Maui Real Estate Radio Broadcast
Show 14: Clint Hansen with Kim Komando
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Transcription:
Intro: The following is a paid program and does not necessarily reflect the opinions of the staff or management of visionary-related entertainment. [music]
Clint Hansen: This is Clint Hansen with Maui Luxury Real Estate. You're listening to Maui Real Estate Radio on the KAOI Radio Group broadcasting at 11:10 AM, 97.6 FM, 98.7 FM. And of course, our friends on the West Side, 95.5 FM. We're tuned in today to talk about communities and want to do a few shows to talk about individual locations and that way people can educate themselves and more importantly, we have two incredible new listings at this Polo Beach. I don't know if you've ever heard of it before but it is one of the first and best locations in Wailea. It's right at the end of the path and you have access to everything including some of the best beaches Maui has to offer. It has been a long family tradition for us to work together. I've had my license 19 years. My dad, Bob, he has had his license for 36 and my mom for 40. We're a big family operation and are proud about these new two listings so we wanted to bring the owner on. This is Kim Komando. I'm sure you guys have heard her on her radio show before. Say hello, Kim.
Kim Komando: Hi there, Clint. How are you?
Clint: Fantastic and yourself?
Kim: Yeah, so thrilled to be talking about Maui [crosstalk].
Clint: Yeah. It could be better if you were here, right?
Kim: Yeah, I know. Here I am in Phoenix where it's going to be - I don't know - 180 degrees--.
Clint: Oh, my gosh.
Kim: --today. Something like that. But no, Maui has been in my heart and in my family, talking about your family or probably, I know I'm going to date myself here but probably for about 40 year--.
Clint: Oh, wow.
Kim: --because you know my dad worked for United Airlines and I grew up in New Jersey and where people in New York in New Jersey you know Clint they go to Florida and the Bahamas.
Clint: Yes, everybody tells me that.
Kim: [--] Now, people on the west coast, they go to Hawaii but you know even though we were in New York, New Jersey, we went to Hawaii on vacation.
Clint: Ah, you're the one of the lucky ones.
Kim: Yes, which was a really long way to go but because my dad works for United and we got to travel standby. That worked out really well. And so I don't know if you know the whole story about the Molokai
Clint: No, go on.
Kim: And the Molokai was actually developed by United Airlines' pilot.
Clint: That's right. Yes, I did know about that.
Kim: Right. And so when I was growing up, I grew up at the Molokai. I mean we would go to the Molokai. at least once or twice every year. And so I think the first time I went I was probably like I don't know 9 or 10 or something like that. And so just living on Maui part of the year it just was part of me growing up. And so you know I got married on Maui--.
Clint: Me too. But that's a little unfair for me to say.
Kim: --and I have raised my son on Maui and all those great stuff. And so you know I've also traveled all around the world. I've been to Fiji and Tahiti and you all places in Europe that you know the French Riviera and you name it but there is nothing like Polo Beach in the entire world. I know that sounds really [quaint].
Clint: No, it's true.
Kim: But it's private. It's quiet. It's not crowded. There are so many times when I can tell you that I've gone to Polo Beach and I would be the only person on the beach and I look at the Fairmont and they're like stacked up like dominoes.
Clint: Even with today's overcrowding, I mean there's a lot more tourist coming on the island. We have over 2 million. I think we're at about 2.5 million coming on an annual basis which is almost a million up from about a decade and a half ago. And with those numbers growing, I mean you're starting to really feel it when you go to the beaches, traffic, things of that nature. But Polo Beach is still one of those beaches you almost feel like you're all alone on it. I mean comparatively to anywhere any other beach especially in Wailea, you get to Polo Beach. It's crystal clear snorkeling. There's not a whole lot of boats out there and in addition to that, they're just these glassy, cloudless water as long as you get out there before noon. It's some of the best snorkeling on the island. I bring my kids there all the time.
Kim: Oh, [though] I tell you the kids like it after like afternoon.
Clint: No, when the waves, yeah.
Kim: Yeah, [--] of all the waves but it's just you know I've always liked it because I felt the-- even though, you're on Maui that it's--. It's just it's such a relaxing place and the fact that you are literally on the beach. I mean I don't know a lot about real estate development in Maui but I don't think you could build it on the beach like that [crosstalk].
Clint: No, current setbacks [--] definitely does not allow that. I mean the way the county does change the rules regularly and that's one of the things they're examining now with the potential for sea rise and stuff like that. But they do have new setback standards that are set in place. So unless you have like a geologically-stabilized oceanfront, if you're going to be increasing the square footage of your property, you're really limited on what you can do to it unless you were willing to chop your house or condominium up into pieces and move it back to meet the current [--] standards. Now, Polo Beach, fortunately, is a nice fortified oceanfront location. So erosions not really the big concern there but other locations it most definitely is. That's actually another thing that's really interesting for a different radio show that we did on leasehold properties. Now, when the leases expire, a lot of people are like, "Oh, man, they're going to take the land back." But the truth is what are they going to do with it because then they would have to meet the current standards associated. So it makes no sense for them to you know try to redevelop the land because they would never be able to build anything better than what's already there.
Kim: Yeah. And the other thing I've loved about Polo Beach was it's [very] simple and then--.
Clint: Very, very.
Kim: --the other thing I've liked [okay] is that the HOA fees are not crazy. Yeah.
Clint: Even with all the work that they've been doing I mean it's incredible.
Kim: Yeah. And so you know so when you start adding up all the values and so I first bought a unit on the second floor. Then I bought a unit on the fifth floor and then I totally remodeled and did what I wanted to do with the unit on the seventh floor. But what's interesting to me because you mentioned all the tourists is that you know I'm incredibly busy. You know I have a radio show. I have a global TV show on Bloomberg and you know the list goes on and on and on. So I originally bought 509 for us to live in and then I was going to sell it when we got done with their total remodel of 707. But I put 509 on VRBO just as kind of like an experiment because I also write for USA Today. So I thought you know this would be something kind of cool. I can really relate to how people do VRBOs and what it's like--.
