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Elizabeth Weintraub
The Long Trip to Sacramento from Big Island
What a long trip to Sacramento from Big Island, but it is probably the last time I will ever fly from Big Island on Hawaiian Airlines. Guess I can kiss my Pualani Platinum status goodbye. The thing is, even though Hawaiian changed its flight times, it’s not enough. Because I still have to fly from Big Island to Oahu and hang around the Honolulu airport waiting for the flight to Sacramento.
The trip to Sacramento from Big Island involved an even earlier morning flight out of Kona. Usually I would fly out around noon and get home in Sacramento close to midnight. Now, I leave before 10 AM but I get home at 7:30, so a better time. But the flight time is still as long.
My next trip will be on Alaska Airlines because they fly direct to Kona from Sacramento. Their flight times are also a bit better. On Hawaiian, I have to be at the airport around 6 AM in Sacramento. Alaska presents a much more civilized time to depart, around 11 AM. Just in time for lunch! It arrives in Kona a couple hours later than Hawaiian but it’s still early afternoon because it is nonstop.
Of course, the words on everybody’s lips at the moment is Southwest. Yes, Southwest is now flying to Big Island, but even those flights stop in Honolulu. And they fly out of Oakland, not Sacramento.
Still I am grateful to endure the trip to Sacramento from Big Island because nobody can text or email me. It’s like a mini vacation coming back.
Sacramento Housing Report for February 2019
The most obvious aspect of the Sacramento housing report for February of 2019 is the pending sales. However, before you get all excited over that rising line, consider the fact that pending sales had exploded in January as well but where are the closed sales? I’ll tell you where they are. In the imagination of those buyers because pending sale numbers are not always indicative of a rising market.
Buyer behavior lately has been a bit more non-committal. They seem quick to write an offer and quick to cancel.
Throw into this mix, the Sacramento housing report for February of 2019 shows closed sales are down 12.1% from a year ago and inventory is up by 10.8% over last year. But those pendings are up 21% this month, and that is a significant number. Will it result in more closed sales for March? I’m thinking not by the margin it should suggest.
All of this leads us to is this a good time to buy or sell a house in Sacramento? It’s slightly better to buy than to sell; however, our median sales price rose a bit over January to $403,000, which is still down from last summer at $420,000.
Check out those average days on market creeping up on us at 55. Highest it’s ever been over the past 15 months. Further, of interesting note, there is a bit of wiggle room on those original sales prices. Buyers can negotiate now, and they don’t have to fight through multiple offers to buy a house. That is surely a welcome relief. Buyers can take their time to find just the right home without feeling pressured.
This Sacramento housing report for February of 2019 gives me a lot of hope for March and April sales this year. It won’t be as strong as last year, prices are a tad softer, but it is still a good time to sell or buy a house in Sacramento.
Photos of Manini Beach at Honaunau on Big Island
Manini Beach at Honaunau is close to Two-Step Beach but very different. For one thing, it’s nestled right next to that huge sloping hill (Kealakekua Cliffs) in a secluded cove. For another, it has soft grass and not hard pahoehoe lava on which to rest your derriere. Manini Beach is also very quiet. A lot of people come here to read and relax.
If you don’t know where it is, Manini Beach can be difficult to find. Fortunately, I had my friend, Anita, to show me the way. Just take Napoopoo from Mamalahoa and hang a left. Keep your eyes open for the sign Manini Beach Road on the right and turn right. Park across from the bamboo house.
Although we brought our snorkel gear, we sat on the grass and talked. If we had gone into the water, this is where we most likely would have entered. There were quite a few snorkelers in this channel.
Many photos of this spot show water entering the tidal pool and being sucked back out underneath. But this particular image shows a reflection in the water, and it seems so peaceful, I did not want to distort the tranquility.
This is wild cacti growing by the sea. It is extremely hardy to survive the harsh conditions and salt air. I figured it would be hard to kill. Anita found a piece of cactus with the roots still attached, so I took it back to our house in Kona and planted it.
The orange color of the Hawaiian crab against the gray lava was striking. Ordinarily I don’t take photographs of dead sea creatures, but I could not resist this particular opportunity.
According to my favorite plant app, Plant Snap, this is called the Devil’s Backbone. It grows all over Manini Beach on the rocks. What I did not immediately recognize was it also sports flowers, shown below.
At first blush, I thought these were coral bells until Anita pointed out they are growing from the Devil’s Backbone. We had similar flowers on a few cacti in Sacramento, so I should have recognized it right away, but I didn’t.
If you were to rent kayaks to paddle out to the Captain Cook Monument (marking the spot where he died), this is the cove where you would rent them. Too much paddling for me. In fact, when I was at Planet Fitness last week working out on the rowing machine, I look out on the ocean from that spot in Kona. All I can think about is if it were up to me to row a canoe to Maui, we would all drown or starve to death.
We decided to blow off snorkeling and go to lunch. It was after 2 PM by the time we finished exploring Manini Beach. The closest place I could think of to go was the Coffee Shack. Since Anita has stopped in for coffee but never lunch, that pretty much sealed out fate to go there. Anita liked the background behind me so she shot this photo.
