First Time I've Seen Foreclosure List at Check In - Hokulani

[HedonisticEpicurean]

Yesterday when checking into the Hokulani here in Waikiki I saw a legal notice on display that looked like a foreclosure. It was in plastic right on the front desk. My initial thought was that they can't be foreclosing on the Hokulani can they? I started reading and then realized that it was a posting with many pages. WOW! There were about 49 owners listed (my quick count) that the company is in the process of foreclosing. The foreclosure notice included more information about the owners being foreclosed than I would like to have on display such as names, etc. But it is a legal action.

I asked the front desk person if this is normal and if this is required by law? Of course, she didn't know.

Anyway, I thought of all of you TUG people and wanted to share. Maybe you have seen this before, but it was new to me.

Is this at all of the properties? Have I just not noticed them?

 

[HuskerATL]

Interesting. I have never seen that or heard of properties doing that. Seems like they are putting their selves at risk by sharing that on the check in counter

 

[davidvel]

Probably some legal requirement to post notice of pending foreclosure at the property. Normally it would be on the front door at an individual residence, but a little different at a real property timeshare.

 

[HuskerATL]

I am sure that every property has foreclosures but I haven't seen the names of the owners posted like that.

 

[WaikikiFirst]

Yesterday when checking into the Hokulani here in Waikiki I saw a legal notice on display that looked like a foreclosure

I saw that about 15 months ago. I was there this winter and did not see it, but it may have just been hidden by other paper / signs.
Most likely, it is mostly Japanese & FX has more than a bit to do with the supply/demand

 

[HuskerATL]

I wonder if Japanese tourism is dropping there right now and less interest to own in properties there. I know it did during COVID but then picked back up again, however, with the recent American xenophobia it could be dropping again.

 

[RX8]

I used to work at a convenience store many years ago and they used to tape bad checks on the register for all to see.

 

[WaikikiFirst]

I wonder if Japanese tourism is dropping there right now and less interest to own in properties there.

Oh my word. Another attempt to pull another thread off the rails.
Hawaii publishes monthly data, broken down by island, by origin of flight, citizenship, etc. It is available. Easy to find. Every time you land on Hawaii you fill out a form.
That list was there 15 months ago and it was just as long as the OP states it is now. I took a picture of it and googled some of the info. But I won't let facts get in the way of speculation

 

[HuskerATL]

Oh my word. Another attempt to pull another thread off the rails.
Hawaii publishes monthly data, broken down by island, by origin of flight, citizenship, etc. It is available. Easy to find. Every time you land on Hawaii you fill out a form.
That list was there 15 months ago and it was just as long as the OP states it is now. I took a picture of it and googled some of the info. But I won't let facts get in the way of speculation

I am not sure how your post connects to what the OP wrote. That post is about foreclosures, yours is about travel. Do you know if those foreclosures are up or down compared to the past? Do you know if the travel is up or down compared to before? If you want to state that, then post the comparative data.

There are plenty of articles about a decline in tourism to the US. Here is an example and there are plenty more.

https://www.cnbc.com/2025/04/23/international-tourists-domestic-american-travel-abroad.html#:~:text=Including%20land%20border%20crossings%2C%20inbound,are%20only%20compounding%20this%20effect.%22

 

[WaikikiFirst]

Do you know if those foreclosures are up or down compared to the past?

There were 2 parts to your speculation.
I stated clearly: "That list was there 15 months ago and it was just as long as the OP states it is now."

 

[HuskerATL]

There were 2 parts to your speculation.
I stated clearly: "That list was there 15 months ago and it was just as long as the OP states it is now."

But you didn't state the numbers. Maybe it was 2 owners 15 months ago and this year 49... That is the comparative data that I mentioned

 

[HuskerATL]

This is what I was referring to and potentially increasing foreclosures but I don't know yearly foreclosure numbers to compare.

"Meanwhile, travel from Japan remains down 60 percent compared to 2019. Arrivals from Canada fell 30.4 percent compared to February 2019, with 48,693 visitors versus 69,998, with strong signs of further decline coming"

Sudden Tailwind Hits Hawaii Travel as Airline Leaders Anticipate Shift

Hawaii visitor numbers are climbing back to pre-COVID heights, while a very different story is reshaping the state’s travel landscape.

beatofhawaii.com

 

[pedro47]

IMHO, foreclosures are a winner for the developers, because they get the chance to resell that property again and again for a profit.

Foreclosures are publish in the local newspaper in Coast Virginia, especially the Sunday morning edition .

 

[TUGBrian]

almost all state collections laws have strict policies and timelines for the default/collections process and one of those steps would be a notice of intent to foreclose...

this and all the other steps would be taken even if the resort/association did not actually choose to pursue foreclosure.