Clint: An educational experience.
Kim: Yeah, I'm like you know so. Yeah, exactly. So just a first-person [view]. And so I put it on VRBO and I thought you know I'm not going to give it to anybody else in [assist] or anything do just because I want to really see how it works. And I put it on. But it's on VRBO and I found I was having like a good time at it. It was became like my hobby like some people garden you know to me. Some people raise chickens. I like to make money. So I found that this satisfied a lot of requirements for me to have a hobby. And so last year was the first full year and I-- you know I'm doing it myself. I have a fabulous housekeeper and--.
Clint: That's an important part of it. Yeah.
Kim: Yes, it's a big part. And I have friends who can come in like you know the Ventura Brothers. They can come in. They'll fix things for me or what suppose. You need to have like some type of support structure.
Clint: And we do have a lot of recommendations here. I mean that's one of the things that we do is connect people on island with trustworthy hardworking people.
Kim: Yes which is really fabulous. Do you need that? But you know really when somebody does the VRBO in Hawaii, they are just so thrilled that they are at the beach. They don't really complain very much. You know what I mean like they're super excited to be there.
Clint: That makes a lot of sense you know. It's kind of funny because I see a great number of units and a whole large number of complexes including there and your units are supremely remodeled. All of them. And you know when they get into these complexes, a lot of times they're going into you know 1970s, 1980s [--] finishes and you know, unfortunately, the view kind of distract from the fact that you've got some shag carpeting but in yours is ultramodern.
Kim: Yeah, no more bamboo furniture.
Clint: No, no more [redtown].
Kim: Was done with all that. So I put it on to VRBO and in just kind of like, let's see to see what would happen. And in the first year, I did $206,000.
Clint: Wow. Yeah, that's incredible. That's some really good numbers.
Kim: Yeah, I mean that's just really-- I mean that was just astounding to me. And this year it's on track to do the same amount. I again like I have to put a lock on it so I can do the key code from wherever I'm located. I have the welcome letters I got the welcome binder which - by the way, I didn't have a welcome binder for the first three months and that was a mistake.
Clint: Yeah, kids are going to be asking you a lot of questions.
Kim: [--] How do I do the blind? You know where's the beach towels? Where-- I actually had somebody write me a note like you're not going to believe it. They were in 509 and they sent me a note and said, "How do I get to the beach?" Okay. I said, "You know you go." And I actually wrote it. I said, "You go out the front door, make a right--.
Clint: Go to the elevator.
Kim: --go down the stairs, and you're at the beach.
Clint: That is ridiculous. Oh, they must have it. You know I've noticed that some of the older guests that we've had in other condos like family condos and friends and whatnot and past clients have actually helped a lot of people when they're in a spot and somebody can't figure out how to make the TV work so--. But what I've been helping them do even when it comes time to use the lockbox or the keypad or how the TV-- I have a whole series of videos saved and what I do is whenever they're having a problem with a specific issue like the TV or you know the blinds or something like that. I send that YouTube link to them in addition to an email like how to work all these different things. I actually learned this from renting a place in Vancouver, Canada in West Vancouver and which is a story in and of itself. But it was this beautiful home and there was all these different little unique features like fireplaces and whatnot. And anytime I had a question I just pulled up the email and they had everything and a linkable video. So I highly recommend that if you're thinking about--.
Kim: [Marked].
Clint: Yeah. then you can see it a lot of time.
Kim: [--] video for to do that. I mean you can do it on your own.
Clint: Oh, all minor from a phone. Yeah. And I do them for my clients when especially when I'm doing the same thing like trying to teach people how to use a lockbox which can be a little funny the way the numbers work. But it's very commonsensical to somebody like us. So yeah. So that's been kind of fun. And then when we looked at 707, we actually put that down to the bare bones. There was nothing in there. And you know it was the ability what I wanted to have in 707 is what I call a masterpiece.
Clint: And it is. It really is.
Kim: I wanted something that [because] you know anytime you're looking at condos and now you're talking about relatively small spaces, right? I mean you know we're not talking about McMansion. You're there for the view and I wanted to maximize the view to open it all up and to have that indoor-outdoor living but also you know I don't know how to say this but you know the Europeans have a better way to design things you know what I mean.
Clint: Yeah, absolutely.
Kim: I mean--.
Clint: Good use of small spaces.
Kim: It's like-- yes, and I mean you know they every little nook and cranny there is a spot for it. I mean so like you know where I never even thought like here's a place to put like you know your cookie tins. You know I mean. It's like wow and then being able to get all the junk off the counter because I hate like you know when--. You know I'm talking about like where there's toasters in blender [crosstalk].
Clint: Yeah, yeah, clutters up your space.
Kim: Oh, it's like I don't want to see that. And so when we looked at 707 just in the kitchen counters is that there are these little subtle things that like a lot of people may not notice at first but like the kitchen actually reflects the ocean back to you. It's not the mirror. It's done with the glassware and the position of the cabinets the finish of the cabinet. You know they drank refrigerators because you know in Maui you're going to open that a lot more than the big refrigerator [--].
Clint: Having notes and what she's referring to everybody is that she has these beautiful drawer refrigerator. So when it comes time to grab a drink as opposed to opening the main refrigerator and freezer, you can go over and pull those open and then you can have all your beverages. People don't realize that in addition to just being a smaller space easier to cool, it's actually box-shaped so it keeps most of the cool air when you pull it in and out.
Kim: Which is really smart. And then you know and the cost of putting like instead of just wall outlet I mean how many times do we need to charge our phones, right? I mean so, of course, we're going to have the three-pronged outlet but we're going to put places strategic so that if you wanted to charge your laptop, your tablet, your phone that you could just plug in there.
Clint: Yeah, absolutely.
Kim: And where the wine refrigerator is that you know you're not going to be bumping into anybody. The floors even though they're beautiful and they're off white that they are this type of tile that they're not going to get dirty. The washer and dryer one of these that drove me nuts about this is that you know the washer and dryer in a condo is that you know you'd be taking a shower and some would be like right in the dishwasher. You're like, "Oh, my gosh, what happened to the hot water," right?