We closed down the place since lunch is over at 3 PM, and we were still there. On the way to the car, Anita shot photos of the mural in front of the Coffee Shack, so of course I shot a photo of her. Someday I will return to Manini Beach, and this time I will probably go snorkeling. It was gray, overcast and a bit chilly, so I don’t regret not jumping in the water.
It’s a beautiful spot, and I have Anita to thank for showing me how to find it. Only one more day in Hawaii and I will return to Sacramento real estate.
Mamma Mia! at the Aloha Theatre
OMG this was a fantastic performance of Mamma Mia! at the Aloha Theatre on Sunday. Blown away. The woman who introduced the musical from the stage said it was the most highly grossing musical ever in the history of the Aloha Theatre, which is a 501 (c) 3 nonprofit established in 2004. I thought I enjoyed the Addams Family Musical, but it doesn’t hold a candle to this production.
The guy who played Uncle Fester in the Addams Family, Miguel Montez, had the role of Sam Carmichael in Mamma Mia! at the Aloha Theatre. What a beautiful voice. So many great performances. From Amanda Trusty (Donna) who belted the number The Winner Takes It All to such extremes audience members high-fived each other, to the adorable Pepper character (and an audience favorite), Christian Aragon, a sophomore at Konawaena High School, the performances were incredible, outstanding.
Mamma Mia! at the Aloha Theatre was a Sunday matinee, so there was not the kind of tipsy enthusiasm that is often displayed at late evening shows. Plus, most of the audience was comprised of older men and women. Yes, a lot of men, surprisingly.
You know, I’d like to take a moment to address the fact there is a kind of cynicism I see prevalent in some types of people who make fun of Abba music. As though there is something wrong with music that makes you feel good and elicits joy. I’m not sure I understand that kind of attitude. Why would people want to avoid embracing sheer happiness? And that’s what Mamma Mia! elicits, it makes you happy.
The music won’t win awards, and the lyrics are simple, but it makes you want to groove. There is nothing wrong with expressing joy. All I have to say to those people who think Abba is silly, is embrace the silliness. Just do it. Let go. Be happy. Be goofy. Lighten up. Have fun.
What an experience to witness such talent in the Kona area. A friend in the production, Erin Deskin is in the ensemble. She is a second grade school teacher and is 23. Just bought her own condo down by Captain Cook, so my friends and I stopped by after the performance to check out her new place. So many interesting people live in the Kailua-Kona area.
Erin told us that shortly into the production of Mamma Mia! at the Aloha Theatre, a lot of performers caught a bug. To counter act throat problems, some of the actors poured Tabasco sauce down their throats or they devoured jalapeño peppers like no tomorrow. We had also stopped by Donkey Balls in Kealakekua to try habanero and chocolate-coated mac nuts, but they had sold out.
I am a firm believer that if a food doesn’t pair well with jalapeños, it might not be worth consuming.
If I had anything to offer to improve the show, I would say the sound did not fill the theatre, and it could have been louder. But it’s an older vintage building, so probably not much could be done. And, no, I am not going deaf.
P.S. The photo above is of Mamma Mia in New York, not Kealakekua.
Elizabeth Weintraub Top 1% Agent for 2018
This top 1% agent for 2018, namely yours truly, is not in this photograph as more beautiful women are. And why not? Josh Amolsch, Elizabeth Weintraub Team exclusive buyer’s agent (on the left), accepted the award on our behalf because yours truly is still hanging out in Hawaii. Oh, don’t worry, I’m finally coming home to Sacramento next week. Three and a half months of running amok on the Big Island is coming to an end.
In the middle, we have Sparkles (fits her personality to a T), who is the sister of the drop-dead gorgeous woman on the right, Victoria Gerassimenko. This summer, Victoria and Josh are getting married, and I could not be more excited for them. In fact, my own sister is a bit peeved with me, I suspect, because I had to switch around travel arrangements to make sure I would be available to attend their wedding in Lake Tahoe. Which meant my sister had to change her travel plans to come to Sacramento from Minnesota. I can hope she forgives me.
Last year was a bit tough in Sacramento real estate. We faced escalating prices, softening demand from buyers, and higher interest rates. Yet, we still placed as the top 1% agent for 2018, and I am proud of that fact. It is due to our well-oiled machine that keeps right on ticking when others drop the ball. I’ve got the best team members in the entire world, and I thank my lucky stars every single day. They are not just team members, they are my friends.
Here, from the left, is Dan Tharp, mortgage loan officer from Guild Mortgage, Shaundra Bradley, our wonderful transaction coordinator, and Josh Amolsch, exclusive buyer’s agent extraordinaire, accepting the top 1% agent for 2018 from the president of Lyon Real Estate.
Thank you, Dan, Rose, Shaundra, Josh, Vika, Sparkles, and everybody else who showed up on Friday to support the Weintraub Team at the Lyon Awards. I really enjoyed the hello video from Josh, too. Made me feel like I was there even though I’m relaxing on my lanai. Mahalo!
