Betty Sakamoto: Aloha, and welcome to Betty's Real Estate Corner brought to you by Sakamoto Properties where prestige is our business, reputation our foundation. Here we are again at KAOI and we have, in the studio, Chris Meyer from Meyer Computer who has been working with us to get this up on our website. You know, so it can be found all over the internet, which has been really great. Roy Sakamoto is here with us today but he's kind of sitting back, just kind of throwing out a few little hints from time to time should we forget something. But today is Mitch Mitchell's day in the studio and we've got a lot of different ideas for you. Welcome Mitch.

Mitch Mitchell: Aloha Betty and thanks for having me back on your program.

B: Good to have you here Mitch. I think we've got good day going on, there's so many different ideas that we had driving over, talking back and forth and trying to get organized for this but one of the things I'd like us to tell a little bit about, between the two of us, is the "night of the shooting stars". It was in Lahaina at the Civic Center, and it's a great event that's put on. Well actually, the only people that I want to say a "thank you" to ? M: Basketball Maui.

B: Yes, Basketball Maui, but I'd like to say Dan and Joanne Williams. They are, both of them, huge community supportive people. They do a lot with basketball all over the island but this was really an amazing thing where they had a basketball camp at Kamehameha school and at the civic center for a week. Tons of kids were able to do this and it's a total camp with NBA professionals. Now Mitch, you were at the big party event, how did that go?

M: Well, I was invited to the game and fortunately for me you had something else that you had to do so I got to go with Roy and sit courtside. It was pretty amazing to sit courtside. I kind of felt like Jack Nicholson or something there at the LA Lakers games, and watching all the NBA players and the kids were phenomenal. It was really, really heartwarming. There were some little ones that couldn't have been more than two and a half feet tall and they were shooting baskets and making them. I mean, I'm probably twice that size and I can't make them. It was great seeing the kids running around.

B: Yeah, I heard something where some of these kids would get out, the NBA players were fantastic with them. It really made it great fun. But, in one case the Williams' boy actually came up and said he got ready to hit one of, or shoot his basket, and one of the players tossed him the ball and boom from halfway across the court this nine year-old kid hits the basket straight in. It really, really sounds like it's a lot of fun and the guys, the pros, really saw to it that the kids had a ton of fun. So, I think again, next year, everybody should ? everyone that's asked or can think about it ? call our office and we can direct you to who to contact if you want to give some dollars or something that will support this because this event for children is great. It's not just for fitness, it's really about sportsmanship and everything that we want our kids to be so it's way worth doing it. So call us, call Sakamoto Properties, (808) 669-0070, check out our website SakamotoProperties.com and you can now find us on Facebook or on Twitter using "Maui Sakamoto" and connect with us using hashtag #BettyMauiRadio. That's #BettyMauiRadio. And then again, Facebook and Twitter at "Maui Sakamoto". So, get in touch with us and when you want to support something that you've heard us talking about let us direct you on how to do it. There's so many things that we can all do as a community to help one another so let's do it. Let's all get on board and take care of our kids especially.

M: You know Betty, a lot of people are asked to give and so forth and a lot can't, but even buying a ticket to go into the event just really helps further it. It was amazing, the crowd that was there and how much they got into it. You know, supporting the community and the youth and the basketball, it was really a great, great evening.

B: Well, I hope we get to, I mean, we'll definitely be doing it next year. The last couple of years we've been supporting it. We've been a sponsor, Sakamoto Properties has been a sponsor of the event, and after this year Roy says that we've got to keep doing it because really what it does for our kids, our community, is something that we have to continue to support. We've been a great supporter of Hale Makua over the years and we've all been totally attached and Lahainaluna High School. But, having gone to this, Roy says it is something that we really want to continue to give back to our community and help out with it. And, to say thanks again to Dan and Joanne Williams for what they do twelve months a year to help our kids. They really take care of the children of the community. A couple little real estate things Mitch?

M: Okay.

B: I'm thinking, you were mentioning to me 107 Pulelehua Phase Two at Pineapple Hill which has fabulous views, big house, and some really interesting areas. So, give us some details on that.