Clint: Yes.
Kim: I mean [unless you're] standing there in cold water with shampoo [--] the washer in 707 is a German design that keeps its own water.
Clint: Tell us about that a little bit more about all the materials that you chose for [the unit]. Because that's one of the unique things that stood out in my mind compared to other listings that we get. People do remodels but a lot of their materials are sourced through the limited choices that we have on island. You imported a lot of things from all over the world including Italy, right?
Kim: Right. You know I don't think--.
Clint: Scandinavia.
Kim: -- I think the only thing that we actually sourced on Maui is the piece of [Monkeypod] that on the island and the kitchen.
Clint: Yes. Yeah, it's gorgeous piece.
Kim: Everything else was imported from either Germany or Italy and it is superior. I mean it was something where I said to myself, [you know] we're going to do this right. You only have one chance to do it right. Okay. And I want everything to be just perfect because that's the way I am in my life. I mean I'm pretty OCD about having everything just the right way it is.
Clint: Oh, I love going over to your place and seeing your makeshift recording studio in the back bedroom. When you were there, it's awesome to see it come together and like you know that's my life. We're always work on the go you know.
Kim: Yes and you know I bet you know whoever buys it you know it's meant so that we can just take that [crosstalk].
Clint: Oh, it's all gone, yeah.
Kim: --[and then they're] being a closet for somebody but-- or they could just leave it where the doors are and you know use that as type of address or type of thing. But it's been like the in the master bathroom is that it's not-- they're not just mirrors. Okay, you open those mirrors up and you've got storage behind it [because] in these small areas, you're always looking for these nooks and crannies and so I really wanted to have a place where I could sit down and put on my makeup you know instead of just standing there by a sink--.
Clint: And the closet organizers are fabulous.
Kim: So it's all little things that along the way that really came-- that was my vision. And then Michelle Wagner is the designer [and] now she's fabulous by the way.
Clint: Oh, you're the second person that's used her. Okay. It's good to know.
Kim: Okay, she helped bring-- she's you know what she's phenomenal. I mean she is you know I because I'm building a house now in Phoenix and I talked to her about coming to see and do it in the interiors in Phoenix. If she wasn't so busy, she said she'd do it. But she's at Wagner Pacific, of course, and she's really does an amazing job. So you know bottom line is that you know every place that you look in 707 and also it's 509. That there is a purpose. It just wasn't put there. It wasn't just-- you know even the couch that we have in 707 is [that] fine Italian leather that you know they couldn't figure out how to get it-- fit it in the elevator. I don't think you heard the story.
Clint: No, no, tell me more. They have to haul it up through the deck?
Kim: Yes, they hold it up seven flights over the bough, over the lanais.
Clint: Oh, my goodness. That must have been an undertaking.
Kim: Well, you know, I'm watching this to [--] with the Aloha Movers [crosstalk] one day. Okay, and I'm watching them haul this couch up and you know and these are big guy, right? And they're like hanging onto the lanai railing haul this thing up and I'm seeing myself railing don't fail me now because these guys would have gone over with the couch. But no, everything you know they got it in there [and it was] perfect and it was a feat getting it all in there and then of course because I'm into electronics, right?
Clint: Oh, very much so yeah.
Kim: I mean you know all the electronics--.
Clint: Speaking of which, give us your website. Tell us a little bit about your show just so people understand who aren't regulars to the Kim Komando show.
Kim: Well, thank you. The website is komando.com. That's with a K, of course. You know I realize a [joke], you go commando, Mike. Yeah, okay. That's me though I haven't heard that. But I talk about consumer electronics. I don't do politics. [Tell me] about living the best digital life. I'm on 400 radio stations including [KOAI].
Clint: All right.
Kim: If you're in Honolulu or on KHVH and sometimes, you get [--] on the Big Island too. And then I also host a show once a week on Bloomberg Television that airs in 344 million homes around the globe. That's [--].
Clint: That's some serious numbers.
Kim: Then have a really busy website. I send out 40 million newsletters a month, definitely not an overnight success by any means.
Clint: No, it's a process.
Kim: But I really enjoy what I do and I enjoy making a difference in people's lives. And you know and just seeing how you can help families and people and parents and teachers you know really get a hold of this whole digital life that we have right now that just us all-consuming.
Clint: Yeah, and I mean that's one of the reasons so many people come to Maui too because it's a [plans] to disconnect while still being you know right a part of the world. You know we've been working towards making our economy more tech-oriented savvy you know putting in fiber optic cables. And you know dealing with the influx of tourists is kind of this common you know problem that we were dealing with starting in the 90s up until now. So you know you can work and live remotely but so many people come here and they get the Maui time. You know they start slowing down and really enjoying [crosstalk] themselves.
Kim: [You feel] like you know the first couple of days you're like, yeah, okay, we're going to go do this and get that done and then it's like, well, we could do that tomorrow. Oh, that would be okay. But I'll say it. One of the things that always I-- last time, we were there on island is that we were having dinner at [Spago]. It's just amazing, right?
Clint: Oh, right down the path.
Kim: There was a family: a mom and dad and two kids because we were on their [--] mom and dad. You know all four of them were on their phones for most of dinner. And I just want to like look. I just wanted to like slap [upside] the head and say, "You know what--"
Clint: Look around you.
Kim: "[crosstalk] put it away and like look at that amazing sunset. I mean look at the food that you're eating. Look at the environment. Feel the breeze. Hear the ocean.
Clint: Have you done any shows on tech addiction?
Kim: Oh, yeah, [--] that too. Yeah, it is-- and you know sometimes I'm guilty of it too--.
Clint: Oh, we all are.
Kim: --especially like you know when you're sitting there and somebody says, "You know what, who won the night to [--]?" like I don't know. Let me google that because I need to know that right now, right?
Clint: Yeah. So one last thing I wanted to get into before we go into the nuts and bolts associated with Polo Beach and the work. I actually have the Venturas in the studio with us. Say hi, boys.
