Real estate on the Big Island

As with many areas, prices in the Hilo area are down — and so are rates. Realtors report many of the speculators have left the cooled-off market, leaving bargains for those with the capital to take advantage.

Buyers will find plenty of inventory above $500,000, with prices reaching up to $6 million for beach-side ranch homes. Deals tend to close at between 90 percent to 95 percent of a fair asking price, real estate agents say.

Here are some data related to real estate activity in Hilo, Hawaii.

Numbers for the area do tend to swing widely because of the relatively low numbers of homes and sales. In December 2008, for example, there were 12 sales in the city, with about double that in more active months.

• There are about 16,100 properties in Hilo, with roughly 55 percent of the households owning and 35% renting.
• The average estimated value of a house in Hilo was about $325,000 at the beginning of 2009. (That’s down from about $410,000 near a market high in August 2007.) The average list price was $368,000.
• In February 2009, the average market value was $285,000. The median housing value in Hilo recently was $337,000.
• The inventory of homes in the Hilo market was about 1,000 in February 2009. About 90 percent of those properties were resales. Hilo was recently in the top 5 for foreclosure properties in the state of Hawaii.
• The recent average number of days on the market in Hilo was 108.
• Rent recently averaged a bit over $1,000 a month.
• For the city of Volcano, there typically are two or three sales a month. The average estimated value of homes in December 2008 was $373,000. The recent median value was $252,000. There were about 200 homes on the market recently. The percentage of vacancies in Volcano, Hawaii, is unusually high, 27 percent. Days on the market averaged about 100.
• The tax rate per $1,000 for residential property is $8.10.

Schools in Hilo: There are 18 public schools and seven private schools.

View Hilo mortgage rates.

Read about the Hawaii animal quarantine policies.

The City-Data forum has lots of back-and-forth about moving to Hawaii.

Read what a billionaire investor has to say about commercial real estate in Hawaii.

Use this simple mortgage calculator.

(Some homes data from AOL Real Estate.)

Now playing: Hilo movie theaters

Rainy day? Probably. OK, let’s go to the movies!

Hilo’s movie theaters have a total of 15 screens, most of them showing the latest Hollywood blockbusters but a few unspooling arthouse fare: independent and foreign films.

Two of Hilo’s cinemas greet you in buildings that date back the better part of a century. The other offers the comforts of a multiplex, with cushy stadium seating.

View showtimes for today’s moves in Hilo.

Prince Kuhio Theaters: The place to find Hollywood’s hits in the standard multiplex stadium setting. Nine screens. 111 E Puainako Street (808) 959-4595

Kress Cinemas 4: Shows boxoffice faves just before DVD release and occasional foreign and indie fare. Locals rave about the bargain admission prices. Four screens located in the art deco building that for most of its life hosted the island’s S.H. Kress Department Store. Turned into a cinema by the Wallace Theater chain, which specializes in restoring classic theaters. 174 Kamehameha Ave. (808) 961-3456

Palace Theater: Shows movies for movie lovers, not the obvious. Where the college crowd gets its art-film fix. Snack stand features some yummy local goodies. Also home to concerts and community events. The building dates back to 1925. The Palace’s restoration continues with local support. 38 Haili St. (808) 934-7010.

The ‘talk story’ film fest
The Big Island Film Festival – aka “the talk story film festival” — is heading into its fifth year in Waikoloa. The focus is on independent narrative movies, some from regional filmmakers. A handful of past winners of the Golden Honu Awards have gone on to land distribution deals. (808) 883-0394

The Hawaii Film Office has an interesting blog about the movie business in the state.