Mortgage Rates are Rising—But What about the Sales Numbers?

Over the past few months, long-term mortgage rates reached levels not seen since 2009, with the 30-year rates being reported around 5.2%, according to Freddie Mac. Rising inflation, the ongoing pandemic, and supply chain issues have all contributed, in addition to the enduring drought of overall units available for purchase nationwide.

Some within the economic sector have suggested that overall home sales could decrease by a factor of 10% or more from 2021 levels at some point later this year. Many first-time buyers have found themselves squeezed out of the competition entirely, their borrowing power reduced by the rising interest rates (which are also predicted to continue rising throughout 2022).

It would certainly make sense that all the above would likely mean the end of Maui’s real estate frenzy, which has been on a record-setting pace for much of the past two years, seeing many all-time benchmarks in everything from total sales volume to a continually escalating median sales price for both single-family homes and condominiums. However, just the opposite has been true—Maui Nui continues to set all-time numbers in several categories, despite all the challenges facing many homebuyers in the current marketplace.

This past month, the Valley Isle once again managed to outdo itself, checking in with a median sales price of $1.24 million for single-family homes, the third all-time high set just this year—and a 5.5% increase over last month’s record high! According to the latest stats released by the REALTORS® Association of Maui, the new record was set despite only 176 total single-family homes being listed for sale, as 98.8% of homes received their listed price.

Overall, April’s new benchmark was a 27.4% increase as compared to April of 2021, as buyers the world over continue to compete for any and all available properties here in paradise. Meanwhile, the condo market didn’t do too bad itself, coming in with a median price of $815,000 last month, an 18.1% increase from this same time last year. With only 158 condos for sale—a drop of 50% since this same time last year—buyers have found themselves scrambling to scoop up whatever limited properties they can find, with only around two months’ supply of available units on the market.

Overall, affordability challenges and the rising mortgage rates do seem to suggest a slowdown yet to come in the future, as overall home sales across the nation were still down 2.7%. However, it remains to be seen when any changes are likely to take effect—so be sure to stay tuned at Maui International for all the latest reports and analysis over the coming months!

An important announcement regarding Upcountry Strong

It was with heavy hearts that we chose to cancel April’s food distribution date, which had been scheduled to take place on April 30th. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused.

It became necessary to take this time to secure additional funding for the rest of the year in order for Upcountry Strong to continue supporting the Maui Nui community at large. It’s extremely important for us to work towards establishing food security for all our island kama’aina, and it’s also important for Upcountry Strong to become a more sustainable organization to meet our ongoing goals of helping island residents that may otherwise be going hungry.

As such, we’re proud to announce that we partnered with the Pukalani Superette during the month of April to assist us in our fundraising goals! Much mahalo to all our community partners—including the Maui Food Bank—with assisting us to reach our goals, and we’re also always collecting non-perishable food items to supplement what’s in our food boxes from the community.

Our next food distribution date is currently set for Wednesday, June 4th at Oskie Rice Arena. Stay tuned to our Facebook page for further details, and also to learn more about some upcoming ways that you will be able to help Upcountry Strong provide meals for our island’s most vulnerable. And, as always, please still reach out if you are in need of food. We are still here to help and will always do our very best to provide and connect kama’aina with necessary resources.

Aloha nui!