Kauai Real Estate Update- To see what Sold, went Under Contract and what was Just Listed on the island of Kauai last week click here: Kauai Real Estate Update January 5 to 11, 2026
Poipu Beach Real Estate Update- Just Listed | Horizon Ocean View Kiahuna Golf Village $3.640
This refined Poipu residence overlooks the Kiahuna Golf Course with horizon ocean views and offers a private pool and spa in one of the South Shore’s premier resort settings. Thoughtfully renovated and fully furnished, the home is designed for seamless indoor-outdoor living and has a strong track record as a successful vacation rental. It checks every box—luxury home, income potential, or a smart combination of both. To see more of this listing click here: Hale Le’a at Kiahuna Golf Village
For a complete list of the fee simple real estate activity in Poipu since the beginning of the year click here: Poipu Beach Current Market Analysis
For the Kiahuna Plantation click here: Kiahuna Plantation Current Market Analysis
Mortgage Rates Dip Below 6% — And Other Housing Headlines Worth Watching
For the first time since February 2, 2023 mortgage rates went below the 6% mark. The 30 year mortgage dropped 22 basis points last Friday when the President announced that he is instructing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to buy $200 billion in mortgage bonds. While Fannie and Freddie do not originate home loans they do buy from lenders and bundle them into mortgage-backed securities which replenishes lender funds for new loans hence the lower rate.
Historically when rates go down consumer confidence goes up and I would expect to see home buyers reacting positively to this. This is certainly good news for first time home buyers.
Possible Ban On Corporations Buying Single Family Homes
The President also made the news when he said he plans to roll out measures to ban large institutional investors, those companies who own 1,000 or more homes, from buying single-family homes. “I am immediately taking steps to ban large institutional investors from buying more single-family homes, and I will be calling on Congress to codify it. People live in homes, not corporations.” the President wrote.
Real estate investors purchased 33% of all single-family homes in the second quarter of 2025, that is up from 27% from the first quarter of 2025.
Overall investors own 20% of the 86 million homes in the US, however, this includes small investors who are not a part of this proposed ban.
The Fate Of Kauai Coffee Company Is Not Known
The Kauai County Council requested the senior advisor for Kauai Coffee Company to come before the Council for an update on what is happening, he did so and 20 employees came with him. Brue Baukol Capital Partners, the owner of the 3,000 acres of coffee fields publicly announced they are not willing to renew the lease.
Contributing to the concern is the fact that the land is up for sale. “Kauai Coffee Lands” which also include five miles of oceanfront land is for sale at an undisclosed price. To see that listing click here: Kauai Coffee Lands Listing
The company itself is owned by Massimo Zanetti Beverage (MZB) but the land is owned by Brue Baukol Capital Partners who bought the land from A&B in 2022 for $74M. The lease to MZB is up at the end of March, 2026 and with it 141 jobs. Kauai Coffee Company is the largest coffee farm in the U.S. and is also a major tourist attraction.
When before the Council the senior advisor for Kauai Coffee Company said they are very concerned and no other updates than that. The owners of the land stated: “We have been engaging constructively and in good faith with Massimo Zanetti Beverage, and we remain focused on outcomes that serve the best interests of the community. Looking ahead, we see opportunities to thoughtfully strengthen Kauaʻi Coffee’s operations, products and the experience for both employees and visitors. If a change in management is necessary, we foresee retaining existing team members, as we did with other company transitions on Kaua‘i.”
Council Members are concerned over job lost, water management systems lost, institutional knowledge. But, in the end, no one knows where this is going to go.
Dogs To Help With Kauai’s Coconut Rhinoceros Beetle
Kauai now has four detection dogs to help in the battle against the Coconut Rhinoceros Beetle (CRB) thanks to the “Conservation Dogs of Hawaii Kauai Response Team”. The dogs are trained to identify the scent of CRB breeding sites. Early detection is key to slowing the spread of these pests from our trees and plants.
Applications for these dogs to survey a property are being accepted, to apply to go to this site: CRB Detecton Dogs
Hawaii Duty Free Shops Closing
Duty Free Shopping will start to lay off their 183 employees starting in March. The Duty Free Shops have been a Waikiki, Honolulu and Maui Airport staple for 63 years. International travel dropped off when COVID hit. Given the fact that they are the bread and butter of these stores, and their numbers have not improved enough to support the stores, they will be shutting down.
Here is a breakdown on when, and where, these layoffs will happen:
🛍️ DFS, Waikiki — 84 employees will be laid off on March 8
🛍️ DFS, Daniel K. Inouye International Airport — 80 employees will be laid off on March 31
🛍️ DFS, Kahului Airport — 19 employees will be laid off on Aug. 3
Oahu, Maui and Big Island Real Estate 2025 vs 2024
2025 was tumultuous and this impacted real estate on a National level. The smoke has cleared and we have the year end numbers for Oahu, Maui and the Big Island.
Here are some key takeaways:
🔴 The number of homes sold increased on every island except Maui which is understandable given they are still impacted by the fires and negative news about vacation rental zoning law changes.
🔴 Kauai has a significant lead for the number of homes sold.
🔴 Home Prices are up less than 1% statewide with Oahu being the only island to show a gain. Kauai’s high number of leasehold home sales impact their Median Price.
🔴 Condominium sales are down on every island however, Kauai is the only island where the Median Price is up indicating a stabilization of this market.
