Who's Who
What's the difference between the board, AOAO property manager, and the resident manager?
Ryan Oda
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- Jan 27, 2020
- 1 min
Budgeting For The Repair
Homeownership can be costly. Here's how you can budget for repairs.
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- Nov 20, 2019
- 1 min
Test-Drive A Neighborhood
Would you buy a car without test driving it? Probably not. Similar to buying a car, test driving a neighborhood will give you a better idea if you truly love the property and the community. Here are two things you can do... Check Out The Neighborhood When my wife and I bought our home, we drove through the neighborhood at different times of the day. We felt it was important to see the neighborhood during the day and night and during the weekday and weekend. We also ran our er
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- Aug 20, 2019
- 2 min
There's No Place Like Own
It's a great time to buy. I've represented over 5 first time buyers this year. Stop renting your future away! Here are three reasons why owning is better... Invest In Your Future Real estate is an investment. Putting your money in a mortgage allows you to build equity. In addition, your home could appreciate in value. When you pay rent, you're paying someone's mortgage. Let's say your rent is $2,000/month. That's $24,000/year and $48,000 over two years. $2,000/month might be
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- Jul 31, 2019
- 1 min
Maintenance Fee
When you buy a condo, there's usually a monthly maintenance fee. This fee generates money for the association to help upkeep the building, grounds, and common areas. A maintenance fee is usually associated with condos. However, some single-detached homes can have a maintenance too. In addition, some neighborhoods have a community association. For example, Mililani Town Association (MTA). If you bought a condo in Mililani, you'll have a monthly maintenance and a yearly communi
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- Jul 2, 2019
- 1 min
Make A Hurricane Plan
Make A Hurricane Place Hurricane season is here. Here is how you can prep... - Plan your evacuation ahead of time. - Stock up on items like water, food, batteries, flashlights, matches/lighters, basic tools, first aid supplies, and prescription drugs. - Take inventory of your personal property and review your insurance policy. - Take steps to protect your home. For example, you can board up your windows, you can trim back the trees that are close to your house, and you can st
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- Jun 17, 2019
- 1 min
What Are Closing Costs?
When you purchase a home, you will have closing costs. Closing costs are fees that are associated with your home purchase. These fees can vary based on the type of property you are purchasing. Some first-time homebuyers forget about closing costs; don’t let them sneak up on you. If you are first time homebuyer, your closing costs are broken down into two main categories: (1) mortgage; (2) escrow and title. Your mortgage closing costs can be: - The balance of your down payment
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- Jun 10, 2019
- 2 min
The Power Of Fee Simple
I’m selling a fee simple commercial space at 465 Kapahulu. The owner of the property is operating a hair salon out of the unit. Here’s the MLS fact sheet: https://propertysearch.hicentral.com/HBR/ForSale/?/201829295 What’s unique about my listing is the property is fee simple. If you are familiar with Hawaii real estate, you will know there are not many fee simple commercial (condominium) properties for sale. Many will probably agree that fee simple is the most complete form
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- May 16, 2019
- 1 min
Up In Smoke
One of the scariest things a homeowner fears is their home burning down. Unfortunately, there was another condo fire in Honolulu. Dealing with fires can be an uncomfortable thing to talk about. However, fires do occur and it’s important you are properly prepared. Buy Condos With Fire Sprinklers When you are looking at high-rise condos, you should tell your Realtor that fire sprinklers are a must-have. I’ve shown a lot of properties to first time homebuyers. Many condos in the
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- Mar 11, 2019
- 1 min
Adulting
Now that you purchased your home, here are two adulting tips you should consider… Will & Trust I’ve transacted many real estate trust sales in the past few years. Due to these experiences, I quickly realized how important estate planning is. For most homeowners, basic estate planning will consist of having a will and a trust. In summary, a will is a document that states your final wishes. In addition, can be defined as, “a fiduciary relationship in which one party, known as t