 

[TUGBrian]

not sure about a decline in travel, perhaps from certain locations but hawaii itself indicates vacation travel has increased from last year

HONOLULU – According to preliminary statistics from the Department of Business,Economic Development and Tourism (DBEDT), total visitor arrivals and total visitorspending in March 2025 increased in comparison to March 2024. There were 903,891visitors to the Hawaiian Islands in March 2025, up 3.0 percent from the same month lastyear. Total visitor spending measured in nominal dollars was $1.99 billion, growth of10.3 percent from March 2024. When compared to pre-pandemic 2019 levels, March2025 total visitor arrivals represent a 97.3 percent recovery from March 2019 and totalvisitor spending was significantly higher than March 2019 ($1.49 billion, +33.8%).

https://www.hawaiitourismauthority.org/media/14365/march-2025-visitor-statistics-press-release.pdf

they say if you look hard enough you can find evidence to support whatever argument you want to make!

 

[HuskerATL]

IMHO, foreclosures are a winner for the developers, because they get the chance to resell that property again and again for a profit.

If they don't have to hold it too long. If it doesn't sell very quickly then it impacts MF income for the property and they have to figure out MFs without X number paying

 

[HuskerATL]

not sure about a decline in travel, perhaps from certain locations but hawaii itself indicates vacation travel has increased from last year

https://www.hawaiitourismauthority.org/media/14365/march-2025-visitor-statistics-press-release.pdf

they say if you look hard enough you can find evidence to support whatever argument you want to make!

But this document shows exactly what I was saying. Increase in domestic travel but decrease from international.

From the document:
There were 61,605 visitors from Japan in March 2025, a decrease from March 2024
(64,641 visitors, -4.7%) and much lower than March 2019 (133,858 visitors, -54.0%)

In March 2025, 53,621 visitors arrived from Canada, a decrease compared to March
2024 (60,716 visitors, -11.7%) and March 2019 (76,913 visitors, -30.3%)

There were 78,052 visitors from all other international markets in March 2025, which
included visitors from Oceania, Other Asia, Europe, Latin America, Guam, the Philippines, and the Pacific Islands. In comparison, there were 78,341 visitors (-0.4%) from all other international markets in March 2024 and 81,558 visitors (-4.3%) in March
2019

 

[GT75]

foreclosures are a winner for the developers

No, not really because it falls back onto the HOA. The developers won't be responsible for covering the MFs. Now, the developers, in this case HGV can resell the property at retail prices. HGVC has waived almost 100% of the ROFR which they control since 2020. Now it is a different story for the SC properties because ROFR is controlled by Strand who is the developer. Strand has been very aggressive on ROFR, thus the resale prices have stayed very high for those properties.

 

[TUGBrian]

But this document shows exactly what I was saying. Increase in domestic travel but decrease from international.

From the document:
There were 61,605 visitors from Japan in March 2025, a decrease from March 2024
(64,641 visitors, -4.7%) and much lower than March 2019 (133,858 visitors, -54.0%)

In March 2025, 53,621 visitors arrived from Canada, a decrease compared to March
2024 (60,716 visitors, -11.7%) and March 2019 (76,913 visitors, -30.3%)

There were 78,052 visitors from all other international markets in March 2025, which
included visitors from Oceania, Other Asia, Europe, Latin America, Guam, the Philippines, and the Pacific Islands. In comparison, there were 78,341 visitors (-0.4%) from all other international markets in March 2024 and 81,558 visitors (-4.3%) in March
2019

does hawaii (or florida, or any major tourist destination) care where the tourists come from?

 

[HuskerATL]

does hawaii (or florida, or any major tourist destination) care where the tourists come from?

Depends if they are just visiting or investing. I suspect that a reduction in Japanese tourism hits Hawaii much more than FL or having the equivalent US tourists if they aren't investing.

 

[TUGBrian]

showed a 10% growth in tourist spending... perhaps domestic tourists spend more than international ones!

 

[HuskerATL]

Perhaps but are they buying timeshares? HGV has really pushed for the Japanese market in Hawaii.

 

[tananth]

No, not really because it falls back onto the HOA. The developers won't be responsible for covering the MFs. Now, the developers, in this case HGV can resell the property at retail prices. HGVC has waived almost 100% of the ROFR which they control since 2020. Now it is a different story for the SC properties because ROFR is controlled by Strand who is the developer. Strand has been very aggressive on ROFR, thus the resale prices have stayed very high for those properties.

Actually the developer (in this case HGV) IS responsible for MFs for any unsold weeks/units that it owns, and that includes any weeks/units HGV foreclosed on. This is the only reason for HGV not to accept back (for free) any weeks owners wish to surrender, since HGV is responsible for MFs going forward until they resell the weeks/units. In practice HGV can recoup some of the MFs by renting out the weeks (via Hilton.com), but presumably is not able to always cover the full cost of MFs.

 

[GT75]

Actually the developer (in this case HGV) IS responsible for MFs for any unsold weeks/units that it owns,

Your statement is correct but the thread is about those in foreclosure. Those would have been purchased units. The developer wouldn't own those units.

 

[HuskerATL]

Here is an advertised list of foreclosures. I didn't sort and count them but just skimmed the list of names and it appears to mostly be Japanese

0001491622-01 |

hawaiisclassifieds.com