Oahu home sales continued to plunge and sellers scrambled to remain competitive in the wake of increasing mortgage rates that are upending the Hawaii real estate market.
Sales of single-family homes nose-dived 48.2% in November to 192 from 371 in the year-earlier period while condominium sales tumbled 43.4% to 340 from 601, according to data released Tuesday from the Honolulu Board of Realtors.
The single-family home sales were the fewest in at least three years, while the condo sales were the fewest since there were 312 in June 2020. Properties in both markets spent a median of 18 days on the market year over year, roughly double the time on the market compared with November 2021. Pending sales, or homes in the final stages of escrow, fell for the eighth straight month.
“We’re seeing more sellers adjusting the price of their listings to remain competitive on the market in the face of the gradual increase in new inventory and properties spending more days on the market,” Honolulu Board of Realtors President Chad Takesue said in a statement. “Though buyers are dealing with higher financing costs than a year ago, contracts are closing daily, albeit at a slower pace and volume than in 2021.”
The slowdown in sales can be largely attributed to the spike in mortgage rates that have hovered around 7% and made it less affordable for potential buyers to purchase a home.
Still, the median price for single-family homes remained comfortably at $1 million or higher for the 16th straight month at $1,149,500. That is up 9.5% from $1,050,000 a year ago as well as from that same price in October.
It wasn’t as robust for condos, however, as the median price dipped 4% to $480,000 from $500,000 in the year-earlier period and by 7.7% from $520,000 in October. The $480,000 median price was the lowest for condos since September 2021, when they were at $478,000.
Active inventory continued to build across Oahu, with the supply of single- family homes more than doubling in Central Oahu, the Ewa Plain, Leeward, Pearl City and Waipahu compared with a year ago. The condo supply increased in all regions except Diamond Head and Pearl City.
Motivated sellers cut their prices in November as 46% of single-family home active listings and 36% of active condo listings had price reductions at some point during their time on the market. Moreover, the number of single-family homes and condos that sold over the original asking price dropped significantly, falling 73% and 68%, respectively.
Sales in both markets declined across most price points, with single-family homes in the $700,000-to-$1,099,999 price range accounting for the largest decrease, down 55% year over year. Condos within the $400,000-to-$699,999 price range dropped by 50% compared with a year ago.
Altogether, about 180 property sales closed under $500,000 in November.
“It’s likely that first-time homebuyers purchased many of these properties under $500,000,” Takesue said.
Active inventory kept rising as home-buying waned. There were 682 single-family homes available in November, the highest number since there were 683 in June 2020. The inventory for single-family homes has now risen for 11 straight months.
Available condos climbed to 1,244 in November, the most since 1,257 in March 2021. Condo inventory has risen for seven straight months.
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HOME SALES
The number of homes sold on Oahu in November with the median price and percentage change from the same month last year.
HOMES
SALES MEDIAN PRICE
2022 192 $1,149,500
2021 371 $1,050,000
Change -48.2% 9.5%
CONDOS
SALES MEDIAN PRICE
2022 340 $480,000
2021 601 $500,000
Change -43.4% -4%
Source: Honolulu Board of Realtors