Venturas: Hi.
Venturas: Hello.
Kim: I can wait.
Clint: So I wanted to get into just a little bit more about Polo Beach and its location. So what's your favorite shops? You go to Nick's fish market and you know go to their happy hour and there's other restaurants that you like in the area?
Kim: Well, I'll tell you what I really like is that right next door as you mentioned you have [--]. And so you know what's nice is that you can just walk like five minutes--.
Clint: If that--.
Kim: --three minutes maybe and you go over to Ko. And Ko has this amazing dish, Ahi on the Rock. I don't know if you've ever had it.
Clint: No, that sounds amazing.
Kim: Like, oh you have to get it. They give you cubes of fresh Ahi with this rock that's heated up to 500 degrees.
Clint: Oh, don't touch.
Kim: And then you stir your own Ahi, so--.
Clint: All right.
Kim: --just amazing. And they always have great Kama'aina I mean they do.
Clint: All right.
Kim: And then, of course, Nick Fish Market. You can't go wrong and there's Spago. I actually like Duo, too [crosstalk].
Clint: Oh, we actually just ate at Duo a little while ago. They have a really good Kama'aina especially for kids.
Kim: Yeah, It's amazing. And they still do in the cotton candy.
Clint: Every time. Yeah. It's-- they started it and they-- that's how they continue to do it.
Kim: Love that. Monkeypod's good too although sometimes it gets kind of crowded. You have to make a reservation.
Clint: Yeah, it does. It does. Yeah, well they're for Hawaii and especially the Wailea area. They started with a really good price point. They've come up a little bit but they're still a good value for the quality [crosstalk].
Kim: Yes, they are. So there's and then, of course, you know you've got the market there right there at the shops at Wailea. And what's interesting to me is I don't know if you noticed about the Louis Vuitton store is that the Louis Vuitton store actually has the lowest prices in the country.
Clint: No kidding. I did not know that.
Kim: Yes, it's the State of Hawaii. There was something going on where like they were charging more than other states. And so now if you buy Louis Vuitton, if you buy it like in Honolulu or the subs of Wailea is that if you're looking for a wallet or a belt or what have you is that it's actually cheaper than if you were to buy it here on the Mainland.
Clint: Wooh, I've never bought anything Louis Vuitton before. I think that's going to have to change.
Kim: Oh, you know keep selling the condos [crosstalk].
Clint: You know it. So thank you so much. I really appreciate you coming on the show. Is there anything else you want to say about Hawaii or that Maui location where Polo Beach is?
Kim: Well, I would like to say that so often when you do remodels that there are a lot of things that go wrong. Okay. I remodeled homes. I flipped homes here in Arizona also in California. And I will tell you that the Ventura Brothers are amazing. I have never had a construction project go so smoothly as it did with them at the helm. I didn't have to worry about anything. I was thousands of miles away but I knew that they were taking care of everything. And if something was wrong they fixed it before they called me or at least they had a solution, a possible solution before they called me--.
Clint: Very smart.
Kim: -- And what's also really nice is that they're now my friends. So I'm not like a client and I'm not a disgruntled client by any means. If you are looking for a remodel and you-- if you are looking for a contractor I [know] it. I know there are no other choices. You just call the Ventura Brothers. That's it. That's all you have to do.
Clint: And of course I have to disclose. You guys are really you know we working and we're co-listing the-- it with Velva Padgett. Velva Padgett's really the hands on the ground long-term friend and person that you guys work with and we're very pleased to be honored to be co-listing this with her. She is one of the agents in our office and I know you have had wonderful experiences with her with all your purchasing.
Kim: Oh, you know what-- how I met her is I was staying because I would go up and down staying at all these different places on the coast [--]. And so I would stay at like you know the Mana Kai as I mentioned, Kam 1, Kam 2, Makena Surf , the beach villas you know. And so I actually met Velva. We were staying in Makena Surf.
Clint: Oh, no kidding.
Kim: Her son--. Yeah, her son at that time was five.
Clint: Oh, man.
Kim: And my son--.
Clint: He's an adult man by the way.
Kim: My son was five. Yeah, they're 18 now. And so we just struck up a conversation and a friendship and she taught me how to paddle foot.
Clint: All right. That's great. So thank you so much for coming on the show today. I really appreciate all that you have to offer with your experiences on Maui and how Polo is an amazing spot. If anybody wants to go see her listing, you can go to our featured condo listings at mauirealestate.net. That's mauirealestate.net or contact me. I could always shoot it to you in an email or a text at 808-280-2764. Thank you, Kim. I appreciate having you on the show today.
Kim: You bet you. Mahalo.
Clint: Aloha. So to get into the nuts and bolts of the actual remodel, I have Brian and Dennis Ventura. Say hi, guys.
Venturas: Hi, Clint.
Clint: So nice warm review of all the hard work and I just to let you know, we've lived on island for over 30 years and I like to tell people I've conceived and raised. I don't get quite born and raised. Yeah, but you know Maui is a magical spot for a couple of things for my family and we grew up on Charlie Young Beach and you know in the Kihei area and then for high school, I went upcountry. But you know my mom and dad, Maui we all worked together as a family and that's really important to us because you know there's a vested interest in not only what we've done in the past but what we're doing in the future and have that ongoing tradition and that's one of the reasons. And we have a whole number of people that we recommend depending on the size and scope of the job. But if you have a big remodel anything from you know just a fancy kitchen to building a home I always like to have Ventura as top on the list. And so to go on a little bit. Tell us a little bit about yourselves and your family because they're a long family tradition of being on Maui and doing jobs here.
Venturas: Well, thank you, Clint. My dad started the business in '77. He was a union contractor or carpenter and then he went on his own, started a business small and ran a nice business for a lot of years. My brother and I we took it over about 12 years ago.
Clint: Oh, you've been working in it since you were babies though.
