Let’s find your home.
Whether you are relocating from the mainland, buying your first place, or trading up after years here, the work is the same: understand what you actually want, understand what the market will really do, and move decisively when the right one shows up.
Seven steps, no surprises
We talk first
Before any listings. What you need, what you would like, what you are willing to trade, and what your timeline really is. Bring your spouse. Twenty minutes here saves months of looking at the wrong houses.
Get pre-approved with a local lender
This matters more here than most places. A mainland lender who has never done a Hawaiʻi condo, a leasehold, or a VA loan on island will slow you down at the worst moment. I will introduce you to two or three and you pick.
You get the real list
Live MLS access so you can browse freely, plus my curated list with notes on each. And the off-market and coming-soon ones I hear about from other agents, which is a real part of how business gets done on this island.
We tour, in person or on video
If you are still on the mainland I walk the house on FaceTime and show you the things photos hide. The neighbor’s roofline, the traffic noise at 5pm, how much afternoon sun the lanai actually gets.
Due diligence before you fall in love
Flood and lava zone, fee simple or leasehold, permit history on that addition, AOAO insurance and reserves if it is a condo, solar lease or owned, and whether the seller’s disclosure is telling you everything. I do this early, not after you are attached.
We write a strong, sane offer
Houses are selling at 100% of original asking in seventeen days, so strategy matters. Condos are a buyer’s market and you should be asking for things. Different playbook for each. I will tell you when to stretch and, more importantly, when to walk.
Escrow, then keys
Inspections, appraisal, repair negotiation, lender conditions, final walkthrough. I stay on all of it and you hear from me before you have to ask. Then we celebrate properly.
Things that will not come up in a mainland transaction
Fee simple vs. leasehold
Do you own the land, or lease it? Leasehold prices low for real reasons. I check the lease term and rent renegotiation date on every property and tell you plainly.
AOAO insurance
Master policy premiums jumped 300% to 600% on many buildings. If hurricane coverage is short, conventional financing disappears. I check this before we get serious.
Residential A tax tier
A $1M+ home with no owner-occupant exemption is taxed at $11.40 per $1,000 above the first million, versus $3.50 for owner-occupants. It changes what a second home really costs.
Rental restrictions
Outside resort zoning the practical minimum stay is 30 days. If income is part of your plan, we verify it with DPP property by property, never from a pro forma.
Arriving well is part of the job
I have helped a lot of families make this move, and I know where it gets hard. So beyond the house, you get the rest of it: school enrollment, shipping your car and your household goods, which vet, which doctor takes your plan, where to actually buy groceries, and how to be a good neighbor from your first week.
I will point you to the community groups, the beach clean-ups and the school events that are the fastest way to actually meet people here.
Neighborhood matching
Based on your commute, your kidsʻ schools, and how you actually want to spend a Saturday.
Video tours
Live walkthroughs on your schedule, whatever time zone you are in.
Vetted local network
Lenders, inspectors, movers, contractors. People I use and would send my own family to.
After you close
I do not disappear at closing. Call me in year three when you need a plumber.
Tell me what you’re looking for
I read every one of these myself and send back a real list with notes, not an automated feed. If you would rather just talk, call or text me at (808) 457-2418.
“The right time to buy is when you can. I will show you the way.”
Katie Nickens
Get your island home list
Two minutes, and you will hear back from me directly.
Mahalo!
Got it. I’ll pull your list from the MLS myself and be in touch, and you’ll get a confirmation from me in a few minutes. Urgent? Call or text (808) 457-2418.
A hui hou!