley isle.

However, if you are one of those dreaming to own a house on Maui, do not fret too much.  According to Dennis Oshiro of the Hawaii Homeownership Center, high home values are still within reach for many who think they can’t afford it. “Everything is relative” he said. Buyers are being helped by low interest rates, declining home prices (at this time), foreclosure bargains, and the $8,000 federal tax credit for first-time homebuyers.

The median value for an owner-occupied piece of paradise is $560,200 on Hawaii according to 2008 American Community Survey one-year estimate released on September 21, 2009.  Almost half of the units in Hawaii are valued between $500,000 and $999,999., while 10 percent are valued at $1 million and up.

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Coming up next: A new subdivision in Kihei in which you can buy a home with an attached ohana for as low as $399,999.  Aloha!

Wells Fargo, trustee for the registered holders of the commercial mortgage securities of which secured the property, filed a foreclosure lawsuit on Monday.  Everett Dowling and Morgan Stanley’s partnership, created to purchase the 1,800 acre resort, owes $192.5 million in principal, interest and late charges.

Dowling Company and Morgan Stanley bought the resort and hotel just a little over 2 years ago from Seibu Group of Japan.  Though the future of Makena Resort is uncertain, Dowling Co. is moving forward with its other Makena Project called Maluaka.  This development has been considerably altered in plans from 69 luxury condominium units to 13 custom homes and a club house.

To read more about this latest Maui Real Estate News, see the BizJournal Article.

UPDATE:

Maui Prince Resort to Stay Open with Name Change!

The Maui Prince Hotel will now be called the Makena Beach and Golf Resort.

Prince Resort Hawaii told the public that it would be shutting down the Maui Prince in 2 weeks, but Wells Fargo bank, trustee of the resort, countered this statement by saying they will keep it open and that funds have been made available to pay off vendors and suppliers that were owed as well as continue payroll.

Management will need to be restructured as the Maui Prince Resort has been showing around a 1 million dollar loss per month.

The Maui News headline on August 23, 2009 indicated that the construction industry has significantly slowed down.  There was a 38% drop in the issuance of building permits as compared to last year (Article Title: Builders ‘Banking on’ Big Projects that are on Hold). This article fans the flame of frustration I am feeling right now regarding the delay of issuance of one building permit we are hoping to get to get our workers working instead of being laid off or sent back home without pay because there’s no work.

I do not like whining and complaining about the County of Maui’s inefficiency when it comes to the permitting process. I usually try to put myself in their shoes, to try to understand where they are coming from. I know how working on documents and paperwork goes – I am an administrative assistant, an office manager, and a project coordinator rolled into one. I know it’s not easy. I try to maintain a good rapport with the County Clerks. And I think for the most part, I am doing a good job.

But this past 3 days had been very frustrating. I was waiting upon one building permit to undergo its final review and be issued, and every time I stop by the permit office to follow up I was met with a question “Have you been called yet?; because if not, your permit is not ready yet.” The permit was filed in May of 2009. The agencies all signed off as of August 18, 2009. All we need now is the final review and the permit can be issued. It has been seven days since August 18 and the permit is still not issued. My estimate is that this final review can be done in 15 to 30 minutes per building permit application depending on how complicated it is. Granting that there were other building permits before us (I was told there were about 5 or 8), it still would not take 7 days (ok, 5 working days) to do a final review. I had seen them do this final review. I used to be able to wait. One of the building permit staff, before she was transferred to Plans Review section, used to be able to process 5 final reviews in front of me with no problems at all. Then why is one building permit taking such a long time to be issued?

The thing is, I am not even “pushing” this for my own self. I was pleading to get this building permit issued so that our workers and subcontractors can continue doing their jobs without being laid off. As I read another article on Maui News about “Regulations seen as crushing burden on Hawaii business” I cannot help but nod my head as I think about this one building permit application I am waiting on.

It’s 9:55 AM on August 25, 2009 right now. The question is “do I call the building permit department to once again follow-up on this one building permit?” If I stop by their office, I am pretty sure that I would be met with a sigh and a question and a remark: “have you been called? if you have not been called yet, that means your building permit is not ready yet”. Sigh! I guess I would just have to wait. In the meantime, it’s good to be able to vent.

