For over a year now, many rental properties on Oahu have had to lower rental prices in order to get renters. Our market is directly affected by the military presence here - more soldiers and their families have been moved off island than have come in. In addition, new batches of housing have become available on base for those families that are here - which has significantly decreased not only the demand in the rental market but also the money available from renters.
Keeping a higher price means your property will most likely sit vacant longer. In the past when demand was higher than supply, we would get multiple applications for one property, and properties would rent in one to two weeks.
Today, when we show a property, we get feedback that the potential tenant is looking at 5-10 other units that same day/week, and we have seen many rentals sit for several months empty. It's rare to receive applications these days, and we are not the only company seeing this. This is being seen across the island for all types of properties and from all property management companies.
Having a nice unit in a good location will not be enough to get a good renter these days. Price is one of the biggest factors because of the large amount of inventory. Keep this in mind when pricing your rental unit in today's market.
Posted By:
Amanda Frazier
Cornerstone Properties
Property Manager and Chief Operating Officer
