The Oahu real estate market did not slow down in December, closing out a record breaking year for the island’s real estate industry. Number of sales showed increases for both single family homes and condos last month. The number of sales last month increased a staggering 35.9% for single family homes and 20.1% for condos. Comparing 2019 sales to this year’s unpredictable market, single family home sales were up 2.4% in 2020 in comparison to 2019 and were down for the condo market by 13%.
During a historically slower month for the industry, December saw an increase in new listings year over year for both single family homes and condos. New listings increased by 15.3% year over year, and by 3.6% for condos.
Even with more listings entering the market, buyer competition remains steep. Low interest rates have increased buyer’s purchasing power giving buyers the ability to purchase higher priced homes and make higher offers. According to statistics from Hi Central, properties sold in the fourth quarter of 2020 that sold above the original asking price was up 168.1% for single family homes and 93.2% for condos. Furthermore, days on the market remain incredibly low for single family homes and condos. Single family homes remained on the market for just 12 days on average in December, and 21 days for condos.
Sales price trended upward in December of 2020 for both condos and single family homes. The median sales price for single family homes was $830,000 which is an increase of 5.2% when compared to December 2019. The median sales price for condos in December 2020 was $435,000 which is an increase of 2.4% from December 2019.