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UPDATE:  Building Department called at 10:23AM - permit ready for pick-up. I guess venting on a blog works. It took a week for this “final review” to get done.  We have several more building permit applications pending - we’ll see how those will go.

We have been monitoring the different meetings of the Maui Planning Commission on this Maui Island Plan.  There are only two public meetings left before the Maui Planning Commission makes a decision and finalize their recommendations regarding the location and amount of future growth for Maui.  If you are interested in voicing out your opinion on the current Maui Island Plan being reviewed, better mark your calendars:

August 18 and 25 from 9AM to 4PM
in the Planning Department Conference Room
County of Maui, 250 South High St., Wailuku

There some new guideline with regards to giving your public testimony so be sure to check the County website for that.

Here are links to some of the previous articles written on Maui Planning Commission’ review of GPAC:

Landowners Make Pitch to Planners (July 22, Maui News)

Final Meetings n Draft Maui Island General Plan scheduled (July 26 Viewpoint written by the Director of Planning, Mr. Jeff Hunt)

General plan proposing a “growth belt” for West Maui (August 2, Maui News)

Planning panel breezes through 20-year “needs”, “desires” of isles (August 5, Maui News)

Pulelehua, Olowalu projects get attention (August 6, Maui News)

The Maui Island General Plan provides a guide for the future growth of the island to the year 2030. The Maui Island Plan establishes a vision and a set of long-range guiding principles, goals, objectives, policies and maps to guide the growth and development of the island.

At this time, this Maui Island General Plan is in the “stage 2″ of the review process.  First, the Planning Director took the recommendation of the GPAC (General Plan Advisory Committee). Second the Planning Director’s original draft as well as the newly revised draft with GPAC recommendation are reviewed by the Maui Planning Commission. So far the Maui Planning Commission  had 3 meetings on this already.  A few more meetings are scheduled with the Maui Planning Commission before they finalize their own recommendations regarding the location and amount of future growth for Maui. If you are interested to come, below are the dates, time and location:

August 4, 2009 from 1:30 PM to 8 PM in the Lahaina Civic Center

August 18, 2009 from 9AM to 5 PM in the Planning Department Conference Room

August 25, 2009 from 9AM to 5 PM in the Planning Department Conference Room

This Maui Real Estate And Development Blog will feature the Maui Island General Plan.  A series of posts are coming up here on this topic for us to weigh in on this very important decision for the Maui Island.  Stay tuned and looking forward to your comments.

Two headlines are on the Maui News today, side by side . One is titled “Mayors ask Lingle to join union talks on Monday” and the other one states “Maui real estate total dreadful“.   Because this is a Maui Estate and Development Blog, we should discuss the real estate headline, shouldn’t we?

The news about the “bad” state of Maui’s real estate is not really a big surprise.  We knew that all along.  And yet when I read the word “dreadful” on the headline associated with Maui real estate, it still gave me an anxious feeling, a feeling of despair.   One might think, maybe the writer was exaggerating.  I can tell you, he is not.  I work in the real estate and development industry and I hear this depressing news everyday.

However, the important thing to ask is “what can we do about it?”

Going back to the news, it stated that “halfway through 2009, the Maui Real Estate market is nearly 57 percent of the size it was the same period last year.  Number of sales are way down and prices are down significantly.” Although they also pointed out that these low prices are still not worse compared to other parts of the mainland.  A single-family sales averaged $761,252, which was $125,000 or 14 % less than a year ago. There were 285 closings on a single-family homes for the first six months of the year, giving the turn over of $217 million, which is 49% off of last years mid year sales of $425 million.”

The complete report on Maui Real Estate  for the month of June is available at www.RAMaui.com

Now I am curious to hear what others think about this news. What do the Realtors think? what do the homeowners think?  Any suggestions on what to do at this time?

On June 24th, 2009, a small town public forum was held at the Good Shepherd Church Hall in Wailuku, Maui.  The WMSA (Wailuku Main Street Association) Tri-Isle Main Street Resource Center hosted the event to further educate about the community-based issues of the new plan.  The program, “Maui Island Plan: How It Effects You,” was held for discussion between Maui County representatives, community stakeholders, and the public.

This meeting comes after the Draft Maui Island Plan was received for review on April 21st.  The Planning Commission was given 150 days to review and modify it before passing it on to the Maui County Council.

