Jason Wong’s Hawaii Real Estate Blog

The ocean views and luxury countertops of a Hawaii condo are stunning, but what is hiding in the building’s financials? If you are buying a luxury condo in Hawaii—especially if you are an out-of-state or international buyer—there is one boring, 100-page PDF that could save you from a $50,000 financial nightmare: The Reserve Study. Under…

Is it possible to buy real estate without the whole world knowing? In an era where a simple internet search reveals your address, purchase price, and mortgage details, protecting your privacy is more critical than ever. In this video, we break down the ultimate strategy for “Asset Protection by Obscurity.” If you are investing in…

Water is beautiful in the ocean, but inside the walls of your Hawaii luxury property, it’s an absolute nightmare. Water damage is the second most common home insurance claim in the US, costing homeowners an average of $11,000 to $17,000 per incident. If you own a vacation home, an investment property, or a luxury estate…

Buying a beachfront home in Hawaii is the ultimate dream, but the Pacific Ocean is changing the rules of the game. If you’re looking at coastal property in paradise, you need to understand the “Climate Penalty” before you sign a single document. In this video, I break down the cold, hard, salty truth about sea-level…

Thinking about selling your Hawaii home but conveniently forgetting to mention that roof leak from 2018? Stop right there. Today, we are spilling the tea on Hawaii’s strict disclosure laws and what happens if a seller tries to be “sneaky.” In Hawaii, Chapter 508D is the law of the land. It requires sellers to disclose…

Aloha everyone! We all love “Island Time,” but there is one critical area where it simply doesn’t belong: the security of your Hawaii property. Whether you are managing a local vacation rental, own a luxury second home, or are an international investor living thousands of miles away, your driveway shouldn’t be a mystery novel. In…

Selling your Hawaii investment property shouldn’t mean handing over all your hard-earned equity to taxes. In this video, I break down one of the most powerful wealth-building tools every real estate investor needs to understand: the IRS Section 1031 Exchange. Whether you’re looking to swap a high-maintenance Waikiki condo for a peaceful single-family home in…

Living in Hawaii is paradise, but with electricity rates triple the national average, the cost of powering that paradise is eating into your real estate equity. Aloha, I’m Jason Wong, MBA and Principal Broker at Island Dragonfly. In this video, we break down the true costs and incredible financial upsides of retrofitting existing Hawaii properties…

Are you trying to apply the “1% Rule” to Hawaii real estate? If you are searching for massive monthly cash flow in the islands, I have some bad news—you’re looking for a unicorn. In this video, I break down the hard data on why traditional cash flow is the hardest game to play in Hawaii…

Living in paradise shouldn’t mean financing the power company’s next corporate retreat. If you are running your AC 24/7 just to keep your Hawaii home comfortable, you might be fighting the island’s natural environment instead of working with it. Welcome back! I’m Jason Wong, Principal Broker at Island Dragonfly. In this deep dive, we explore…