Just 12 miles northeast of capital city Honolulu, the community of Kailua, Hawaii, is located on the island of Oahu on the windward coast along the bay that shares its name. It is home to a population of more than 35,000. The Kailua real estate consists mostly of single-family homes, though there are also several condominium complexes. Though the market was initially affected by the downturn in the economy and flagging trends in real estate markets across the islands and the entire U.S., recent stats show improvement in nearly every category, a sign for high optimism among those in the Kailua market.

According to the Honolulu Board of Realtors’ monthly report, in March 2010, there were 37 new single-family Kailua homes for sale listed. This was a decrease from last year, when there were 51 new listings in March, of 27.5%. Sales activity increased slightly in March, with 16 homes sold versus 15 last year, while the average number of days homes spent on the market before selling dropped dramatically, to just 65 from 112 a year ago, a decline of 42.5%. The median sales price in Kailua in March was $859,500, a 22.8% rise year-over-year. The average sales price, too, saw marked improvement, up an astonishing 65.2% to $1.35 million. With activity up and listings down, the inventory of homes in Kailua was down as well. March saw 140 homes still on the market, versus 185 last year at the same time.