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- Feb 23, 2019
- 2 min
520 Magellan Ave - Multigenerational Living
My coworker, Greg Andrasick (R), and I recently listed a triplex property in Punchbowl. There two, 2-bed/1-bath units and one, 1-bed/1-bath unit. All three units have separate entrances. In addition, the property has a Walk Score of 80. With a lack of housing inventory and high home prices, multigenerational living can be a valuable option for some first-time homeowners. Most people would think the next owner of this property would be an investor. That’s a good possibility si
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- Feb 13, 2019
- 1 min
On The Decline
According to the Honolulu Board of Realtors, homes sales have been declining since August 2018. In addition, the median sales price for single-family homes have been falling too. Based on this data, I believe we’re starting a new housing cycle. As the new year began, I was able to help two first-time home buyer clients. Due to economic uncertainty, caused by the government shutdown, mortgage rates went down. Both sets of clients were able to lock-in a sub 5% mortgage rate. Mo
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- Feb 2, 2019
- 1 min
Time Value
30-year fixed rate inched up to 4.46% with an average of .5 point this past week. In comparison to a year ago, our mortgage rates were at 4.22%. Mortgage rates, like the stock market, fluctuate on a daily basis. Home prices can change, but not as frequently as mortgage rates. With mortgage rates expected to rise over 5% this year, it’s important to take advantage of “cheap money” and a softening housing market. For example, let’s say you want to purchase a $350,000 condo late
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- Jan 23, 2019
- 2 min
3 Reasons Why Businesses Should Buy Instead Of Rent
I’m selling a fee simple commercial unit at 465 Kapahulu. The unit is being used as a hair salon. Here’s the online fact sheet: http://propertysearch.hicentral.com/HBR/ForSale/?/201829295 In residential real estate, own vs. rent is an often-debated topic. In commercial restate, most business owners, especially small business owners, go through the same debate. Here are a few reasons why buying is better… No Landlord Commercial real estate is a dog-eat-dog business. I’ve heard
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- Jan 21, 2019
- 2 min
Student Loans: #1 Challenge To Homeownership
Home prices continue to rise in Honolulu. It’s not uncommon for most first-time homebuyers to feel the squeeze. According to data released by National Association of Realtors, 49% of prospective homebuyers feel their student loans are preventing them from buying a home. Student loan debt is no joke. According to Make Lemonade, a personal finance website, there are 44 million who owe $1.5 trillion in student loans as of 2018. As a Realtor, I’m constantly working with millennia
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- Jan 18, 2019
- 1 min
The Connection Section: Realtor Roda & Luck Of The Irish
Thank you, Shane Irish, for inviting me to your real estate/mortgage vlog! Shane is a mortgage lender at HomeStreet Bank; we've worked on many transactions with each other. When I purchased my home, Shane was my mortgage lender. Shane is a person you can trust. When you get prequalified, you'll have to turn over some sensitive financial documents to the lender. This makes some buyers uneasy, however, Shane is confidential and discreet. One of our clients recently told me, "I
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- Dec 30, 2018
- 2 min
Organizing Your Real Estate Documents
If you recently purchased a home, here’s another one of those small things you can do before the year comes to an end. When it comes to organizing your real estate documents, you should keep a hard copy, a copy saved on a hard drive, and a copy saved in a secured cloud file. These files can be broken into four categories. The Transaction When you close on your property, you should ask your Realtor to send you a complete set of all the documents pertaining to your transaction.
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- Sep 27, 2018
- 2 min
Is It Time To Buy?
Are you looking to purchase your first home? If so, here are three things you should consider. Rent Your rent is paying someone’s mortgage. For example, say you’re renting a 1-bedroom condo in Kakaako for $2,300/month. That’s $27,600/year or $82,800 for three years. This is money you’ll never see again. Did you know that rental vacancy rates have been declining? This means landlords can increase rent, so investors get a better return. Say you wanted to purchase a $425,000 con