The median price for single-family homes and condominiums on Oahu dropped more than 7 percent in September, according to the Honolulu Board of Realtors.

The median price for single-family homes on Oahu dropped $45,000 to $590,000. Condominiums lost $32,000 in the median sales price.The number of single-family homes sold went from 255 in August to 215 in September. The number of condominiums sold in September was 305. That is 40 fewer than the month before.”Oahu’s housing market is beginning to feel the effects of the changing economic market, as demonstrated by the decline in both residential sales volume and the median prices paid in September,” HBR President Dana Chandler said. “We hope that this period of weak market conditions is short-lived and that we’ll soon return to a more normal market.

“HBR officials expressed support in Congress passing a bailout plan that they said could help jump start loans and mortgages to spur the housing market.”It appears the Oahu housing market is reacting to the economic crisis that has been affecting financial markets worldwide,” HBR research economist Harvey Shapiro said.

Depending on if you are trying to sell your home or buy one the numbers are either good or bad. But homeowners trying to sell are facing obstacles including low consumer confidence and buyers struggling to get loans.

A waterfront home on the Hawaii Kai Marina has sat on the market for the past two and a half months. The owner received two offers, but both were lower than asking price.The properties real estate representative said the slumping market has forced sellers to be patient and to pay attention to selling details.”What I tell my sellers is that we just have to make the best product we can so that just means staging, making sure the house is really clean, fixing up all those little things, maybe projects they didn’t get to before getting it on the market,” said Maile Hain of East Oahu Realty.

Scott Higashi is the vice president of sales for Prudential Locations. He agrees presentation is key and pricing your home correctly is essential to making a sale.”If you price high and you adjust buyers are going to be waiting for you to make that next adjustment,” Higashi said.One reason for the decrease in sales is the challenge buyers face with getting a loan.If you are able to secure a loan, Higashi said now is the time to buy.”There’s lots of opportunities for buyers out there the inventory interesting enough hasn’t grown really dramatically, but if you qualify for a loan and you find a house that you like you should definitely buy it,” he said.

Credits: KITV

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