Why are Real Estate Prices in Puna Relatively Low?

[Kelena]

Just want to start a fun discussion. I love Puna --oh, boy, I loves me some Puna. But why are real estate prices lower in Puna than they are elsewhere in Hawai'i. I know that seems like a dumb question, but I got to wondering, is it just the risk of inundation from lava? Why is real estate on the Big Island so much cheaper,as a whole, than on Kauai,for example? And whatsa matta with Puna? I love it; you love it.....

[macuu222]

I think it has something to do
with "location location location".

Puna is rural with a lava flow in its backyard.

[rocketman]

And maybe Jobs, Jobs, Jobs. Don't get me wrong, I really love it like it is. Don't change a thing.
Six more days till I'm there in paradise again.
Ed

[the hare]

no mo' beach

[Kelena]

Interesting. Puna's Wikipedia entry says that lava and rainfall are NOT a consideration. Who wrote that???

[EightFingers]

A realtor maybe?

[Bullwinkle]

More vacancy than demand would be my guess. I read somewhere the other day that 1 in 5 Puna homes were idle and empty. Add that to the un-developed lots in all the private sub developments - Lots of options for potential buyers

Add to that the fact that 2011 real estate dollars seem to be worth two of the 2006 dollars.........

[pslamont]

I don't know about the rest of you but I think the low prices in Puna make this a great time to buy if you have the money. We are as yet undiscovered. As in all places in the USA, those with an abundance of cash (not the mega rich, just upper middle class) will find it, buy it up, exploit it a bit but build the infrastructure we lack and upscale the housing and... voila... unaffordable housing once again. Look how upscale Seaview looks these days. When we arrived 7 years ago there was almost nothing there. It would have been our first choice if Bob weren't going to keep teaching but the commute was just too much. It's all timing.

I want to be the kind of woman that, when my feet
hit the floor each morning, the devil says

"Oh Crap, She's up!"

[hawaiideborah]

The reasons I hear why not to move to Puna:
lack of beaches
poor healthcare
poor school system
lack of jobs
high cost of living (gas/electricity)

We love it here. None of those reasons outweigh the joys of paradise. When you are called to live here it all feels right. We are so very lucky to have chosen this special place.

[csgray]

Being directly downhill from the world's most productive volcano has a lot to do with why real estate here has never gone up like the other Islands. Big money developers and their financial backers hesitate to build big projects in lava zones 1 and 2, regardless of the validity of those zones, and the lack of infrastructure limits small investors. For working people already living here who just want a place to raise a family the lack of jobs combined with the high price of fuel to commute to Hilo is a real consideration, plus there isn't much for kids to do in Puna, so families end up spending a lot of time driving to Hilo anyway. The mainland real estate meltdown has slowed the influx of home equity dollars that fueled our last real estate boomlet. Pam is right, if you have the money now would be a great time to invest, but not many people have much money right now and the banks are still being very conservative about loaning for investment properties.

After 5 plus years I find that the cumulative effects of the things HiDeb. mentions have started to really grind on me. The cost of everything we buy here has continually gone up while our income has stayed the same. That means we no longer can even think about visiting family on the mainland and fixing a car now requires major financial planning. This is home and we love it, but after moving from the honeymoon stage to the long term marriage stage in our relationship with the Big Island we are no longer in denial about the downsides to living here, and those downsides are very real. Even with decent insurance and a prescription in hand, my husband has been flat out unable to get durable medical equipment that is vital to his continued health and well being, our family is far away and the increased cost of living means we cannot afford to either go visit or help them come here, after 5+ years we are still outsiders in terms of the job market, we no longer have a decent general bookstore on either side of the island, and while our 1 acre lot grows fruit trees well, to put in a garden in most of Puna requires buying or making soil.

Yes, there are positive trade offs too: no heat bills, lots of sunlight means we get enough vitamin D, fresh ahi, ono, watermelon, and sweet corn all year round, breathtaking natural scenery and that volcano that fascinates me so are all wonderful, but those negatives are very real too.



Carol