🌺 The Aloha Realtor® Monthly
Hawaiʻi Real Estate,
Without the Noise.
One email a month. What actually moved in the Oʻahu market, what it means if you own a home here, and what I’d want to know if I were you. No hype, no daily blasts, no pressure — just a clear read on the island you live on.
The Real Numbers
Median price, days on market, what’s actually closing — in plain language, with the source cited so you can check it yourself.
What It Means for You
Separate takes for owners, buyers, and anyone watching from the mainland. The same data lands differently depending on where you stand.
Listings First
My listings, and ones worth knowing about, before they make the rounds.
Island Life
A neighborhood worth a look, something happening locally, or a vendor I’d actually call myself.
One email a month. Unsubscribe any time, no hard feelings.
Your email stays with me — never sold, traded, or handed to a lender.
This Month · September 2026
What the Market Actually Did
July’s numbers are in, and the headline looks alarming: the median Oʻahu single-family home sold for $1,224,500 — up 13.9% from last year.
Here’s the part nobody puts in the headline. Sales above $2 million nearly doubled, from 24 last July to 44 this July. Sales in the $1.3M–$2M range went from 52 to 92.
When that many expensive homes sell at once, they pull the middle number up. So the median rising 14% doesn’t mean every house on the island got 14% more expensive. It means the mix of what sold changed. That’s a real difference, and it matters if you’re trying to figure out what your own place is worth.
| Single-family | Condo | |
|---|---|---|
| Median price | $1,224,500 (+13.9%) | $504,500 (+3.0%) |
| Days to sell | 14 | 38 |
| Homes for sale | 802 (−5.9%) | 2,554 (+3.9%) |
Statewide, the median home was $1,048,500 and the median condo $560,000. Mortgage rates sat at 6.66% the last week of August — almost exactly where they were a year ago.
Sources: Hawaiʻi REALTORS (July 2026), Honolulu Board of REALTORS via List Sotheby’s, Freddie Mac.
14 days is fast, and a third sold at or above asking. Get your loan approval done before you start touring, not after.
Completely different world. About seven months of inventory and 38 days on market. You have room to think and negotiate.
The typical seller got 100% of their original asking price, and there’s less competition than last year.
Be realistic on price. More condos are listed than last year and pending sales dropped 16%. Priced right, it sells.
On the Market
What I’m Showing Right Now
$725,000
91-217 Leleoi Place #11 — ʻEwa Beach
Two bedrooms, two baths, and a loft on a bright corner lot in Lofts by Gentry. The part that matters: 24 photovoltaic panels, owned outright and paid off. Not leased, not financed — no payment to assume, no lien to inherit. Electric runs around $60 a month.
Brand-new luxury vinyl plank throughout, split-system A/C downstairs, and a full bedroom and bath on the ground floor for anyone who’d rather skip the stairs. Holomua Elementary is a tenth of a mile away and rates 8/10. Fee simple — you own the land.
$219,000
50 Kepuhi Place #103 — Maunaloa, Molokaʻi
A furnished one-bedroom at Ke Nani Kai, ground floor, with Papōhaku Beach — nearly three miles of white sand — fronting the complex. Two things make it unusual: it sits in one of the few legal short-term rental zones in Hawaiʻi, and it qualifies for USDA financing, which means a low down payment for a buyer who qualifies. Almost no Hawaiʻi listing can say either.
681 sqft plus a 219 sqft lanai. Fee simple. Turn-key — furniture, linens and kitchenware all convey.
Just Closed
Keys in Waianae
In August I handed keys to a first-time buying couple in Waianae — a home on Kulaʻaupuni Street that asked patience from everyone involved.
First-time buying is its own kind of hard. Not the paperwork — the part where you quietly wonder whether people like you actually get to own something here.
Then the appraisal came back above the purchase price. If you’ve never sat through that wait, it’s hard to explain what it does to a room. It’s the moment the house stops being a hope and starts being a fact.
Watching that turn into a key in someone’s hand, in their own doorway, is the part of this job that doesn’t wear off.
If you’re somewhere in that wondering stage yourself, that’s exactly the moment to ask. It costs nothing to find out where you stand.
Worth Knowing
Your $20,000 Deadline Is September 30
The Oʻahu home exemption is going up — and the filing window is now. File by September 30, 2026 and your exemption for the 2027–28 tax year rises:
- Under 65: $120,000 → $140,000
- 65 and over: $160,000 → $180,000
Do you need to do anything? If you already have the exemption and nothing has changed with your ownership or use — no. It renews on its own.
You do need to file if you:
- Bought your home recently and haven’t filed yet
- Moved your property into a trust
- Became a surviving owner after a death on title
- Changed how the property is used
- Just turned 65, or are turning 65, and RPAD doesn’t have your birthdate
One thing buyers get caught by: your ownership has to be recorded by September 30. Record on October 1 and you wait an entire extra tax year. On a home over $1 million with no existing exemption, that can mean paying the higher Residential A rate for two tax years instead of one.
In person, west side: 1000 Uluʻōhiʻa St. #206, Kapolei · (808) 768-3799
Not sure whether you’re covered? Reply and I’ll help you check. It takes about two minutes.
Around the House
Five Things Worth an Afternoon
We’re in the peak of hurricane season through November.
Clear Gutters
Heavy rain finds every clog you’ve been ignoring.
Trim Branches
Near the roof and the power lines. Cheaper now than after.
Photograph Every Room
Insurance claims move faster with before pictures. Store them in the cloud, not on your phone.
Check Water Heater Strapping
Quick, cheap, and it matters in a shake.
Test Backup Power
Before you need it, not during.
Out & About
September on Oʻahu
| What | When | Where | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| ʻImi Pono Cultural & Wellness Fair | Sat Sept 12, 9a–1p | Kapolei Rec Center | Free |
| Waikīkī Hoʻolauleʻa | Sat Sept 19, 6–9:30p | Kalākaua Ave | Free |
| Aloha Festivals Floral Parade | Sat Sept 26, 9a–12p | Ala Moana → Kapiʻolani | Free |
| Hawaiʻi Children & Youth Day | Sun Oct 4 | State Capitol grounds | Free |
The ʻImi Pono fair has a Blood Bank of Hawaii drive running alongside it — donors get entered for a two-night Aulani stay. And Aloha Festivals is celebrating 80 years this season.
Sources: Villages of Kapolei, Aloha Festivals, Hawaiʻi CYD.
One Last Thing
September mangoes are done, but this is when the ulu comes in. If a neighbor offers you breadfruit and you don’t know what to do with it — boil it like potato, mash it with butter and a little Hawaiian salt, and thank them properly. It’s better than it has any right to be.
ASK ME ABOUT YOUR SITUATION SEE CURRENT LISTINGS
With Aloha,
Sascha
Sascha Thompson, RA · The Aloha Realtor® · License #RS-85080
eXp Realty LLC · RB-21841 · 6600 Kalanianaole Highway, Suite 114, Honolulu, HI 96825
📞 808-556-8255 · sascha@thealoharealtor.net
Market data current as of July 2026 and subject to change. Nothing here is a guarantee of price, value, or outcome.
Tax information is general — please confirm your situation with the City & County of Honolulu or your tax advisor.
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