M: Well, it's pretty "techy" as far as the owner, who lives back east, can watch it on the cameras and so forth. It has a great media room, a huge screen, and it's also three-bedrooms, four-baths but he had the plumbing put into the foundation so that if they wanted to add another bath and make another full suite there then it can easily be done. So, it's a little bit of a flow that you can get going there. It's got a great courtyard with a little fountain in the middle and the gates, and you just sit there and you can look out at Molokai and the golf course at the Bay at Kapalua. It's a wonderful house, it's very easy to show so give me a call: Mitch at (808) 870-5548, Mitch at (808) 870-5548.

B: Yeah, that's a great house. I agree with you that the entry is pretty phenomenal, there's a really great spot with a courtyard, and then the exterior lanai areas are second to none, so it really is one of those homes that are worth getting a look at if you're thinking something at Pineapple Hill. One of the other things, again, the area that's taken off the fastest seems to be our owner-occupant type homes. And, if you're looking for a home right now, it's time that you've really got to start paying attention. Interest rates are still great but they're just starting to edge up so if you've been putting it off thinking, "I can't afford it", it's time now. At least figure out if you can afford it or what you can do so that you will be able to buy at a later time, but call us at Sakamoto Properties (808) 669-0070 and let us direct you. If you have a real estate broker that's your favorite, give her a call, give him a call and say, "You know, I'm thinking that we should be able to buy right now". And, over the last many weeks we've been saying that one of the first things might be talking to your lender, you know, if you know someone, or going to your bank and telling them that you're thinking that you want to be able to buy something. You know, so fill out a loan application and figure it out. You know, you can do it, and when you wait another year the odds are that you won't do it because you aren't going to be able to. Interest rates will go up, prices will go up so the time is now. And again, check us out, check out our website, SakamotoProperties.com. Another interesting thing that we just put on our website is we've got a thing about daily open houses. So, if you look at it, you can find every open house that is going on in our community. Take the list with you and wander around and take a look at properties. You can always call us when you find the one that you like, but again, whether you go through our website or something else, take a look. I'd say, go to Sakamoto Properties, find all of the open houses and wander around. Call us, (808) 669-0070. Now again properties, Mitchell.

M: I have a great one that I'd like to talk about. It's out in Launiupoko on Haniu street, three-bedrooms, two-baths. It's got an ohana on it and it was a working nursery. The present owners are not able to keep the nursery running at the moment but it's all there. It's got the benches, and the fences, and the watering system, and they also have a sod farm there. So it's really doing the agricultural. It's five-acres, and it's got some phenomenal views. The ohana is built down so it won't take any of the views when you go to the main house. It's got a great barn on it with a wood-working facility. One of the owners creates carved wood and so forth. So, it's a wonderful place, very easy to show so give myself or Roy Sakamoto a call. My number is (808) 870-5548.

B: Okay Sakamoto Properties, let's see what else. 5205 on the Lower Road, we have a great Napili home that I think you might want to take a look at. Again, now this is going to take somebody looking for ocean front. So give us a call, it's almost a half acre, it's got a separate ohana on it, huge, walks down to a sandy beach. So call us on that one if you're looking for oceanfront, there's only a few available properties so it's really worth it, again there's all these different categories. If you're looking for oceanfront it's hard right now because there's only a limited number of oceanfront inventory, somewhat similar to the owner-occupants. We've had a lot of sales and inventories are going down which means that all of a sudden prices are going to be going up. It's time, for each one of these categories, to give us a call. So, (808) 669-0070 or SakamotoProperties.com or Twitter "Maui Sakamoto" or hashtag #BettyMauiRadio. So get to us and let us help you to figure out what it is that you know, can satisfy your needs and get you into a new home, second home, vacation home, rental property, etcetera. Or land, if you're ready to build there's still great opportunities, the builders are available, and you just don't find that often. We've seen times when you really can't get a builder because everyone's too busy and then you start paying more and more. So again, check in with us, we'd love to be talking to you. Mitch, what about right now? There's fewer and fewer condos that are available but we've had some great sales up and down the coast. Maui Eldorado has been a very, very busy, active property. We call that the granddaddy of them all because it's been around a long time. But, poured concrete, wonderful places, great views, swimming pools, the best cabanas on the beach of any property.

M: It's right in the middle of Kaanapali Resort, easy walking distance to all the major hotels, it's on the beach. It's really a wonderful place yet it's kind of removed so that it's not right down in all of the "hubbub" of the major hotels but you can get there. It's just a four or five minute walk. But ?

