HONOLULU — Oahu’s residential real estate sales softened last month amid increased inventory and rising interest rates, according to recent figures.
The median price for a single-family home rose more than 6 percent from October 2017 with half of the homes selling for above $800,000 and half for below, according to a report released Tuesday by the Honolulu Board of Realtors.
However, single-family home sales during the same period dropped 13 percent to 309 transactions, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported .
The median price for a condominium fell to $390,000, a nearly 2 percent drop from October 2017. During the same period, condominium sales declined more than 9 percent to 443 transactions.
The number of active listings on Oahu in October was up about 24 percent for single-family homes, which hit 1,431. Active listings for condominiums rose just over 13 percent to 2,085. New October listings for single-family homes stayed flat at 429, but new condominium listings rose to 702, a nearly 8 percent increase from October 2017.
Oahu’s housing market continues to be a stable environment for both buyers and sellers, Honolulu Board of Realtors President Darryl Macha said.
“While sales of residential properties slowed, the median prices remained relatively steady in October, considering the records set earlier this year,” Macha said.
The October results followed a record-setting September where the median price of single-family homes climbed to $812,500, a slight bump from the previous record of $810,000 set in August. But even then these statistics marked the beginning of a shift in Oahu’s housing market with the decline in sales of both single-family homes and condominiums combined with a growing inventory.
The fourth quarter has traditionally been a quiet time for home sales. Macha said he anticipates that will hold true for 2018.
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Information from: Honolulu Star-Advertiser, http://www.staradvertiser.com
