Kona Kohala Blog

REAL ESTATE:  Both sales and the rate of decline in median price are slowing.  Since the end of July of this year we've seen a marked slow down across the entire price spectrum.  The lower end remains the hot spot or perhaps better described as a warm spot right now.

In North Kona there are 6 Single Family Residences (SFR's) for sale under $200,000 and 7 sales since the first of the year.  Moving to the $200K to $299K range there are 29 SFR's listed for sale and we've had 38 sales.  We see the same kind of positive activity until we get to $500K where it reverses i.e., there are more listed properties than sales.  Looking at the $600K to $699K range we have 40 SFR's for sale and only 15 sales this year.

Condos are different in that only the under $200K range has a higher number of sales than listings with 82 for sale and 95 sold.  The condo market is slowing rapidly as monthly maintenance fees scare some people off with the decline in visitors to our island.  This means the chances of a successful rental program are less.

In South Kohala, mainly in the Waikoloa Village area, only the $300,000 to $399,000 range has a greater number of sales than active listings, 43 SFR's for sale and 44 sold.  All of Waikoloa Village and the Waikoloa Beach Resort sales are down from last year and prices continue their decline also.  Year to date, both North Kona and South Kohala sales are above last years but each month we see that number coming down.

POLITICS:  It doesn't appear that the urge for change has diminished much as we approach November and the mid term elections.  More Tea Party candidates have upset the good ole' boy stalwarts of the Republican party.  "We the people" it seems are truly fed up with the status quo.

It is surprising that Rep. Rangle (D, NY) won his run off though.  I suspect the people in his district are either afraid of him or just plain stupid.  How do you re-elect a guy who's up on 13 different ethics charges and has been shady if not charged, for many, many years?  If we're going to throw the bums out we should at least start with the least desirable ones.

That would mean Obama would have to go.  He's rapidly becoming the least desirable president we've ever had and paranoid as well.  Some 17 year old kid in England got drunk with a bunch of his mates and sent a nasty email to the white house calling Obama, of all things, a p***k.  For that, he's been banned from entering the United States forever.  Does that seem a little extreme coming from a country that is so proud of it's First Amendment?

How about Obamacare, the one where we wouldn't have to change providers and where taxes on the middle class weren't going up?  It seems that with the gutting of Medicare and the restrictions being placed on Medicare Advantage beneficiaries who have supplemental insurance that there may no longer be a choice in a few years.

The feds through Obamacare, are freezing all payments to the Medicare Advantage plans beginning in 2011.  Other cuts will be passed on as higher premiums to cover the short falls, reduced benefits and some just shutting their doors.

There's also that new tax on dividends with the rate going from 15% to 39.6%.  That'll fix those high income earners, those rich people Obama is protecting us from.  But what if it's seniors that hold the most dividend producing stocks?  Seniors in 2010 were almost twice as likely as any other age group to report dividend income.  It seems that many seniors had invested in dividend producing stocks to supplement their social security so now, their taxes are more than doubled on those dividends.  Is that really hitting the rich, is it really not a tax increase for the middle class?

This is all out of control and needs to be changed.  We need a turn around in congress and in the senate, say 60 seats in the senate this year.  We have to repeal Obamacare and Obama's tax increases have to be stopped.  Contact your representatives and let them know.  Be sure to get out there and vote this year.  Research the candidates, see who espouses what you believe is good for our country then vote them in.