Venturas: Yeah, we worked with him since we were a little boy. We took it over. He stepped back and we've been blessed to be able to work for people like Kim Komando and do these Polo Beach units and we've been given opportunities to do some really wonderful work.
Clint: And just to get into not so much-- later on, we'll go into more of the general projects but let's talk about Polo Beach in general. So I know that this particular unit was quite an undertaking with all the supply apart. I'm imagining that Kim was the one giving you the materials and the connections. I know you guys are very good with your sourcing and whatnot but tell me a little bit more about how you know working collaboratively with somebody 5000 miles away works and specifically the idiosyncrasies with Polo Beach.
Venturas: Well, so I ran that job and a lot of it was actually Michelle Wagner working with Kim getting an entire design book and that's one thing she mentioned Michelle Wagner and she is over the top just so detailed. And when we get a set of plans from her, it has and this was a metric built. So we had to go out and get new tape measures ready buddy. It was so detailed to the point where the toolbars, [robohooks]. There's dimensions everywhere on the plan. And it needed to be because you know our normal jobs we'd bring in cabinets from anywhere: Washington, East Coast, West Coast. Doesn't matter. But normally your surfaces, your granite, your [court size], whatever your countertops are, they're fabricated locally. All these came from Italy. And so everything had to be precise--.
Clint: [crosstalk] doublecheck.
Venturas: -because we're dealing with concrete building and in the end, it was off and we had to fight to make this entire system work. My brother did the backsplash, the glass backsplash that she was talking about that is colored and it actually reflects the ocean while still adding to the entire look of this ultramodern kitchen. It was-- you can't cut those pieces of glass.
Clint: No, they looks like it comes together flawlessly. When I take--.
Venturas: [It didn't].
Clint: --anytime I don't even think that anything went wrong. It looks like it came together like you know a Jenga set or something like that because it's flawless. Every single line is perfect on it. The fact that you're telling me that it was even the remotely difficult surprises me. So yeah. Tell me a little bit more about making it look that way flawless.
Venturas: Well, it you know and that's one thing that we work-- how we work together and not kill each other because brothers he has special sets and I have special sets. We know when we come into a kitchen, I don't touch subzero doors if it's a subzero Viking if it's got finish--.
Venturas: Panel ready.
Venturas: -- panel, panel ready fridges. He does it. I just-- there you go. I hit all the crown molding because that's what I'm good at. And so where we love the high-end finishes. And part of what he said, we've been blessed to work with people like [crosstalk].
Clint: Part of the reason having that long list of you know family and familiar connections living here for so many generations. You know just about everyone on island. And you have a really incredible set of workers as well. I was very impressed with their quality and how you worked together as a team. But yeah, go on with then.
Venturas: So the one nice thing about communicating with Kim and Berry was just their availability and that's modern technology. Not in the phones being able to face time, being able to send them photos immediately but it was so-- they were actually really because we were nervous when we first took the job. She's a big name you know and I remember the first time I met her. I was sitting there going, I know that voice. I know that voice you know. I'm like, what the heck is this? And it was fun. It was a lot of fun. But you know you're dealing with a star. You're dealing with a national figure. And so we're like, okay, how is this going to be there and buried right off the bat said he goes, I like things. I'm very specific. I want this. This is what we're going to want provided we'll be fine. And Dennis and I looked at other.
Clint: Clear, concise, and good, yeah.
Venturas: This is going to be easy if this is who they are. And it is exactly who they were. Kim, she got into telling me one day. I got to sit down with her and she told me her story and it was amazing. The woman is truly-- she has a beautiful heart.
Clint: Absolutely.
Venturas: It's so much fun because growing up, I worked at the Four Seasons and I met stars that are fake that when you meet them, you're like, wow, that's disappointing.
Clint: They had a smile on their face in there but they were talking through their teeth.
Venturas: Oh, yeah. And she's so down to earth. I really, really [like her].
Clint: I'm going to blame Maui for that. She's been here a long time [crosstalk].
Venturas: Yeah, there you go. It has that way of doing it.
Clint: But I mean I think it's really nice the fact that I can safely and securely know that when I recommend you guys. You know in this case we did have you know Michelle Wagner working in conjunction with you. But there's so many times in many different projects that we've had the good fortune of our buyers and sellers picking you that things get done. And there's always a stream of communication like you said with phones today and texts. There's never been a time that I have had to wait more than an hour to get in touch with you guys anytime and which is you know everybody needs their downtime. You know we've gotten baseball games and family stuff on weekends--.
Venturas: Soccer.
Clint: --and whatnot but even then it's-- I'm really impressed that you guys go that extra mile so thank you so much.
Venturas: No, we-- that's one thing that Dennis fronts the phone whenever our phone line rings. We now have an office manager. She answers it, calls us. You get a callback. We don't believe in making people wait because--.
Venturas: As much as possible.
Venturas: Yeah, I mean and that is one thing we do. We don't like to bring problems to clients because they don't need to--.
Clint: Not without a solution.
Venturas: deal with that. Exactly. We find two to three solutions then we bring them. We send them photos and we make sure because no matter what these condos aren't just moneymakers. You could hear it even in 509 which she doesn't live in. It's personal to her. She takes pride in that. And so we have to replicate that and take pride in what we do to make sure she's getting exactly what she wants.
Venturas: And we have to thank the Hansens too because [crosstalk] 509 was the first unit we did it Polo Beach. Was that about 12 years ago?
Venturas: Yeah.
Venturas: And I don't think Clint was really involved with the business at that time [crosstalk].
Clint: I have my license 19 years and brokers for five [crosstalk]. So on that particular project, I wasn't I was you know showing and working on other properties but yeah, not that specific one.
Venturas: You know your mom and dad brought us in and since then we've been at Polo Beach and I can tell you it's probably my favorite place to work.
Clint: All right.
Venturas: I love doing work there. The views are spectacular.
Clint: Hard to get stuff done. Why are those lines straight?
Venturas: Yeah, you know I mean we've done a fair number remodels and we work all over Wailea, Kihei, and Kapalua.
Clint: Upcountry too. I mean you guys live in Kula so--.
