Number of Feet On The Beach Equals Good News For Hawaii Vacation Rental Owners

It’s the number of feet on the beach that’s important. Hawaii’s economy is heavily based on tourism; tourism drives the vacation rental market and this, in turn, helps drive the housing market.

Projections For 2012 Will Put Arrivals in Hawaii at Record Levels

Arrivals in Hawaii peaked in 2007 and then fell for two years down to 2003 levels. But since 2009, we’ve had two strong years, and projections for 2012 will put arrivals in Hawaii at record levels. This is great news for owners of investment property and second home owners who look for vacation income from their property. Using the week ending Feb. 11 as a barometer, Hawaii hotels had slightly higher occupancy rates in that week than than they did a year ago, while average room rates increased by 6 percent.

According to an article in Pacific Business News:

“The statewide occupancy rate in Hawaii was 83.2 percent for the week ending Feb. 11, which was 2.1 percentage points higher than the same week a year ago. The average daily room rate was $198.76, which was 5.9 percent higher than a year ago.

Kauai Stats

Kauai saw the greatest increase in occupancy, but average daily room rates slipped by 2.5 percent to $195.19. Kauai hotels were 76.3 percent occupied last week, which was 13.7 percentage points higher than a year ago.

Maui Stats

Maui hotels had an occupancy rate of 86.4 percent, which was 2.9 percentage points higher than a year ago, and the average daily room rate was $252.26, the highest in the state and 6.4 percent higher than last year.

Oahu Stats

Occupancy slipped by 0.8 percentage points for Oahu hotels to 86.2 percent, while the average daily room rate was $174.23, a 7.7 increase from last year and the highest percentage gain in the state.

Big Island Stats

Big Island hotels were 71.6 percent occupied, which was 3.7 percentage points higher than last year, while the average daily room rate of $197.37 was 0.8 percent higher.”

As the owners of a 2-bedroom vacation rental condo in the Waikoloa Beach Resort we, and many of our clients, will be happy to see that the average daily hotel room rate is $197. A typical 1,200 sq. ft. condo in the Waikoloa Resort (with full kitchen) rents in the neighborhood of $150-$175 a night, which makes renting a condo for a vacation, rather than a single hotel room,  an incredible deal. And with a party of four, the deal gets even better.