Buying real estate involves the Negotiation process. Here are 5 Characteristics to a Successful Negotiation:

Buying a home in Honolulu is bound to give you sticker shock! Many new arrivals to Hawai'i comment on the high price of real estate, but with a little explanation buying isn't impossible. The price of homes in Hawai'i are a direct result of supply and demand. Since we are blessed with wonderful weather on a beautiful island the demand to live here is high, however being surrounded by ocean creates a shortage of land suitable or convenient for development. Therefore, if you want to live in Honolulu, or close the Downtown area you'll soon abandon your old ideas about property size and price. You can buy a similar or even newer home in the more rural areas of O'ahu for less, but if you commute to town in the mornings beware of the traffic. To get a quick sense of value try a few outings with a Kahala Associates Agent or explore a few homes during Sunday's Open House hours from 2 to 5 pm.

In Hawaii we have a much larger percentage of residential lands held in lease than most other areas. When you buy a leasehold home, you're buying the right to use the home (or improvements) for a fixed time period, but not the land on which the house sits. An annual lease fee, usually fixed for a long term, is paid to a landowner. Leasehold homes are significantly cheaper to purchase than homes (or improvements) made on fee-simple land, but beware, leases have much uncertainty attached to them. Many leasehold properties are 20 to 30 years old now and up for renegotiation from their original terms and the cost today can be high based on current market values. A fee-simple home includes the land on which it sits. It may cost more, but does provide greater security and better resale value.