Transaction volume held on the West Side in May, but the condo market is telling a different story, and it has nothing to do with supply.
The Bottom Line
May was a split market on the West Side. North Kona single-family home sales came in at 32 closed transactions, up 10% from May 2025. That is solid activity, and it tells you that buyers who want a house in Kona are still buying. The Kohala Coast logged 10 single-family sales and 14 condo closings, with both segments showing reasonable movement for a market that runs thin at those price points.
The condo side is where things get interesting. North Kona posted only 20 condo sales, down 35% from a year ago. Kohala Coast condos dropped 7%. Median days on market for Kona condos stretched to 86 days, and to 73 on the Kohala Coast. This is not a supply problem. New condo listings are actually down, not up. The issue is that condos are more sensitive to interest rates and HOA fees than single-family homes, and right now that math is making buyers hesitate. Whether they are waiting for rates to move, prices to adjust, or both is not entirely clear, but the hesitation is real.
The takeaway: if you are looking at a single-family home on the West Side, you are dealing with a market that is still moving. If you are a condo buyer or seller, this is a market that requires more patience and more realistic pricing.
The Big Picture
North Kona closed 32 single-family home sales in May, up 10% year over year. That is the kind of transaction volume that tells you buyer demand for houses is alive and reasonably well. New listings in the same area fell 42% compared to May 2025, which means the homes coming to market are finding buyers without much buildup of unsold inventory.
South Kona logged 6 single-family sales, down 33% from last May. That area runs lower volume to begin with, so one or two fewer closings moves the percentage dramatically. Captain Cook and Kealakekua saw 44 median days on market for homes that did close, respectable movement. The land market in South Kona was notably active, with 8 parcels sold, up 167% over May 2025, though median land prices were off 20%.
Island-wide, the picture is similar. Single-family home sales across all of Hawaii Island came in at 182 for the month, up 5% from May 2025. Condo sales island-wide totaled 39, down 19% from a year ago. The single-family market is holding; the condo market is soft across the board, not just on the West Side.
The Numbers
Metric | North Kona | Kohala Coast (S. Kohala) |
|---|---|---|
Single-family sales (May 2026) | 32 | 10 |
Single-family vs. May 2025 | up 10% | flat |
Single-family median days on market | 32 | 55 |
Single-family new listings | 30 (down 42%) | 18 (down 14%) |
Condo sales (May 2026) | 20 | 14 |
Condo vs. May 2025 | down 35% | down 7% |
Condo median days on market | 86 | 73 |
Condo new listings | 30 (down 17%) | 17 (down 23%) |
South Kona single-family sales | 6 (down 33%) | n/a |
South Kona single-family days on market | 44 | n/a |
Data source: Hawaii Information Service MLS and Coldwell Banker Island Properties. All figures for May 2026 compared to May 2025 unless noted.
What This Means for Buyers
For single-family home buyers, this is still a market that rewards preparation. North Kona homes are moving at a median 32 days on market, which is not a panic-buying environment, but it is not leisurely either. New listings are down sharply, so the inventory you see is mostly what there is. If a property fits, waiting to see what else shows up may mean waiting a while.
For condo buyers, the calculus is different. Longer days on market and softer transaction volume mean you have more room to negotiate, and sellers who have been sitting on the market for 60, 70, or 80 plus days are going to be more receptive to a real conversation about price. The headwind is not mysterious. Interest rates and HOA fees make the monthly carrying cost on a condo less predictable than a house, and buyers are factoring that in. If you are financing a condo purchase, get your numbers current before you write an offer, because the financing picture can move fast. Our guide to leasehold versus fee simple in Kailua-Kona covers another wrinkle worth understanding before you make an offer on a Kona condo.
On the Kohala Coast, both segments saw longer days on market relative to prior year. This is a thin, high-end market and a few large transactions can shift the numbers significantly in either direction. We would not read a single month’s data there as a trend. What we do know is that the resort communities, Kukio among them, continue to draw a buyer that is largely unaffected by rate fluctuations. The softness in Kohala Coast condos is more price-point specific than a signal about the luxury segment overall.
What This Means for Sellers
Single-family home sellers on the West Side are in a workable position. Homes priced for current conditions are selling. The drop in new listings is actually doing sellers a favor, because there is less competition on the active market than there was a year ago. That said, current conditions means current conditions. Pricing to last year’s comparable sales and expecting the market to meet you is a strategy that tends to end with a price reduction a few months in.
Condo sellers need to take a hard look at the days-on-market numbers. At 86 days for North Kona and 73 for the Kohala Coast, these properties are sitting. The buyers who are out there are patient, and they have options. The sellers who are closing are the ones who have priced with eyes open to the current interest rate and HOA environment. If your condo has been on the market for two or three months without an offer, the answer is almost never to wait longer.
South Kona sellers should note that the single-family market there was quieter in May than a year ago, but the land segment showed meaningful activity. If you are sitting on acreage in that corridor, there is buyer interest. It just may not look like it from the residential side.
One Thing Worth Watching
New listings are down sharply across both single-family and condo segments on the West Side. North Kona single-family new listings fell 42% from May 2025, and condo new listings were off 17%. When inventory supply tightens while buyer demand holds steady, it creates upward price pressure. We are not there yet, but if new listings continue to underperform last year’s pace heading into the summer, the buyer who is waiting for prices to dip further may find instead that there is simply less to choose from. Worth watching over the next 60 to 90 days. If you are considering a move from the mainland, our relocation guide covers the practical side.
Talk to Us
Numbers tell part of the story. Your situation tells the rest. If you want to talk through what this market looks like for a specific property or neighborhood on the West Side, call us at 808-854-5432 or reach out through the contact page.
Mark Davis, Esq. and Brenda Kuessner are the principals of Kona Homes for Sale at Coldwell Banker Island Properties, Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. Mark practiced as a transactional and litigation real estate attorney for 35 years before moving to the Big Island full time. Brenda has sold property on the Big Island for 35 years and holds the Certified Residential Specialist (CRS) designation, held by less than 5% of agents nationwide. This post is for general informational purposes and does not constitute investment, legal, or tax advice.