B: A lot of people have their own golf carts, you know, so you're able to store your golf cart there and the people will then go down for dinner at Whalers Village and just take their golf cart down and run around with it. And I think you've got to be careful depending on when you're going to make the move with your golf cart. You can't use it during the day and you can't use it on the golf course but it really does make it fun and I think the Maui Eldorado is a great spot and one worth looking into if you're looking for what would be your second home or vacation rental property. So again, one that I think is really worth looking at. We've got great listings up and down the coast so I think again you've got to call us and spend some time, a little bit of time, on the phone with us or check out our website which I think will get you pretty much everything that you want. You'll be able to find what you like, put a lot of perimeters in and move along that way. But I think, check in with us.

M: You know, there's been a lot of sales up in Kapalua in the villas up there, most of the Golf Villas that kind of flooded the market for a while and now they're gone so the prices are really starting to go up there and I happen to have a wonderful Bay Villa listing. It's got tremendous, tremendous views of the ocean and Molokai. It's a great townhouse style, you enter on the ground floor and then the bedroom is upstairs. The view from the bedroom, you know, people just stop at the door and they just can't believe the phenomenal view that it has. And you know, we have it in our little rental program and the owners have allowed me to give a discount to the people that are renting it so I can get anybody in ? in 24 hours ? to see it. So, you know, it's starting to get busy and it's summertime. I was on the mainland last week and coming back and the plane was probably a third full of kids. So Summer is here and everyone's arriving and that brings another thought: we really have to be careful of driving these days. We've got a lot of little kids here, running around, so excited to be in Hawaii on the beach and they kind of tend to forget to look both ways.

B: Well, I think that's a great point. In a community like this, we are a small community, and we do have to pay attention to children and people crossing the road at places where they really shouldn't be crossing and that's everywhere. You know, the lower road in Lahaina, when you're down on the lower road a lot of people are staying on the mountain side of the road. You've got to be paying attention because kids will just run across in front of their parents while their parents are just parking. Again, take a good look, pay attention to what people are doing because I think that it really does, we've got to do that. There's too many accidents happening across our island and pedestrian accidents can be a problem so I think that Mitch is right. Take a look at that and let's all be cautious. Let's not be in such a big hurry that we are seeing these horrible accidents. So, let's be a part of the solution, not someone causing a problem. So that's actually a great point Mitch, I think Mitch is right. At Kapalua right now we've had a lot of sales, inventory is down, for somebody who's really looking to get into the market today there's still some great Golf Villa things that are going on. We've got some great properties listed for sale and I think it is, again, it's time to give us a call (808) 669-0070, SakamotoProperties.com, Facebook "Maui Sakamoto", and you can do hashtag #BettyMauiRadio. You know, the listing that we were talking about before, our Napili listing, oceanfront, you can get a good look at that right now by just going to NapiliBeachHouse.com. We've got tons of photos that are in there and you can get a great look at it and the price, etcetera, so go to that. Check it out NapiliBeachHouse.com. I think it's perfect, you know, it'll just get you through a ton of pictures and if you're looking for an oceanfront property, you're going to really, you're going to be somewhat sold when you just look at the photos of this place. And the owners will assist us in getting in, and I think that's, again, well worth your while: (808) 669-0070 or SakamotoProperties.com. We talked last week, quite a bit about the different graduations here. We had been at the Lahainaluna graduation which is always pretty amazing, Maui Prep which has only seventeen graduates. It's unbelievable, it's the same thing that we're doing with all of the graduations here, tons of leis. I just went to a couple of graduations in San Diego for my daughter's kids, Julie Ehu, who went to Lahainaluna, and we took some leis there and added a little bit to the excitement. I'll tell you, a Lahaina graduation, is really an unbelievable thing, and in San Diego they're graduating or moving up from sixth grade to seventh grade there were, I think, 250 to 300 kids right there and then going from eighth grade to high school I think there were seven hundred kids. So the schools are huge there and it really is a different set up but still fun and amazing, and let's all support all of our kids and everything that they're doing. Any other properties, Mitch?

