Hawaii Real Estate - Big Island Real Estate

What is the Problem with Ahi?

Dodie MacArthur — Thu, 09 Dec 2010 02:23:24 +0000

Okay, the problem with Ahi (Yellowfin Tuna) is….once you have eaten it fresh from the sea, and cooked to savor, you are hooked. Of course, then the problem becomes your budget, and just how much Ahi is available. If you are fortunate enough to live in Hawaii, and even more fortunate to live on the Big Island, you can become pretty spoiled very quickly, because, it doesn’t get it any fresher, and most every restaurant and home knows how to prepare it well.

Although we don’t readily admit it, we are depleting the natural supply pretty quickly. So you can imagine how my interest was peaked when my Google Alerts produced this little item about the future of my favorite fish…. http://www.staradvertiser.com/business/businessnews/20101113_ahi_farms_ocean_lease_okd.html

My first thought…..great news, I can remove that from my list of what will be missing in my future. I don’t have to eat more than my fair share in fear that it will run out before I do…..Wok-charred ahi is here to stay…. and of course, kudos to Peter Merriman, who has it down to a science.

http://merrimanshawaii.com/recipes.php for the absolute best recipe, sauces etc…. enjoy!

Aloha

Dodie MacArthur

MacArthur and Company/Sotheby’s International Realty

BigIslandRealE.com

LetsGoHawaii.com

Does Your Home Need Drama?

Dodie MacArthur — Tue, 28 Sep 2010 01:48:56 +0000

I don’t know about your home, but mine always has drama….. of one kind or another.

Today, when you look at real estate sites, most of them address something called staging. Staging is one person’s idea of how your house needs to look to attract a buyer. Most often stagers, …. some with experience, and some without, believe they know what the buying public wants to see.

Is this a fascinating science? art? guess? I’m not really sure which category it fits, but I do know there are a few demographics to consider when approaching this decision. So you may want to first of all, sit with your real estate professional and determine your buyer demographics. Are they young, middle aged, retired. Is it a family or a single person? What are their lifestyle expectations?

Whatever the demographics may be, most people are attracted to drama. They prefer life to reflect a movie set, not any specific one, as every one has their own mental library of movie scenes, and they know their scene.

Next time you are wandering through an Open House and you find yourself imagining a scene……will it be one in your library? What scene might this fabulous Big Island entry picture bring to mind? http://www.waimeaspremierekamaainaranchestatehawaii.com

Dodie MacArthur

MacArthur and Company/Sotheby’s International Realty

http:www.bigislandreale.com

http:www.letsgohawaii.com

Trading Places… Prefer to be in Hawaii? Now?

Dodie MacArthur — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 03:30:53 +0000

Does trading sound too “off the chart” for you? Believe it or not, this is happening more and more in the marketplace, and it makes perfect sense.

One of the great things about real estate is that someone typically wants what you have. The trick is finding that someone. Most people who want to buy usually have something to sell. Sometimes they just want to move down the street, and some will fulfill their dream to move to Hawaii.

Hawaii, is a great market for trading places because Hawaii is always on the move…..the primary housing market moves from island to island, and very often to the mainland. The second home market is always moving around, looking for new experiences in new surroundings.

This incredible home could be a potential trade for a smaller home or even a great lot in Waimea, Puako, or a resort property along the Kohala Coast. For more information there is a 24 hour free recording call this toll-free number 1-800-588-8564 ext:1507

Sound interesting? Have questions? It’s about making life work where you want to be and now……

Dodie MacArthur
MacArthur and Company/Sotheby’s International Realty

http://www.bigislandreale.com
http://letsgohawaii.com

Are You Living in the .065% Box?

Dodie MacArthur — Thu, 16 Sep 2010 01:30:32 +0000

So yesterday I stopped by my local bank and there on the counter was a little goldenrod paper with updated CD rates……the range from .065 for a minimum term to 2 percent for a 60 month term definitely made me question, whether my next stop should be the local wine store. After all good wines can be enjoyed, appreciated and do appreciate. Of course being a firm believer in tangible investments and definitely things greater in size than a wine bottle, I returned to my computer to see what the best deals in today’s real estate market might be.

Guess what I found? Buyers and sellers are very willing to make deals. No matter what the banks may think, the public knows that it’s time to make moves, especially when the alternative is your bank offering .065% return on your money. Whether your need is for a better investment opportunity, a new location, a change in lifestyle,there are moves to be made… things to do and places to go…..

Looking for a great deal……today the price dropped on this great family home on the dryside of Waimea (Big Island of Hawaii) on one acre from $699,000 to $599,000…..14.3 percent……

Don’t ‘box’ yourself in.

