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Maui Market News: the good, the better, and the noteworthy

Aloha -

With 3/4 of the year now behind us, we thought you might like an update and some reflections on the 2021 Maui market.

Let’s start with the year’s good news - and even better news - as fortunately, there’s been a lot of it! So far, 2021 can be summed up in three words: unprecedented seller’s market.

In June alone, Maui condo sales increased a staggering 267%! For the first time on record, the median home sales price exceeded $1 million for four consecutive months (May, June, July, August). The median condo sales price also increased to $650,000 in August, which was up nearly 59% compared to the same month in 2020. Most impressively, between January and August, 51% of homes and 47% of condos sold at or above list price, and 35% of home sales were cash deals.

Maui’s thriving market has been fueled by limited inventory and enthusiastic buyers who are ready to leave the pandemic behind for better circumstances. Hotel occupancy on the Valley Isle reached 79% in June, matching the same month of pre-pandemic 2019 almost exactly.

And that brings us to the news we shouldn’t ignore… If you’re the owner of a transient accommodation/short-term vacation rental, the value of your property could soon be impacted by new county council policies relating to tourism on Maui.

Approved in 2012, the Maui Island Plan (Ordinance 4004) set a limit for Maui’s daily visitor count at 1/3 of the resident population (which has remained fairly stable for the past decade, at around 150,000). Maui had exceeded the visitor cap by 2019, causing the county council to begin discussions about how to decrease the visitor-to-resident ratio.

In February 2021, the council approved Resolution 21-18, a commitment to “sustainable and strategically managed tourism - rather than an increasing quantity of tourists - to promote economic well-being, enhanced quality of life for residents, preservation of natural and cultural resources and high-quality experiences for visitors.” In an even more recent sign of shifting focus from promotion of tourism to management of tourism, the Maui County fiscal year 2022 budget redirects funds from visitor marketing to addressing visitor impact.

In its latest move, the county council has formed a temporary investigative group (TIG) to delve further into tourism management. The TIG’s top priority will be to substantially reduce Maui’s vacation rentals, steering visitors back to hotel and resort accommodations.

If you’re concerned about the possible depreciation of your property under new county council measures - or if you’re simply thinking about taking advantage of Maui’s hot seller’s market before it cools down - reach out to Sara for more details!

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