A couple of nights ago I was asked to speak to the local Mililani Lion's Club about our community chess club and the Chess in the School's program I run.   It turned out to be a friendly crowd.  I knew several of the members well, including two REALTORS®, one from my office.After giving my speech the president of the club told me to pass out my real estate cards to the members so that the group heard him.  I thought about it for a few seconds and then thanked him and declined out of respect to the real estate agents in their club, that are two of the best in our community.A little later he spoke to me on the side and said it would be perfectly OK.  I again thanked him, but declined.I know many agents would have passed out their cards in a heart beat.  This is how I looked at it:I am goo... 03/14/2008

Since the lending industry is in the shake up period, I am curious to see what have been the experiences of other professionals in our industry.  Many mortgage brokers and lenders have closed their doors or gotten absorbed by others.  Many of the loan programs have or are drying up. I am sure many of you have felt the impact in different ways.During this period of change for the mortgage industry, have you changed your approach to how you give referrals to loan officers and lenders?  Do you still use brokers or do you find yourself giving more of your referrals to primary lenders?  Are you seeing more or less loans being done by internet and out of state lenders?What types of loans are your clients getting these days?  Has there been much of a shift in the types of loans they are gettin... 03/13/2008

                                                                                  Have you ever considered how dependant you are on e-mail?  How would you get your business done if your e-mail account went down for a day or two or more?  I am sure that is a scary thought for most of you who are reading this.Well this is day three and no relief in sight for me.  After more calls to tech support than I can count and several reassurances it will be back up, I am still pulling my hair out.  The scariest part is that no one who sends me an e-mail gets any kind of error message that it didn't go through.No e-mail for three days.  During that time I signed two new listings and opened two new escrows.  It has been challenging to contact everyone that I expect to get messages from.  What about a... 03/07/2008

On one of my new listings that went on the market this last week, I had an agent show it twice and call to tell me they were coming in with an offer.  I did expect this one to sell fairly fast, so I wasn't surprised by the immediate interest.  I just closed escrow on a condo just down the street that had almost the same floor plan and was a few square feet smaller built by the same developer.  It recorded the day before and went in escrow in just a week after putting it on the market. She said she would be e-mailing the offer that evening (Friday).  I just received the offer today (Sunday morning).  The offer was far below any comparables in the neighborhood and far below our asking price which was the lowest in the sub-division.  After telling us an offer was coming Friday to have it s... 02/24/2008

                                                                                 This Mililani sales report covers zip code 96789 which covers both the Mililani Area (which includes Mililani Town, Launani Valley) and Mililani Mauka.Mililani real estate is still moving strong.  We are still seeing good real estate activity in the Mililani area.  With low interest rates and some selection in the inventory, buyers are still able to buy the home of their dreams, while sellers were seeing their properties move if priced and marketed correctly.A few dynamics in the area:Castle and Cooke is almost finished with new home construction in Mililani Mauka.We have seen a large number of troop movements at Schofield Barracks, keeping the inventory turning in Mililani.Single Family homes: Average sale... 02/05/2008

  Nothing like a newly paved road in a townhouse complex. No more pot holes, puddles in pot holes that spray the car with muddy water when you "accidentally" hit one and above all..... a smooth ride home. Maintenance fees for the Royal Palm @ Waipio usually cover for the common elements in the complex and if there is sufficient reserve money then it will cover for work such as this nicely paved road. Yeah, it inconvenienced the residents for two days while they worked on each section but it was worth parking on the main street.  The positive being that it sure is nice driving on a newly paved smooth road!   Waipio Gentry is minutes from Schofield Barracks, Wheeler Army Air Field and centrally located on Oahu to Hickam AFB, Pearl Harbor Naval Base. The Royal Palm @ Waipio is a townhouse... 01/31/2008

Yesterday (Saturday afternoon) I got stopped in the parking lot of my office by a gentleman was wondering when my office would be open.  When I asked what he needed he said wanted to get a blank purchase agreement form.  I will stop here on what happened, because that is not relevant for this discussion.His request really made me think.  He was obviously planning to buy or sell a piece of property on his own.  The fact that he only needed a purchase agreement tells me he is over his head.  Our purchase agreement forms are 12 pages long.  Most purchase contracts I draw up average 20+ pages.  There are addendums in almost every sale.  Depending on the age of the home you have to deal with lead based paint.  If there is a 1031, a VA loan or one of a ½ dozen things that may come into place ... 01/27/2008

