Team Aka
We understand that real estate is one the of the largest
financial decisions for an individual or a family and we are committed to
providing the highest level of service. We are passionate about what we do and our goal is to provide you
with the very best information available, advise you through all the phases of
the home buying process and fight on your behalf.
Our service is based on trust and our commitment to you;
your best interest is in our best interest. We will work with you, ensuring that your long term goals are aligned to
your real estate goals.
The Process
Getting Started:
As a primary residence, a home can offer you tax breaks, a
means to invest your money rather than pay rent, and provides you with your
very own piece of Hawaii! As an
investment option, there are several strategies that can provide regular
income, short-term gain, and/or long term growth. The first step in deciding if buying is right
for you, is knowing the market and having a goal.
Our philosophy is to ask probing questions to
make sure the purchase aligns to your personal goals. We are one of the few in the business that
will bring up the risks and negative aspects of a purchase, but our goal is
always to do what’s best for you and your situation. Purchasing a property may not be the
best option in certain situations; however every family should explore all their
options and determine what is best for them. Some of the few questions to consider are:
1.
How long do I think I will live there?
2.
What is the potential for future appreciation?
3.
What are the pros / cons between renting vs.
buying?
4.
Will I want to rent the property in the future?
5.
What neighborhoods do I like?
6.
How far am I willing to commute to work?
7.
Is this a good school district for my children?
8.
Do I prefer flat, walkable neighborhoods or
homes with a view?
Prepare to Purchase:
The next step is to determine your budget and how you will
take ownership. If you need a mortgage,
your Realtor can recommend lenders that specialize in the type of purchase you
will be making. The lender will be able
to provide you with a price range that is within your budget, and will help you
explore your options, such as conventional loans, VA, FHA, first-time home
buyer programs, etc. Lastly, they will
be able to pre-qualify and/or pre-approve you for a loan amount. Having
this step complete before submitting an offer for a home will only strengthen
your offer.
This is also the time that you will consider how you will
take ownership. A Realtor can discuss
basic options and direct you to a specialist for more detailed questions. If you wish to purchase under a trust or
entity, this is a good time to explore the best options to help you avoid
transfer costs to change ownership in the future.
If your purchase will be apart of a 1031 exchange or reverse
1031 exchange, it should be planned ahead of time to involve the appropriate
specialist.
Now the fun begins!
Finding the Right Property:
After gaining an understanding of what you’re looking for, we’ll
schedule showings to begin exploring neighborhood and viewing properties. We like to show both active properties as
well as review past sales to help our clients learn about the current
market. During this time, we’ll discuss
what you did and did not like about each property, which we will use to work
through our needs vs. wants lists and determine what is most important to
us.
If we have not found the right property after several
showings, we’ll continue to monitor the market for new listings. Oahu’s market is very competitive and during
this phase, it’s important for us to aggressively view homes as soon as
they are listed. This strategy
has helped us secure several properties for our clients before others could
even see them!
Writing the Offer and
Negotiate the Price:
Negotiations are something we look forward to. From our time looking for a property, we’ll
already be very educated on the market. However, we’ll do a careful study of the comparable sales and develop
our opinion on value. After this review,
we’ll review the circumstances to develop a negotiation strategy.
Honolulu is an incredibly competitive market, so do not get
discouraged if it takes several offers! It’s important to understand that this
a journey, but we will do everything we can to make you stand out to the
Seller’s, including cover letter, pre-approvals, and contracts with clean
terms!
Inspect the Property
and Prepare to Purchase:
It’s important to understand that the Hawaii Association of
Realtors Purchase Contract has many provisions that protect the Buyer. The time an offer is accepted until it
legally changes ownership at closing is the period referred to as “escrow” and
it is during this time we’ll conduct due
diligence to understand if this is the right property.
One key provision during escrow is the home inspection
period. During this time, we’ll hire a
professional home inspector to do a detailed, non-invasive inspection of the
property. In addition, based on the
property, we may involve other professionals to assist with other various
inspections, such as, soils inspection, septic tank inspection, etc. If we find any items that are higher risk or
expensive to remedy, we have electricians, roofers, plumbers, etc. that can
provide quotes to address items we find during this period. Other areas of review will be to research
that there is no cloud on title, as well as review the seller’s disclosure
statement, condo association documents, and survey.
If, at any point, we
find something that is unsatisfactory and we cannot come to terms with the
Seller, we can terminate the purchase contract within the time frames granted to
us. If this is done, any deposits you’ve
paid will be returned back in full. You may spend money on the inspections, but it is a small price to pay
to avoid purchasing a property with a major issue.
If this is your first purchase, don’t worry, we’ll be there
every step of the way! We also have a
dedicated Escrow Manager to help us monitor time frames and schedule the various
stages of escrow.