Members of the panel expressed concern about loss of small town identity.  With 1 policy to act over all areas, it was argued, there will be incongruent policy.  Different areas require different approaches. Examples were cited like the differences between growing industrial towns like Kahului and small farming communities like Kula.

Community leader Jan Yagi Buen explained that the overall problem with the new plan was that it is massive in comparison to the 1990 plan, something that would be difficult to modify.

Other issues with the plan are the lack of specifics in allocating water as well as the protection of diminishing agricultural lands.

A major foreseeable problem in Maui’s future is a lack of education and future jobs.  Once our kids graduate from High School, there’s really not much available to them on Maui.

Long Range Senior Administrator John Summers said, “We’ve got a lot of work ahead of us still.”

The report from Honolulu Board of Realtors was published today.  It indicated that the median price of a single family home on Oahu fell to $569,000 in June from $625,000 in the same month last year.  The 9% price drop continues to slide according to the report written on Honolulu Advertiser.

We are still waiting for the Maui Board of Realtors to publish their report for June. According to their report published in May, there was a 40+% drop in the prices of homes/condos in May.  For a full May Report from Realtors Association click here.

Maui News has an article about the “cooling trend” of Maui’s Real Estate. They reported single-family home sales in June were down 34 percent and median prices down 8 percent. Full article can be found  here.

“How was the expo?”  many people asked.  ”It was good” is our usual answer.  The real question is how successful was it?  For the company I work for, it was successful.  We had a lot of people signed up for the affordable housing we were promoting. For others, I am not sure.

The company I work for is new to this event.  It was the first time we participated so I could not really compare this to the previous events. However, one of my co-worker (who is also a realtor) made an interesting observation. She mentioned that there used to be a lot of Realty Companies and Mortgage Companies participating in this event. It was noticeable how few were represented.  In fact the only ones I knew that participated were the Maui Lani Partners and the Kama’aina Homes.  Both are not independent real estate companies but mostly represent a developer.

If there’s one thing that stands out at this year’s expo, it is the focus on “green building“. Solar panels, photo voltaic panels, and companies installing these products abound. They were all over the place!

Another thing I noticed is how hardworking the participants were on this expo.  From setting up to tearing down, these people worked hard!  I remembered how difficult  it is to run a business, and it’s even harder in this economy.  I hope all the participants benefited from this expo.

My estimate is that there were about  4,000 people who showed up for the event. I was checking the local newspapers for the official count or report, but I had not seen any article yet about it.   Maybe Maui Weekly will have something this Wednesday.  They usually do

Now that this expo is over, we will go back to our usual blogging routines. Do you have any questions about Maui real estate and development? Or, do you have any suggestions for this blog? Please let us know! Mahalo.

The Maui Contractors Association Annual Home Expo started last night at the Wailuku Memorial Gymnasium.  My  great plan to liveblog the event last night did not happen. Just too many things were going on.  The company I work for (my other work, not this blog) is a participant to this expo and we were just as hectic with the preparations, as well as the initial pouring of the crowd when the door was opened to the Public at 4:00PM.

The Maui Contractors Association Home expo will continue today. The door will be open at 9:00 am and the event will end at 4:00PM.  Make sure to swing by the Wailuku Memorial Gymnasium today.  There is a lot to see and it’s a good family event.  In fact, after you visit the expo, you can also stop by the Wailuku  Memorial Stadium for the 808United free concert. That’s two in one family events for today!

Below are some photos I took last night….

The opening ceremony hosted by KPOA …

Mayor Tavares…

People signing up …

On June 18th, Everett Dowling spoke at the Pacific Whale Foundation’s Making Waves Lecture Series explaining the sustainable development initiatives for the newly approved Makena Resort.

The Makena Resort will encompass 1,800 acres where Dowling says they will efficiently use the surrounding natural resources with the least amount of impact.  The plan is for “clean and green” use of the property with stormwater filtration, sustainable golf course turf, and solar powered waste water treatment.  

Everett Dowling has large goals for the resort including making it a net-zero energy facility.  In doing this, they’ve planned for roof-top PV systems as well as a 30 acre solar farm facility. 

The wastewater reclamation project is already in effect and will treat 100% of the waste water from the project, rerouting the reclaimed water to the properties irrigation systems.  

The Makena Resort has some very unique and ambitious plans for the future of Maui’s development.