Venturas: [--] the house is gone up there right now.
Venturas: That beach, that location, everything about it is-- it's special and that's why people like him buy there.
Clint: And it's good to you know working with the management. They also know you there and there's always idiosyncrasies because you're working with different boards and different management teams. But tell us a little bit more not just about the unit but working specifically through to get stuff done in the complex like you know, was there extra hurdles or any unexpected things?
Venturas: Condo work is always challenging because you're working--.
Clint: Schedules.
Venturas: --in a community where people are-- they're interested in what you're doing. They want to see what you're doing. But it's also inconvenient for them because the noise, the dust, different things like that. So it's a real fine line and you have to figure out what each condo wants because they all have different criteria. So every time you go into a new condo there is a learning curve and you know takes a little more time.
Clint: So and there for Polo, I know that you guys are going to be doing some elevator work?
Venturas: No, we did the-- we're doing all the lobbies in the elevator. So basically--.
Clint: Oh, I see. I see the interiors.
Venturas: --what we just did was, yeah. We redid every single the two walls in Polo Beach as you enter every single lobby, elevator lobby on each floor. We changed the interior tile layout and we added IPE cladding, this rain screen.
Clint: Oh, beautiful.
Venturas: Yeah. So it just modernized the lobbies of the elevators and then we're currently redoing the entire ground floor. They tore out all the old blue square court site and they're putting in flagstone and it is just-- it's beautiful.
Clint: Modernizing it. It's been due for an update but it is a lot of timeless pieces that they have in there but it's looking really ultra-modern now. And it's good to see that work coming along.
Venturas: One of the things about Polo Beach that I know the owners love is the AOAL has very specific construction rules and we are very limited over what we can do so when we look at a unit, when we bid a unit, we know because we've done 10 full units probably about six or seven partials where it's just a bathroom or whatever. And but Andy, their management staff is amazing, the way they take care. In fact, they have some railing work being done and this railing guy remembers the original job. And he said, "Oh, yeah I worked with Jacko when they did this." "We did the original railings.". And he goes, "you know what, I am absolutely amazed." The railings in this property still look like their original condition and it's all to the management and these guys, they're two twin brothers: Andy and Tom. They've worked there for 30 years. They take so much pride in that building. That's their home. Even though they don't live there, that's their home. And now, one of them Andy is the property manager. His sons involved. The way they take care of this-- it's so unique because it's not just the job. They actually love where they live. The owners take care of them. And so it's just that a symbiotic relationship where it is an amazing property and we are so--.
Venturas: [The building] has a weird community in the sense that they're very intertwined and they all seem to be like a family where other buildings work in half the owners don't know each other.
Clint: Or they're never there.
Venturas: Or they're never there or you know you got a couple here that know each other and like each other. That building it just seems like they're one big happy family. They all get along. They all you know-- they all have similar goals and and just love being there.
Clint: I mean they have a real vision for the complex and it's--.
Venturas: Yeah, they do.
Clint: --nice to seeing it come together. And I think that's part of the reason that comparatively most oceanfront complexes you're going to be running you know $1.50 to $2.00 a square foot you know especially with some of the older buildings for their maintenance fee. And I mean they're running like I think $1.25 or $1.20 per square foot. So that's really a good price and I think it's because it's all that extra love that both the owners and the management team are putting into it because like you said they really take pride in it--.
Venturas: Yeah, they do.
Clint: --and obviously, they choose good people so--.
Venturas: When the maintenance that they do-- honestly, when you buy into a condo, you're always concerned about okay, how is the structure, how [it guts] because one thing we just saw Kaanapali Alii and all these other places that have had to go through and change all the cast [iron] pipes. It is a huge expense and you know that and that big bills coming.
Clint: And there's a lot more of those common too. I mean down the line we're getting to that age 1970s, 1980s build all cast iron, yeah.
Venturas: All Maalaea, most of Kihei is getting there.
Clint: So--.
Venturas: But Andy and the management, the AOAL-- every single time we tear open a wall they're like, stop, give us a day. They bring in a plumber and they redo all the cast iron.
Clint: Oh, yeah.
Venturas: When it's open at the AOAL's expense because it's a common area whenever you break into those plumbings, that plumbing chase and so they're being incredibly proactive rather than [crosstalk].
Clint: Reactive.
Venturas: Exactly. And so it kind of gives owners even though I mean basically they are using their fees really wisely. That we-- because we work in a lot of condos and some of the other ones are just chasing their tail.
Clint: I see some of them. You know one of them said actually being proactive is like Maui Vista. They're good. They're going in. They've scoped all the lower floor ones, have been replacing the pipes, and they got a really good deal with it now. Some other complexes I see they're just kind of chasing these leaks around and then it's becoming more and more of a problem before--.
Venturas: Yeah, [for sure].
Clint: --you kind of start getting these catastrophic failures on a regular basis. And so it is really important to be proactive and it's going to be a lot cheaper in the long run. But you know that's why it's important to have a good board that like Polo Beach that sees you know a forward-thinking prevents problems and expense down the line. It's-- I never heard of any kind of major issue with a common area element. You know there's always mistakes that happen you know between water heaters breaking and whatnot but they're there and they're on top of things.
Venturas: But for sure.
Clint: Now, stepping away a little bit from Polo Beach. Name some-- you know I know that you guys do anything from like just a full kitchen remodel to you know gutting a home or building a home from the sticks up. But let's just talk about projects in general. Can you tell us some of the other like complexes and projects that you've worked on and you know working through associations? Is that something that you can do and have?
Venturas: Absolutely. We're in working at Makena Surf right now. We have a one project going there. We're-- we've been at the Mana Kai for years and doing condo work as well as AOAL work done working [crosstalk]
Venturas: Iron Woods.
Venturas: Iron Woods, Bay Villas.
Clint: I think you're one of the only people that has more miles on their car than me. I see [crosstalk] you everywhere.