M: No, but I kind of want to see how much fun it is for us to spread our aloha, you know, you to the graduations in San Diego and I took a couple leis to Ohio for a 50th wedding anniversary. You know, it's kind of fun having people all over our country and all over the world recognize Hawaii, the aloha, the flower lei, you know. It's great to help spread the aloha and I just kind of want to remind myself, as well as others, that we have a lot of visitors here right now coming in and they're here to try and learn our aloha and we have to remember that these are great visitors. These help all of us in all of our businesses ? whether it's real estate or grocery stores ? and spreading the word of aloha in Hawaii and I think it's a good time and I just need to remember that these people are all beneficial to us and a part of the reason that we can enjoy living here.

B: Take a look, there's a great book around Practice Aloha which you can pick up at Honu Restaurant in Lahaina, or you can pick it up at Barnes and Noble, or Amazon.com. But that's really a great book to read and Mitch is right, you really should remember to practice aloha. There's so many different ways that we can do it, so many things that we can do in the little ways. Mitch is right, the grocery store, the this, the that, the places that we spread a little kindness and I think that the idea of "practice aloha" really goes a long way. We were looking at a lot of statistics, Mitch, you and I talked about them a little. There's a good article right now in the Pacific Business News that highlights how our market is going, and again, worth taking a look at it. If you don't get it, I know you can locate the Pacific Business News by Googling it or PacificBusinessNews.com- I believe that's their site ? but I looked at a whole bunch of different statistics and almost everywhere the median sales price is up substantially across the board here in Maui. So, I think, just looking at what has happened with sales to date, and sales from last year to this year, again, it's happening and I just really want to see people not miss out on it. I think that it's time to get you guys, you know, it's a call to action if that's what you want to do. If you've been thinking of buying a property you have got to do it now.

M: The inventory is depleting so therefore that alone is going to help drive the prices up so ?

B: Yeah, and then again, the same thing that I mentioned a little while ago: the interest rates. We're seeing interest rates just starting to edge up and I talked to a couple of lenders who have indicated that the interest rates, although they've popped up, they come back down again, and then they pop back up. But if you get your application in and you're working with someone, whether it's because you want to refinance, or you're ready to buy, hook up with someone. Take a little time because I think that some of these interest rates, a lot of us right now might have a property that you have an interest only loan and even if it's low right now if you're planning to keep the property for the next fifteen to twenty years you might want to be refinancing and have a 30-year fixed mortgage or a 15-year fixed mortgage because I don't think we're ever going to see or I think it's going to be a long time before we ever see some of these interest rates that we're looking at right now. So again, whether you're lender is one of the banks, you know just go in and talk to them wherever you have got your money set up, talk to them. Talk to one of the great mortgage brokers around. Call us if you really want to get a couple of names and we'll get them to you. Call us at Sakamoto Properties (808) 669-0070. Check us out and we'll help you try to find a lender to get your process going. I think we're, right now, we're just at our two-minute warning. So again, whether you're getting ready to buy right now, I think that you should be number one, talking to the realtor, talk to Sakamoto Properties, or check with the lender. We have got so many great listings right now that, today it was a little hard, we came up with a couple but we didn't want to just flood you with different ideas and I think, look at our website again SakamotoProperties.com. We've got a lot of people coming on, we're doing a thing where we tried to hook up and communicate with you on the website, which has been really fun. I think Mitch has one other property he kind of wants to talk about.

M: You know one that we kind of, sort of forget sometimes, or I kind of forget is the Masters. The Masters is a great property up there and you and I have a beautiful Masters 1402 listed at $1,100,000. It's totally renovated nice and white, it's set right on the golf course, Kaanapali Golf Course, with unobstructed views. The other buildings are set back on it so, you know, you're not looking at the other people on the side, and it's just really a pleasant, quiet place with full on view, year round sunsets. It's been remodeled, the bathroom is great. It's just phenomenal, it's good to show.

B: Yes, both bathrooms are totally remodeled, everything in the place is. They added additional storage, and from the kitchen window you can actually look out to the water way down on the golf course in one direction. The lanai has huge, huge views. Again, that is a great one Mitch. I'm glad we thought to say it. We're now winding down, we've probably got thirty seconds left so we're going to be coming, quickly, up to Danny Couch again and "I Love Hawaii". It's one of my favorite songs so listen on and if you don't have a Danny Couch album go get one. Google Danny Couch, and I'll talk to you soon. Aloha.

M: Aloha.