A’ali’i Condos - Ward Village

This week I'm writing about the A’ali’i Condos development going up in Ward Village. This development is not affordable housing but I feel that it gives insight into Hawaii's cost of living.

The development site will be located at 987 Queen Street. Right next to the new multi-level Whole Foods and Ward Village with the theatre, shopping and dining options



This project is for sale with this pricing structure:

$500,000 for studio apartments (Approximately 1.6k/sq. foot)
$700,000 for 1 bedroom apartments (Approximately 1.4k/sq. foot)
$1,000,000 for 2 bedroom apartments (Approximately 1.3k/sq. foot)

This is considered a premium location. The desirability of the location plus the luxury amenities is reflected in the price. The reason I wanted to write about this project is to break down the costs involved.

Lets break down the costs to own a studio apartment at A'ali'i. The studio is $500k with a 4.25% interest rate on a 20-year mortgage.
 Your monthly mortgage payment would be $3,000 per month.
The property tax would be $3.50 per $1000 in property value. For this studio, it would be $140 per month.
Luxury condos typically charge at least $1.50/month in maintenance fees per square foot. Maintenance fees would be at least $450.

Essentially if you want to live in a premium location in the smallest unit available you need to spend at least $3500 dollars a month.  If you worked full time for $22 an hour you would barely be able to afford the mortgage, tax and maintenance fees. Life sure is expensive here!
Aalii pool

Comments

  1. UnknownOctober 11, 2018 at 4:19 AM

    Wow! This condo is really nice! This almost reminds me of a hotel because of how appealing it is and how many amenities it offers. However, it is really expensive to begin with. Like you said, the cost of living in Hawaii is extremely high, and the prices of this condo is a perfect example.

    ReplyDelete
  2. UnknownOctober 21, 2018 at 10:42 PM

    Hey Jensen,

    This is the first time coming across your blog and I find it really great and informing! I like how you break it down and make it understandable! I was looking to purchase a 1 bedroom at Ae'o with the help of my mom, but we didn't go through with it. This is a great blog to keep me informed on upcoming and current properties!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. UnknownOctober 21, 2018 at 10:45 PM

      Sorry, I don't know why it posted with a different account, but that was from me, Tori Talavera.

      Delete
    2. UnknownOctober 23, 2018 at 7:21 PM

      Hey Tori :)

      is your Mom a realtor? If you have any questions about other developments let me know!

      Delete

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