Venturas: On the red trucks. But yeah the associations, they're good to us. If you follow the rules and you respect them, they're always respectful of you and they always appreciate you and we try to do that as a company. And then we do have our new homes. We've been blessed to have a couple real nice ones over the last two years, two or three years. One we just finished by on Halama St. [All right]. That came up pretty nice. I was pretty proud of that one.
Clint: Yeah, that was that one that's-- it's not three stories you got like kind of a basement level and then above the [crosstalk].
Venturas: No, it's a two-story home that's in the flood zone. So we had to elevate it above the flood zone a little bit.
Venturas: And that took 16 months to get through the county. And we do want people to understand that did go through the county and the county was the one that required it to be that high. The owner did not want to build the house that high but the county required that they actually elevate it because of the flood plain.
Clint: Yeah, because everybody-- all the ocean fronts have that little bit of elevation up on top of it but it slopes down after. It's almost like a berm--.
Venturas: [crosstalk], yeah.
Clint: --because from what I understand that whole area and like the late 1930s, early 1940s was all engineered by the Army Corps engineers. They came in, pushed all the rock up along the coast. So you have these little slope areas. Now, on either side of the street, you're relatively fine because you've got the hill and the berm. Now, that home is lower you know than a lot of the other homes in the area. Funny thing you might not realize is I actually grew up at that house back in the day. I used to mow that lawn and because my buddy he lived there so I'd ride my bike from you know Kam 1 all the way down through a park and you know go hang out there and I love that street, Halama.
Venturas: It's a great location.
Clint: So [and then] we have the listing right across this area, 18760. It's the most affordable oceanfront property in all of South and West Maui right now. And I mean it's like 11,000 square feet. It's got two structures and it's this 19-- you know 55, house old Hawaii style.
Venturas: I saw the new listing. [That's right].
Clint: Yeah, it's really well-maintained. You know most likely somebody is going to-- we're selling it. That's a reason so cheap at land value but it's literally move-in ready you know. We've had so many offers on that property and we're like look you know it's going to be somewhere North of 3. It's you know and we've gotten like half a dozen offers you know below the 3 mark and we just fell out of escrow. We were like pretty close to asking and going back and forth and then you know before closing, [they're] like, I'm sorry, I don't have the cash. Oh, what? How does this like-- where do you come from? But you know they just-- they [were] on top of it and being able to perform and get the rest of their cash here. So I think they'll probably come back a little bit later down the line when they sell something else and get in. But if somebody is looking for one of the best locations, it's nice because Halama, a lot of them-- it's more of a private intimate relationship with the ocean as opposed to being like us when we grew up here. You know Charlie Young Beach, we had a path right in front of our house so we were a part of the community. You know Halama, there's a lot more privacy if you're looking for that you know--.
Venturas: Oh, definitely.
Clint: --compared to other oceanfront properties. Now to go on a little bit more about the projects. Sorry.
Venturas: We've got two houses going on upcountry now. One's addition renovation that's really, really interesting. It was built by-- the original house was built by our grandmothers, our grandfathers mom's side of the family, the Ponce and really nice old Portuguese. It's a private road but these people bought the house from the grandma and holy smoke man those Portuguese know how to build. It was--.
Clint: [crosstalk] [Some thick] beings.
Venturas: It's a well-built houses that were tearing apart to remodel and modernize. And you know one of the big things now is aging in place and so a lot of what we're doing are these flow in showers and this family actually has a niece that comes and visits them. It's like their daughter and she's already in a wheelchair. So everything has to be [88] then. But we really-- the one thing we really enjoy we get another house that we're working with another architect and structural engineer out of Seattle that's going on up in Kula. That one's a fun project but a lot of rock up in Kula. There's [crosstalk].
Clint: Oh, the whole island. I mean people are like, oh, I want to put a pool in and I'm like, you know it's going to be like minimum 80,000 and then they're like, what? I can do this in the mainland, 50. I'll back and bring people over and I'm like, you don't understand. Have you ever dug into blue rock before?
Venturas: Sticker shock is one thing. You know it things do cost more here because the cost of living is more. We had a job in the villas, golf villas [up] in Kapalua where the guy actually he owns a carpet once sold like miles says Hawaiian corporate one. He has four in Idaho and he actually brought out his granite fabricator to do the granite countertops himself because it was cheaper and we asked the guy we said, "What do you pay your lead installer, your fabricator, lead installer." He goes, "Oh, my main fabricator is my installer." And he's got four shops. He goes, "I pay him--." What was it?
Venturas: $15.
Venturas: $15 an hour.
Venturas: And I looked at him and said--.
Clint: I can't live on Maui.
Venturas: I said you can't pay a guy to sweep your jobsite, $15 an hour on Maui. That is-- and he looked at us. He's like, wow, no wonder, it's so expensive. So there are challenges here but you know you weigh that and the value-- I mean when you look at that VBRO numbers that she threw out.
Clint: VRBO, yeah.
Venturas: Yeah, VRBO. It's amazing. I mean the income that you can produce on a piece of property like Polo Beach where it is rental vacation rental. It's an investment. I've been looking at [crosstalk]--.
Clint: Right.
Venturas: --eventually not a Polo but you know there's other properties on this island where if you produce something, we have renovation packages where we've done rentals in Maalaea and North Kihei and there are affordable packages that people can bring up the quality and also bring up their income.
Clint: Yeah, I mean there's some smart choices obviously getting rid of carpet and you know putting in something that's a bit more durable. Everyone's like, oh, I want to put wood in and I'm like you know you do have to realize you're in a moist environment here. Wood contend to change and warp. Get some of this laminate that looks like wood. You know you can drop a wet towel on it for a week and it's not going to harm it.
Venturas: Yeah, absolutely.
Clint: And it's not only affordable. It also looks amazing. So making right good choices for anything from a smaller job to anything to the absolute pinnacle of customization is that's one of the reasons I love to give you guys your number out to everybody because everything that you do is right on target.
Venturas: We appreciate.
Clint: [And] very flexible.
Venturas: When we try and-- we try and meet that standard every time that's sort of-- that's our goal is.
