Check out my latest real estate editorial in Lahaina news this week.

Right in the Heart of Kaanapali

Check out my latest real estate editorial in Lahaina news this week.

The Whaler – A World class resort in the best location

At this time I am proud to be to able to bring you the following units for immediate viewing:-

My Whalers Listings

Call me at (808) 283 3067,  or mail Robert@MauiHomeSales.com.

“See even the Whales know Kaanapali is the best”.

Early one beautiful March morning a pod of our winter visitors, the North Pacific Humpback Whales were playing off Black Rock.

Mama breached right in front of our raft, then with her 800 pound calf on her nose she propelled it out of the water, teaching it to breach too.

The male escorts cavorted along behind crashing heads, waving 15 foot pectoral fins in the air and beating each other with their flukes (tails).

Like us they know Ka’anapali is the best.

It was the day of the Blessingof the outside renovations at the Whalers – see Blog entry.  The Humpbacks had their own salute to the new glowing towers.

The-Masters-in-the-heart-of-Kaanapali Views,Views,Views

At this time I am proud to be able to offer two very rare three-bedroom, three-bathroom, two-level corner units.

Masters 3101 is a rare three-bedroom, three-bathroom, 2,156-square-foot condominium listed at $1,595,000. It’s magnificently upgraded with the kitchen/living areas completely opened up to give a great room effect with coffered ceilings, granite countertops, stainless steel appliances and high-end European Leicht cabinetry. Masters 3101 overlooks the ninth/signature hole of the Kaanapali Royal Golf Course; its expanded wraparound lanai offers indoor/outdoor island living with gorgeous panoramic ocean views.

Masters 3101

Masters 3107 is also a rare three-bedroom, three-bathroom, two-level corner unit listed at $1,400,000. This ground floor, upgraded, front row condominium is one of the best locations in the Masters. The kitchen is completely updated with granite countertops, wood butcher block and stainless steel appliances. Bathrooms also feature granite countertops and designer vessel sinks and travertine. Masters 3107 is offered fully furnished.

Masters 3107

A range of 1 and 2 bedroom units are also available.  Check out all the Masters listings at:

The Masters Listings

December 12, 2011

Maui will taste a little bit of Hollywood over the holidays,  when the Maui Film Festival’s annual FirstLight series continues Wednesday December 14th. Johnny Depp in Rango will lead off at 2pm, with Gary Oldman’s Tinker Tailor Solder Spy and Charlize Theron in Young Adult in the 5pm and 7:30pm slots.  All will be shown on the biggest and best Movie screen on Maui, the Castle Theater at the Maui Art & Cultural Center.

The festival, which started over the 3 days of Thanksgiving, will now pick back up through December 30th features 50 Academy Screenings with 33 premieres. Most of next year Oscar and Golden Globe Contenders will be shown including Steve Spielbergs latest epic War Horse, Vanessa Redgrave in Coriolanus & Stephen Daldry’s latest Extremely Loud And Incredibly Close. Also showing are Iron Lady with Meryl Steep,  The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Pariah, W.E and Brad Pitt’s Moneyball plus many more.

Tickets are $12 for a single admission. four-film fast passes will also be available for $40. Screenings will be held afternoon and evenings of December 14th, 16-18th, 20-23rd, and 26-30th, 2011. Check the website for Films and times at MauiFilmFestival.

The numbers are in for the month of October on visitor spending in Hawaii, and the news is good. According to the Hawaii Tourism Authority, spending was up 15.6 percent year-over-year to $1.1 billion. Daily spending was $177 in October of 2010, but this year, it was $199.

Arrivals only rose by a scant 2.3 percent to 587,711 visitors. It’s all part of a continuing trend involving little growth in arrivals, while those that do come for a visit have more money to spend here. While the first ten months of 2010 racked up $9 billion in spending, we’re up to $10.3 this year.

The small growth in arrivals came not from air travel, but from the cruise ship market, which saw an astonishing 62 percent jump compared with the same month last year.

The year-to-date arrivals have totaled 6 million, which is 2.6 percent higher than the 5.88 million arrivals in 2010. A 10 percent increase in visitors from Canada has helped progress, and there was also a small increase in arrivals from Japan.

The Hawaii Tourism Authority remains optimistic that this year’s trends toward economic recovery for the visitor’s industry will continue.

As for real estate, if you are in the market for an oceanfront Maui home, there are plenty of beautiful choices to browse through in the menus to the left. There is also a handy section on Maui information to help you familiarize yourself with points of interest on the island. If you need assistance, you’ll find my contact information at the bottom of the page. Mahalo!

According to the latest issue of Forbes Travel Guide, there are only two resorts in Hawaii that made their 5-star list, and yes, one of them is on Maui.

Maui’s Four Seasons Resort in Wailea was selected, along with the Four Seasons Resort Hualalai at Historic Kaupulehu on the Big Island. There were a total of 57 five-star hotels on their list, which was not limited to the United States. Nine were located in California.

There was also a four-star list, including six Hawaii resorts. One was the Ritz-Carlton, Kapalua on Maui, and the other five were located on Oahu, Kauai and Lanai.

