More Mauians Could Qualify for Affordable Homes

Townhomes at Kamalani. Project rendering. Courtesy image.

The County of Maui’s 2016 update of its Area Median Income showed an 8.5% increase over last year, potentially opening the door for more Maui residents to purchase an affordable home under the County’s Residential Workforce Housing ordinance.

Published annually by the County’s Housing Division, the Affordable Sales Price Guidelines calculate eligible income thresholds for the County’s affordable housing policies using median family income information from the US Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Census Bureau.

According to KW Island Living, project broker for Maui’s new Kamalani community, a resident’s annual income is one of the eligibility criteria established by the County to purchase a condominium home in Kamalani’s first increment, comprised of up to 170 affordable condominium townhomes and flats. To be eligible, the homebuyers’ gross annual income cannot exceed 140% of the County’s AMI.

With the updated AMI figures for 2016, prospective homebuyers who were previously unable to qualify for affordable housing because their gross annual income was slightly too high, could now potentially meet the income eligibility requirement.

For example, in 2015, the 140% of AMI income limit for a family of four for an affordable home was $105,140. In 2016, that income limit rose by about 8.5% to $114,100. For a couple, the 140% income limit was $84,110 last year, versus $91,280 today.

“We know there are Maui residents who want to purchase an affordable home but their income falls just outside the upper limit for the County’s affordable housing criteria,” said Steve Baker, Realtor Broker, KW Island Living. “The 2016 increase in the income eligibility threshold for affordable housing is great news for those first-time homebuyers who might now be eligible.”

Located in north Kīhei, the fee simple condominium homes in Kamalani’s first increment include either two or three bedrooms and 1.5 or 2 baths, with prices beginning in the high $200,000s for a two-bedroom condominium home, and in the mid-$300,000s for a three-bedroom unit.

To date, approximately 200 sales applications have been distributed. Applications must be completed and submitted by June 30 for an opportunity to participate in the project’s sales lottery. With site construction underway, Kamalani’s first homes are planned to be completed in spring 2017.