Dodie MacArthur

MacArthur and Company/Sotheby’s International Realty

http://www.bigislandreale.com

http://www.letsgohawaii.com

Do We Know the “True Value” of Hawaii?

Dodie MacArthur — Mon, 13 Sep 2010 23:57:04 +0000

I don’t know how you feel about experts today but it becomes more and more difficult to actually follow, believe or act on any one opinion anymore.

Common sense is always my fallback and even though I have had a long enduring relationship with the Hawaii real estate market, I need to justify my opinion over and over again to myself and others.

The fact that the Hawaiian Island Chain is the most isolated group of islands on earth is pretty attractive. Of course, our perspective, as we view the world from the middle of the Pacific Ocean, can be a little insulated as well, and often we lose sight of our true value.

So, as we travel the globe,visit other destinations, encounter their environmental, population and location issues, we are reminded that Hawaii, in the year 2010, is still unexploited. We question why those who have searched the planet, looking for just the right place to land, have chosen Hawaii, and we recognize that we are not alone in our claim, that there is only “one” Hawaii.

What is value today? Having something people would like to have today but will demand tomorrow? Is a “piece of paradise”, more than a slogan and one of the real “true value” investments left? Common sense? Look at some of these interesting quick facts……

Population figures (2009) State of Hawaii (1,295,178), Island of Hawaii (Big Island) (177,835)………http:www.quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/15/15001/html

Land Area: State of Hawaii (6,422.62 square miles), Island of Hawaii (Big Island) (4,028.02

Persons per square mile: State of Hawaii (188.6), Island of Hawaii (Big Island) (36.9)

Dodie MacArthur

MacArthur and Company/Sotheby’s International Realty

http:www.bigislandreale.com

http:www/letsgohawaii.com

Hawaii Counts Beans from “the Great Manini”

Dodie MacArthur — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 22:04:49 +0000

Do you have any idea how many varieties of coffee exist in the world? Do you care? Well, as I enjoyed my first cup of guess what, Kona Coffee this morning, I found this article from the Maui News, fun and informative.

Of course, I knew that Hawaii is most likely the only state in the union, to produce coffee commercially, and we all know, that you can’t call it Kona Coffee unless it’s grown in a specific region. I have tasted coffee from other regions of the Big Island, Kau, Paauilo, but I never guessed there are actually 80 varieties of coffee beans around the world. http://www.mauinews.com/page/content.detail/id/539755/The-cup-runneth-over-with-coffee-culture-trivia.html?nav=12

Now, I didn’t know how coffee arrived in Hawaii, and when I read that Don Francisco de Paula y Marin, (the Great Manini”), planted the first seedlings on Oahu in 1813, it added a whole new dimension to the Hawaii coffee connection. I can’t imagine why no one has named a coffee brand after this amazing man. I can very clearly imagine the label …….Don Francisco de Paula y Marin, 1813. Wow! an instant success.

So now we have a name, a label, a theme song, as I learned this morning, Bach, very kindly composed in 1734, “Coffee Cantata”. Imagine lyrics that included “coffee is more delicious than a thousand kisses and sweeter than muscatel wine” …hmmm….

Okay, you didn’t think I would leave you with just the concept, did you? To quote, the Maui News article, “500 billion cups of coffee are sipped every year”. So, if you could live on the Big Island, have a coffee plantation, give it a great label, a theme song and be fairly confident that if Bach loved it in 1734, that coffee is not leaving us any time soon, what would you do next?

Well, I put my cup down, called all my Kona Coffee experts and discovered this amazing opportunity! Now,imagine sitting on this lanai, watching your 2000 already mature coffee trees flourish……of course, while enjoying your own brew………

Dodie MacArthur

MacArthur and Company/Sotheby’s International Realty

http://www.bigislandreale.com/Kaupulehu_Real_Estate/Spectacular3acre!_230763.aspx

http:www.bigislandreale.com

http:www.letsgohawaii.com

Mr. President, Hope You Will Find A Big Island Getaway Now!

Dodie MacArthur — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 20:16:02 +0000

I read that the Weinbergs would love to have you continue using their newly acquired Kailua Beach (Oahu)home for your Hawaii visits.Kailua has a nice beach,(although I don’t believe it was ever voted one of the top 10 beaches) it’s close to all your high school friends, but the Big Island is a short hop and who wouldn’t want to stop by to see you.

You might enjoy looking at a couple of options, maybe check out Big Island Real Estate for the future. Sometimes the Big Island, especially the Kona- Kohala Coast, appears to be a second home to Californians, from north of San Jose, in reality, the Big Island represents the best of Hawaii, yesterday and today .