Well not maybe half over, but I have gotten a lot done.  How you start your day will set the pace for how productive will be.In the past I was an evening person.  Unfortunately I married a morning person.  After 13 years of marriage my wife Darnelle is finally changing me.By 4:45am she has the lights on, TV turned to the news and the hair blower going.  If that is not enough she will begin to quiz me about the day's schedule.  No chance of going back to sleep at that point.  So what to do?Many of you know that over the last year I lost a ton of weight.  The follow-up to that is now I am hitting the gym on a regular basis.  What better time to work out than 5:30 in the morning.  The phones aren't ringing.  I am already up and the gym is practically empty, giving me my own private work ou... 01/19/2008

                                                                   This Mililani sales report covers zip code 96789 which covers both the Mililani Area (which includes Mililani Town, Launani Valley) and Mililani Mauka.Mililani real estate is still moving strong.  We are still seeing good real estate activity in the Mililani area.  With low interest rates and some selection in the inventory, buyers are still able to buy the home of their dreams, while sellers were seeing their properties move if priced and marketed correctly.A few dynamics in the area:Castle and Cooke is almost finished with new home construction in Mililani Mauka.We have seen a large number of troops returning to Schofield Barracks from Iraq.  There has also been rotation of troops causing additional activity for both r... 01/12/2008

If you are planning on a Relocation to Hawaii you may want to consider the community of Mililani, Hawaii which is centrally located on the island of Oahu in Honolulu County. Mililani is a Master Planned Community and we have a population of approximately 30,000 people. The first homes went up for sale around June 1968 and our H-2 freeway opened in 1976 which lessened the time to travel to Honolulu. With three shopping centers, a 14 plex theater, 7 recreation centers (5 have pools), parks, Mililani Golf Course and activities galore we have a lot of what we need in our central location. My parents bought their brand new Castle and Cooke home in 1971 in Mililani Town which is on the west side of the freeway. My mom still lives in that same house a few blocks from my office although the com... 01/11/2008

Currently, my buyer is in contract for a Mililani Condo and it is from a direct hit from an ActiveRain post that I received this wonderful client. My client contacted me after reading my ActiveRain post *Across the Ocean to Paradise: Military Relocations Hawaii* on the internet. I created this series so you can follow along with this transaction because this is my FIRST transaction that WILL close that was a direct hit from ActiveRain. Exciting? Yes! I moreso want to stress the importance of how ActiveRain has helped many with leads and getting contacts from potential clients. Photo to right: Mariner's Ridge looking down to Hawaii Kai and the ocean.  If you would like to read the other posts before continuing with the rest of the story please click on the links below: From Call to Contr... 12/20/2007

                                                                        This Mililani sales report covers zip code 96789 which covers both the Mililani Area (which includes Mililani Town, Launani Valley) and Mililani Mauka.Single Family homes: Sales prices in Mililani have are consistent year to date with 2006 numbers in all Mililani areas, with the exception of Mililani Mauka which has shown a slight gain..  Year to date Sales volume in the Mililani Town and the valleys while has dropped by nearly 20%, while Mililani Mauka sales volume has had a slight increase. With mortgage rates remaining low, buyers and sellers will find it still a good time to make a move in Mililani.Condo and townhouses:  Sales volume was still down from 2006 levels in all areas in November and year to date.  Ave... 12/04/2007

Preparing your home for sale in a changing market. Two houses are for sale on the same block.  Both have the same floor plan, the same lot size and were built in the same year.  They are listed for the same price, and they are attracting the same buyers.  How does a seller compete with a neighbor without sacrificing on price?  Preparation!  Here are some simple and inexpensive things you can do to prepare your home for sale:De-clutter.  Determine what you need and use on a daily/weekly basis, then remove all other personal items from the home.  This may include removing some furniture.  The idea is to create open, neutral spaces so that potential buyers can envision their own stuff in your house.  You can store these things in a storage unit.Remove Personal Fixtures.  Your mother made t... 12/02/2007

