Being raised in Lahaina in
the 70's was fun, to say the least. Everything was happening,
the building boom, the tourist industry, the waves, Maui
was becoming a world class destination. With my family being
heavily involved in the building industry of the late 60's
and into the 70's and 80's I could see that things where
changing fast. Life is full of compromises, but where do
you draw the line? Leaving Hawaii was mine. After surfing
through high school at Lahainaluna and moving to the Big
Island for two years at UH Hilo I finally made it to Oahu
and the University of Hawaii. Three years later and lots
of surf, I was back on Maui ready to make a name for myself.
Having come to the realization that surfing for a living
was out of the question (the pros at that time made less
than waiters) my mom convinced me that to have a real-estate
license couldn't hurt. 1982 seems like a life time ago now
but you know what they say "always listen to your mother".
Real-estate has been good to me. What other
industry can you work in that mandates fun. I used to joke
that I made my best contacts while in the water. Guess what,
its true. I have been blessed with meeting some of the most
incredible people through my work and having the pleasure
of helping them purchase their dream properties. Don't get
me wrong, I have a strict business ethic, WORK HARD PLAY
HARD. After setting up my own office in 1991 I soon learned
the down side of being the boss of a real-estate firm, if
you spend all your time keeping your sales people busy you
don't have time to make any sales. You may remember the
early nineties were not that friendly to realtors, or any
one for that matter. Back to basics, I downsized my office
and started doing what I love, meeting fantastic people
and helping them purchase their dream.
It sure is easy to fall into that rut called
reality. Home, office, cars, mortgages, kids (love the Kids)
and all the responsibilities that come with "success".
Is there still time to surf? Oh Ya, you make time. Having
made a yearly migration chasing the big ones through the
South Pacific and the Indian Oceans I can tell you from
experience that nothing motivates me to work harder than
a good surf trip.
Where am I now? I still spend most of my
time helping friends, new and old, buy into the dream here
on Maui, but I have been spending more and more time on
Molokai "The Most Hawaiian Island". Just remember
the next time you are in the waters of Maui or Molokai and
see a guy with a big smile on his face you might be looking
at the SURFER THAT SELLS REAL-ESTATE! |
Buz's Maui Real Estate Update - July 2010 |
Welcome back to the Surfing Realtors monthly blog. Things are selling here on Maui! With values at a 7 year low and part time residents and investors seeing the opportunity we have had some nice sales in July. Currently there are 200 homes on the market on West Maui with 11 sales priced from $299,000 to $3,000,000. We currently have 23 homes in escrow priced from $275,000 to $8,500,000. This is good news – over 5% of total inventory sold in July and over 10% currently in escrow! These are the best numbers we have had in a long time!
We are starting to see some of the more expensive homes go under contract and sold now. This is good news as when the top end starts moving it means that the most sophisticated buyers are thinking we are getting close to the bottom. The over all market is still declining here on Maui as the REO bank owned properties keep coming on the market at very low prices. These properties are driving the entire market lower at this point and until this trend stops I do not see the bottom – but – I could be wrong. Many of the REO properties are getting multiple offers within the first few days of listing and some are selling for above asking price. We do have buyers out there right now and they are picking up the best deals FAST.
Short sales are over for the most part – the lenders are just not negotiating down to market value so the buyers are walking away.
It looks to me like the end of the summer and into the fall is going to be great for buyers as long as the banks continue selling below market.
If you are looking for an agent that returns calls, has his finger on the market and gets deals closed give me a call – I am ready to get to work for you.
Aloha
Buz Moffett, Broker / Owner
Moffett Properties
est. 1992
808-870-6794 |
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