Take a four-part tour at this site, http://www.bigislandreale.com/Blog/tour-the-big-islands-hawaii-belt-road from the untouched town of Hilo on the bay, along the winding roads of the Hamakua Coast, through the quaint and charming plantation villages of Hakalau, Honomu, Paauilo, Honokaa and up the slopes to Waimea, then down the hill to Mauna Kea Beach (always one of the top 10 beaches) and to the once barren coastline, now a golfing paradise, assuming it’s true that “obama plays golf”…now go to http://www.hawaiioceanfrontestate.net to see more of this Big Island Getaway…..

For more on the Obama’s Kailua Beach Getaway ….. http://www.iqrealestate.com/ShowNews.cfm/NEWS/68554

Dodie MacArthur

MacArthur and Company/Sotheby’s International Realty

http://www.bigislandreale.com

http://www.letsgohawaii.com

Welcome to Hawaii, Graham Nash!

Dodie MacArthur — Sat, 28 Aug 2010 19:45:37 +0000

“Our house is a very very fine house”.……so Graham Nash has sold his Encino home (photo) and he is moving to Hawaii. It would be presumptuous of us to assume that Nash is joining long time resident Neil Young on the Big Island (Island of Hawaii), as well as other successful, creative minds, who, after years in the fast lane, are very possibly attracted to the Big Island’s open space and relaxed lifestyle. Where will you go when you are ready to change lanes? Remember a few things, year round good weather, no more than one flight to your past life and a place your kids want to visit, should all be included in that decision. “Life used to be so hard, now everything is easy ’cause of you”. Komo mai to the Nash family….and for those of you, who are still looking for your Hawaii, we know you will find your way from the fast lane to the middle land and then our lane. .http://www.latimes.com/features/home/la-hm–graham-nash-20100828,0,124246.story.

Dodie MacArthur

MacArthur and Company/Sotheby’s International Realty

bigislandreale.com

letsgohawaii.com

Have You Had A “Cup of Tea” With Your Hawaii Real Estate Professional?

Dodie MacArthur — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 14:57:10 +0000

Step One for building a relationship with Hawai Real Estate

There are a lot of lessons to learn from Greg Mortensen’s incredible story “Three Cups of Tea”, most of all about building relationships. Have you had a cup of tea with your Hawaii Real Estate professional? Has email replaced tea? Do we actually build relationships anymore or have they been replaced with text messages?

Think about spending a few days on the Big Island, start with a Hawaiian Vacation as an introduction to Big Island Real Estate. Have a “cup of tea”…ice tea…with Moani, at http://www.letsgohawaii.com, who loves to share everything you need to know about the Big Island, for a weekend or a lifetime.

Hawaii is truly a unique destination in so many ways. Your Hawaii Real Estate professional is often your introduction to the experience and taking the time to make sure you have at least one “cup of tea” with that person, so they get to know you, listen to your needs and care about you and your Hawaii experience can be step one.

As we become more and more dependent on “surfing” the web and not the waves, we need to remember to take a few minutes for that “cup of tea”.

Dodie MacArthur

MacArthur and Company/Sotheby’s International Realty

http://www.bigislandreale.com

http://www.letsgohawaii.com

Who Gets Confused About Hawaii Names?

Dodie MacArthur — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 00:33:07 +0000

Do you know about our little town, Waimea (Island of Hawaii)? Waimea means “reddish”water, and there is a bit of water tainted with red dirt in the State of Hawaii, so needless to say, there are several towns named “Waimea”, on Oahu and Kauai and possibly more. Until my move to the Big Island, my only reference point was Honolulu, where everyone referred to the Big Island community of Waimea (Island of Hawaii) as”Kamuela”. Imagine my confusion and actual embarrassment moving to a town, knowing it only as Kamuela, and finding out it is truly, “Waimea”.

I loved the first time I made the outrageous mistake of calling it Kamuela and was abruptly told by a long time resident, (of several generations or more), that I must be living in the post office…because Kamuela is the designation assigned to this community by the U.S. Postal Service to eliminate their confusion (pre-zip codes, no doubt).

Hot off the press this week from Yahoo and Pacific Business News:

http://pacific.bizjournals.com/pacific/stories/2010/08/23/focus6.html http://travel.yahoo.com/p-travelguide-475406-waimea vacations

Waimea (Big Island) Treats for the palette, not to be missed….

Dodie MacArthur

MacArthur and Company/Sotheby’s International Realty

http://www.bigislandreale.com

http://www.letsgohawaii.com