Featured article on www.localism.com  Military personnel who have relocated across the Pacific Ocean to Oahu, Hawaii are always astounded at the differences in homes once they arrive here. Okay, let's say stunned instead. I have had many military clients who were so shocked at the size of homes that they had no alternative but to store the majority of their household goods once they arrived because they brought it all. They also had a cultural shock as well with all our diverse cultural and ethnic groups. And the difference in weather conditions? Tropical paradise to say the least.  If it's one thing we all will agree on is that Hawaii, the island Paradise, is full of beautiful tropical island scenery that will captivate you to no end. As a Hawaii Realtor Associate® and Relocations Spe... 11/26/2007

                                                                     This Mililani sales report covers zip code 96789 which covers both the Mililani Area (which includes Mililani Town, Launani Valley) and Mililani Mauka.The Mililani real estate is still moving strong.  We are still seeing good real estate activity in the Mililani area.  With low interest rates and some selection in the inventory, buyers are still able to buy the home of their dreams, while sellers are beginning to see properties moving again.A few dynamics in the area:Castle and Cooke is almost finished with new home construction in Mililani Mauka.We have seen a large number of troops returning to Schofield Barracks from Iraq.The rental side of the market has dried up.The above items should put additional pressure on th... 11/10/2007

With Halloween around the bend, the Holiday Season is upon us.  Next Wednesday we will hand out treats, or risk getting tricked by the ghouls and gobblins that appear on our doorsteps.  Halloween marks the beginning of the Season of Giving and in a few short weeks we will embark on America's greatest shopping season.  While you are out doing your Christmas Shopping, please don't forget about Toys for Tots. Hawaii is full of needy keiki.  These kids need BOOKS, TOYS and GAMES to help them grow and learn, ultimately becoming the nurses, civil servants, voters and tax payers that will support all of us in our geriatric future!!!!  So while you are out and about this Holiday Season, remember to deliver a new gift to any STARBUCKS or USPS location, where donations will be taken until Santa C... 10/27/2007

 As an introduction, this is my first (ever) blog entry.  I know...so young, but so singularly old-fashioned!  I am ashamed to admit that at a mere 24 years of age, I have no inclination toward technology, nor do I regularly pursue self-improvement in this area.  Although there has been a computer in my home every day of my life (the first one I can remember had a black screen with green letters) I am hopelessly dysfunctional when it comes to technology.  I remember my first computer class in elementary school.  This was actually in Kindergarten, at a school where none of the teachers were tech-savvy either.  There was a remarkable amount of stress, tears and disappointment when none of us 5 year olds could grasp the geometric program "Turtle."  In adulthood I have discovered that in or... 10/27/2007

                                                          This Mililani sales report covers zip code 96789 which covers both the Mililani Area (which includes Mililani Town, Launani Valley) and Mililani Mauka.The Mililani real estate is still moving strong.  We are still seeing good real estate activity in the Mililani area.  With low interest rates and a little more inventory, buyers are still able to buy the home of their dreams, while sellers are beginning to see properties moving again.A few dynamics in the area:Castle and Cooke is almost finished with new home construction in Mililani Mauka.We have seen a large number of troops returning to Schofield Barracks from Iraq.The rental side of the market has dried up.The above items should put additional pressure on the sales of resale p... 10/25/2007

This topic comes up regularly.  How do you decide on venders like home inspectors or loan officers to give your clients?The most common school of thought among agents I have spoken to over the last few years is to give a list to your clients.  I have such a list and freely share it with clients.  In a recent regional meeting of the Honolulu Board of REALTORS®, the attorney for our Board said that giving a list may not minimize your exposure to potential future law suits.  He said that whether you refer one or ten names to your client, if something goes bad you may be on the hook.   By giving more names you may actually be increasing your odds of trouble.  I may be better to give a referral with just one name you trust completely than a few names of people you are not as sure of.You bett... 10/24/2007

                                                                                                              In 1986 Mililani, Hawaii won the title: All America City.  What a perfect town to give that award to.  Mililani is a planned community that is a great place to live and work.Our town has more activities for the youth than anywhere in the state.  We have more sports fields, community recreation centers, community swimming pools and activities than anywhere on the state.  Our sports teams have won more state and national titles than any other community.  Our local chess club is the home of a two time national champion and more state champs than we can count.  Our rec. centers host everything from scout troops to martial arts programs to music and crafting lessons.  There is litera... 10/10/2007