Kauai Real Estate Update- Buyer behavior right now can be summed up in saying: Interest is there. Certainty is not. That's really what we're seeing from buyers right now, especially with second homes. They're looking at properties, gathering information, and comparing options, but many are taking longer to make decisions than they would have a few years ago. I’ve heard this from a lot of agents both here in Hawaii and other states.
Great marketing, correct pricing and a responsive agent will keep you in a position to sell a property when a buyer does pull the trigger.
And they are pulling the trigger. There are pockets of our market where sales are up such as homes on the North Shore and Lihue. July is one of the busiest months for tourism and hopefully we’ll get a bump in our real estate sales. To find out what Sold, went Under Contract and what was Just Listed last week on the island of Kauai click here: Kauai Real Estate Update June 22 to 28, 2026
Poipu Beach Real Estate Update- For a complete update on the Fee Simple market in Poipu since the beginning of this year click here: Poipu Beach Fee Simple Current Market Analysis
Before I get to the Kiahuna Plantation sales I'd like to say how sorry I was to hear of Roy Thompsons passing on Saturday night. I believe Roy became the Castle Resorts General Manager at the Kiahuna in 1999, I'm not a 100% sure on the year. I was an owner at the Kiahuna at the time and really got to know him when I started my real estate career in 2004. I knew he was not in the best of health but his passing was a shock and very sad. I truly appreciate all he contributed over the many years he had at the resort. For real estate information at the resort click on this link: Kiahuna Plantation Current Market Analysis
Hawaii All Electric Planes Being Tested
Hawaiian Airlines is offering their guidance and help to Mokulele Airlines with their development of a battery-powered aircraft. Hawaiian is not partnering with Mokulele but understandably, has a vested interest in the development of fully electric planes.
Testing of the aircraft is starting with cargo runs between Honolulu, Molokai and Lanai. Mokulele partnered with a Vermont based aerospace manufacturer BETA Technologies to develop the plane and BETA training of the pilots has started.
The cost of energy for these planes is 40 times less than fuel and the goal is to use these planes in the future for interisland travel.
Safety concern: The plane is run on Lithium-ion batteries. If those batteries catch on fire it’s very hard to put those fires out. When asked about that the head of the BETA training said the plane is designed with vents to “off-board any material and allows survivability of the pilot.”
Kauai Coffee Contract Settled
After two years of negotiating Massimo Zanetti Beverage, owner of Kauai Coffee Company and Brue Baukol Capital Partners, owner of the 3,100 acres of coffee fields, signed a 15 year lease to continue production.
The contract talks have been hard on our island, 141 locals work at the company which is a huge part of the westside culture. Many of them are generational employees and not taking the talks personally has been impossible. Darla Domingo is the marketing manager at the Kauai Coffee Visitor Center and she said it feels like “the weight is lifted.”
Under the new agreement everyone kept their jobs at the farm and visitor center. Kauai Coffee Company plans to do more hiring of skilled trade individuals and visitor hospitality workers, invest in equipment upgrades, farm modernization projects and expand on the visitor experiences.
A New Worry On The Coffee Horizon
A new challenge for the farm is the “coffee berry borer” which is now on Kauai and Lanai. This is a small beetle native to Africa but is no stranger to our State. The beetle has been found on the Big Island and Oahu and has now made its way to our island.
The beetle itself is tiny, 100’s of them can be found in a single fruit. Combating measures against the beetle include field sanitation, mass trapping with baited fruit traps and deploying the fungus Beauveria bassiana (often sold as BotaniGard or Mycotrol) as a natural biopesticide, which infects and kills CBB beetles. Additionally, researchers have worked to introduce natural predators and parasitoid wasps to keep beetle populations in check.
Interisland transporting of the coffee is done under strict guidelines.
Development Of Coco Palms
I have lost count of how many runs have been made at rebuilding the Coco Palms Hotel which was closed down after 1992 Hurricane Iniki tore through it. Coco Palms is back in the news after the developers got a $431 million dollar loan and have since issued a statement that reconstruction will begin in 2027.
Two loans have been secured: One for $186 Million through conventional financing a second loan at $245 Million by way of a “C-PACE” loan which allows developers to finance clean energy projects through municipal property assessment, this type of loan is repaid as a special assessment on the property tax bill.
Opinions run strong both for and against reopening the hotel. There are those that long to see this grand hotel restored to its former glory. Coco Palms opened in 1953, has been the back drop of movies and played host to many, many Hollywood celebrities. Countless numbers of couples have gotten married on the grounds, spent their honeymoon there or just stayed at the resort where Elvis once had his own private room.
Cultural awareness of the land itself and the distinction of it being a burial ground for Hawaiian Royalty has caused a massive shift in public sentiment starting in the 1970’s when dozens of human remains were found on the property. Lawsuits and public protests have slowed down previous attempts to rebuild. Even former and current Kauai Council Members have voiced their disapproval.
So, I don’t know what will happen, can’t even hazard a guess. Driving by it’s sad to see it in the state it’s in, what is sadder is you get used to it and don’t even notice after a while. This site could be, and should be, so much more. What that “more” is going to look like, I just don’t know.
The Developers have a very impressive site which explains their position, you can access that by clicking on this link: Coco Palms Restoration