The Forbes Travel Guide didn’t just provide lists of accommodations, it also provided a list of excellent restaurants and spas. On their four-star dining list were five Hawaii establishments. Two of these were located on Maui. They were Spago in Wailea and Gerard’s in Lahaina. As for spas, there were seven in Hawaii on their four-star list. Maui’s were the Spa Grande at the Grand Wailea Resort, and the Spa at the Four Seasons Resort in Wailea.

If you would like to peruse all of the star ratings, visit www.startle.com. This should be particularly helpful to those of you who travel and enjoy the very best in accommodations, dining and relaxation.

Shane O’Flaherty, the president of inspections and ratings for Forbes Travel Guide stated that, “Our annual Star Ratings represent the best of the best in hotels, restaurants and spas. They serve as guideposts for discerning consumers who are looking for exceptional travel and hospitality experiences.”

Just as Maui boasts some of the most exceptional restaurants, accommodations and spas, we also offer the same level of quality in Maui real estate. If you are in the market for an oceanfront Maui property, you can browse my website for listings or try out the Maui real estate search tool to select real estate according to your own criteria. If you need assistance, you’ll find my contact information at the bottom of the page. Mahalo!

Foreclosures in Hawaii fell by an astonishing 66 percent last month, compared to the same month last year. What an enormous change. According to data from RealtyTrac, there were a total of 427 properties with foreclosure notices in October, which includes notices of default, public auctions and bank repossessions.

The number of foreclosures was 3 percent higher than in September, but there were three times more in October of 2010. The 427 properties accounts for one out of every 1,208 housing units.

As far as an explanation of why foreclosures have fallen so steeply, analysts point to the new state law that was passed in order to reform the nonjudicial foreclosure process in Hawaii, which went into effect in May.

National filings fell by 31 percent, meaning Hawaii saw twice the improvement that the national average saw. Also, the national average in foreclosures was 7 percent higher compared with September, as opposed to our 3 percent.

It’s great to hear that Hawaii is ahead of the curve, and there was another bit of heartening news recently. According to a poll by Harris Interactive, which surveyed 2,463 adults in the U.S., Hawaii is the number one state that people would prefer to live in, aside from the state in which they currently reside. California was first for a long time, but we’ve finally passed them up, and it’s no surprise.

As far as the Maui real estate market is concerned, all of this is good news. If you are one of those considering a Maui real estate purchase, you’ll find my contact information at the bottom of the page. I would be happy to assist you in finding the right Maui property for your needs. Mahalo!

There are those that are skeptical as to the economy’s recovery, not just in Hawaii of course, but throughout the nation. Tourism, however, has been climbing, not just because of visitors from other countries, but from the U.S. as well. The number of visitors isn’t particularly impressive, but visitor spending is significantly higher than it was last year. Economists report that Maui’s economy has improved because of that increase in spending, and despite lags in construction, but construction is also expected to improve as there are several large developments in the works for the island.

Believe it or not, there is still more good news. Bankruptcy filings here in Hawaii have fallen by 12.5 percent in October, compared with the same month last year. That data comes from the U.S. Bankruptcy Court, so the information is reliable.

Not only did filings fall in October, but they have been falling every month this year, or at least remaining steady. There’s still a long way to go, but these numbers represent a steady progress toward recovery.

There were just 260 filings in October, including all the bankruptcy codes. This was a little higher than the 234 filings of the month before, but still lower than the 297 cases filed in October of last year.

Progress has been stable so far this year, and hopefully that stability will hold.

Looking for oceanfront Maui real estate? Browse Maui condo information, a very handy tool, or you can search Maui real estate for any kind of criteria that you are looking for. If you need any assistance, you’ll find my contact information at the bottom of the page. Mahalo!

According to the Global Wealth Monitor, Hawaii ranks number two in the country for the largest number of millionaires in the state per capita. Maryland came in first this year, but only by a tiny margin. According to the report, 7.22 percent of Maryland homes belonged to millionaires and Hawaii had 7.21 percent.

Hawaii is actually number one most of the time, and has held that position every year since 2006, with the exception of 2007 where it was pushed down to #4 by New Jersey, Maryland and Connecticut.

If you are wondering what the criteria is for the millionaire ranking, a millionaire household is considered one in which members have $1 million or more in investable, liquid assets such as retirement plans and real estate.

Despite Hawaii’s drop to the number two spot on the list, our ratio of millionaire households has been consistently increasing since 2009. But according to the Global Wealth Monitor, all the top ten states on the list have increased their millionaire ratios over the past year, indicating that the wealthiest states are still getting wealthier.

Another interesting detail is that the Global Wealth Monitor calculates its data from mid-year to mid-year, and as of June, the number of millionaires in the U.S. grew by 6.9 percent compared to the same period in 2010.

If you are in the process of choosing where in the U.S. to buy oceanfront real estate, Maryland, New Jersey and Connecticut will have a hard time competing with the beautiful Maui listings when it comes to pure natural beauty. If you need any assistance purchasing a Maui home, you’ll find my contact information at the bottom of the page. Mahalo!