Making a move to West Hawaii? LUVA offers you a resource guide to make moving and getting set up easier.
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A beautiful, hardwood floor provides enduring beauty for Hawaii home. In addition to the aesthetic attributes, a wood floor is easier on the knees than tile or cement. What’s more, in Hawaii’s humid climate, a wood floor is definitely a better choice than carpet when it comes to preventing mold and mildew.
Local tropical woods popular in Hawaii include ohia, mango, eucalyptus and monkeypod. The installation of Koa wood floors is becoming rarer due sustainability considerations and affordability. An alternative, Koala wood from Australia resembles koa and is half the price.
Eucalyptus floors in a Holualoa home.
A great choice for the kitchen is cork, a renewable material that provides a cushiony surface underfoot. Bamboo is another renewable resource that lends itself to the tropics, both aesthetically and practically. A soft, oily wood, teak adds an aura of distinction to the tropical home, but can sometimes be resistant to finishes.
The hardness of the wood determines its durability. Brazilian ebony and Brazilian cherry are the two hardest woods on the market. If your home will be sustaining a lot of foot traffic, these two woods are good choices.
Cushiony and stylish, Cork flooring offers a sustainable alternative to wood floors. Photo by Karen Anderson
Some woods, like bamboo, can really fade fast when exposed to direct sunlight entering the home. Protecting your floor in Hawaii starts with filtering against harmful UV rays. Tinted window or UV-filter window films can make a world of difference when it comes to shielding your floor from harsh sunlight. Shades, sunscreens or drapes are also helpful.
When cleaning your hardwood floor, make sure you do your research before using just any product. A good rule of thumb, don’t use water to clean your hardwood floors! Wet mopping can cause wood to expand or splinter. Additionally, do not use oils or wood polish on your floors; these types of products can cause permanent damage. Recommended by industry experts, Bona Swedish Formula Hardwood Floor Cleaner is non-toxic and won’t leave a residue. Place protective glides on the legs of your furniture to help prevent scratching your floor.
Bamboo floors bring a tropical look to the Hawaii home. Photo by Karen Anderson
Before installing a new hardwood floor, make sure the wood has been sufficiently acclimated to the climate/elevation of your property. If you don’t allow the wood enough to expand and settle, it could start to warp or buckle once installed. Kit floors from retailers should also be climatized. It takes some patience, but if you allow your flooring to it sit in your garage or carport for at least five months before you install it, your floor will be happier in the long run.
Thinking about a move to the Big Island of Hawaii? Here are 5 reasons you will love moving here!
The West Hawaii Real Estate market for July is HOT! Prices near record highs and inventory is falling.
The housing market in West Hawaii continues to be positively affected by the annual upswing of homebuyers during the first part of the year.
“It seems to me the market has been gaining steam. I feel like we started off the year a bit shaky with the uncertainty of the presidential election. It appears that May, and especially thus far in June, the market has really been picking up. We had 6 new escrows open in the last 2 days”, Brian Collins, LUVA Real Estate, shared.
For the island as a whole, the median price of a single family home is $320,000 and condos are $273,000 according to information provided by Hawaii Information Services. Puna has seen the most home sales at 86 closed sales and 113 land sales.
How are the regions that make up West Hawaii performing?
The first step of the home buying process usually begins with meeting with a mortgage professional to develop your financial game plan and getting pre-approved for a mortgage. Many times, if you are on the mainland, you can ask family and friends who they could refer you to. However, if you are buying a home or land on Hawaii Island, you most likely don’t know who to call or trust. LUVA Real Estate is making that part of your home buying process much easier by recommending a few local mortgage professionals who have many years of experience helping home buyers weave their way through the process, which has many “only in Hawaii” aspects to it. Here are three mortgage pros whom LUVA Real Estate agents have had great success with, however as always LUVA recommends doing your due diligence to determine what lender might be the best fit for your particular situation. Read More
If you are new to living in Hawaii, you might have noticed that most every home relies in some capacity on propane for heating water or for powering gas appliances. Whether swimming pools, ponds and spa, or tiki torches, stoves, clothes dryers and hot-water heaters, there are many common household usages for propane in Hawaii.
House Bill 1244, if signed by the governor, will revise existing statutes to require that every cesspool in the state be upgraded or converted to a septic systems. Learn more about the impact of this bill and how cesspools hurt Hawaii.
Planning a trip to the Big Island and specifically West Hawaii? Within a 30 minute drive north of downtown Kailua Kona and 16 miles of the Kona Airport is Waikoloa Resort, an oceanfront resort community which includes beautiful Anaeho’omalu Bay (A-Bay), the King’s Shops and Queen’s Marketplace, the Waikoloa Hilton, the Waikoloa Marriott, and fun “on-the-beach” restaurant and bar, Lava Lava Beach Club. You’ll also find numerous opportunities for four-star dining, golf courses, tennis courts and a world-class spa.
The real estate market in West Hawaii for single family homes saw moderate price appreciation in April, while prices for condos continue to remain below last year’s sales prices .