Clint: So one last thing, I know we kind of got off specifically but are there any things that you would say? Because [one] just a course a brief question. Have you noticed a difference putting in permits in the last year in the county compared to in the past? Because I've been talking to a few people and they've had a lot more success and things have been a little bit quicker so.
Venturas: Zoning.
Venturas: Zoning, yeah.
Venturas: Zoning is definitely gotten better with the [SME]. I mean that seems to improve a lot. There's still some room for improvement but what are the permits--.
Venturas: At least they're working.
Clint: Yeah, water department. Well, they tried to shake things up in there. I mean they tried to get rid of the water guy and do some things and then I think he's still in his position so you know sometimes to have bigger changes, you need to start from management down and it's not that he's doing a bad job but you know there's new ways to get stuff done.
Venturas: Yeah and that's been holding up some of our permits. They've been having adding additional requirements to associations into homeowners that weren't there in the past.
Clint: And costs.
Venturas: And costs that have slowed it down. Overall, it stayed about the same maybe a little better but--.
Venturas: You know the reality is this. I'd rather than double the price of the permits.
Clint: Yeah and then they could [crosstalk].
Venturas: An improve. Yeah, because when you-- in the mainland they're paying more for permits but they're getting them in the third quarter of the time. And so if it's a staff issue but a lot of times it's counteracting rules. So the water department has rules that--.
Clint: Overlap.
Venturas: Zoning, yeah.
Clint: It doesn't [--]. It conflict [crosstalk].
Venturas: So it's challenging. But you know what I will say this if you're going to go on for permits, be nice.
Clint: Yes. It's so surprises me.
Venturas: Because they're just doing their job and they're not I mean--.
Venturas: They're always very helpful if you show them respect. They've never--.
Venturas: The ladies in [crosstalk] phenomenal.
Clint: Thank you. So tell me a little bit. What website should I'd be directing people to for the Venturas?
Venturas: That's vccmaui.com, Victor-Charlie-Charlie, maui.com.
Clint: And a phone number.
Venturas: 808-876-0341.
Clint: Oh, right. Nice timing. Thank you for joining us today on Maui Real Estate Radio and we're broadcasting today on 11:10 AM, 96.7 FM, 98.7 FM, and our friends on the West Side at 95.5 FM. This is Clint Hansen with Maui Luxury Real Estate. You can tune in Mondays at 7:00 AM to listen to this or go to [music] mauirealestateradio.com to get the podcast. And there's a whole slew of shows on there, everything from 1031 exchanges, how escrow works. You name it. We got it. Again, our website is mauirealestate.net or the radio show mauirealestateradio.com. Aloha.
Clint Hansen: This is Clint Hansen with Maui Luxury Real Estate. You're listening to Maui Real Estate Radio on the KAOI Radio Group broadcasting at 11:10 AM, 97.6 FM, 98.7 FM. And of course, our friends on the West Side, 95.5 FM. We're tuned in today to talk about communities and want to do a few shows to talk about individual locations and that way people can educate themselves and more importantly, we have two incredible new listings at this Polo Beach. I don't know if you've ever heard of it before but it is one of the first and best locations in Wailea. It's right at the end of the path and you have access to everything including some of the best beaches Maui has to offer. It has been a long family tradition for us to work together. I've had my license 19 years. My dad, Bob, he has had his license for 36 and my mom for 40. We're a big family operation and are proud about these new two listings so we wanted to bring the owner on. This is Kim Komando. I'm sure you guys have heard her on her radio show before. Say hello, Kim.
Kim Komando: Hi there, Clint. How are you?
Clint: Fantastic and yourself?
Kim: Yeah, so thrilled to be talking about Maui [crosstalk].
Clint: Yeah. It could be better if you were here, right?
Kim: Yeah, I know. Here I am in Phoenix where it's going to be - I don't know - 180 degrees--.
Clint: Oh, my gosh.
Kim: --today. Something like that. But no, Maui has been in my heart and in my family, talking about your family or probably, I know I'm going to date myself here but probably for about 40 year--.
Clint: Oh, wow.
Kim: --because you know my dad worked for United Airlines and I grew up in New Jersey and where people in New York in New Jersey you know Clint they go to Florida and the Bahamas.
Clint: Yes, everybody tells me that.
Kim: [--] Now, people on the west coast, they go to Hawaii but you know even though we were in New York, New Jersey, we went to Hawaii on vacation.
Clint: Ah, you're the one of the lucky ones.
Kim: Yes, which was a really long way to go but because my dad works for United and we got to travel standby. That worked out really well. And so I don't know if you know the whole story about the Molokai
Clint: No, go on.
Kim: And the Molokai was actually developed by United Airlines' pilot.
Clint: That's right. Yes, I did know about that.
Kim: Right. And so when I was growing up, I grew up at the Molokai. I mean we would go to the Molokai. at least once or twice every year. And so I think the first time I went I was probably like I don't know 9 or 10 or something like that. And so just living on Maui part of the year it just was part of me growing up. And so you know I got married on Maui--.
Clint: Me too. But that's a little unfair for me to say.
Kim: --and I have raised my son on Maui and all those great stuff. And so you know I've also traveled all around the world. I've been to Fiji and Tahiti and you all places in Europe that you know the French Riviera and you name it but there is nothing like Polo Beach in the entire world. I know that sounds really [quaint].
Clint: No, it's true.
Kim: But it's private. It's quiet. It's not crowded. There are so many times when I can tell you that I've gone to Polo Beach and I would be the only person on the beach and I look at the Fairmont and they're like stacked up like dominoes.
Clint: Even with today's overcrowding, I mean there's a lot more tourist coming on the island. We have over 2 million. I think we're at about 2.5 million coming on an annual basis which is almost a million up from about a decade and a half ago. And with those numbers growing, I mean you're starting to really feel it when you go to the beaches, traffic, things of that nature. But Polo Beach is still one of those beaches you almost feel like you're all alone on it. I mean comparatively to anywhere any other beach especially in Wailea, you get to Polo Beach. It's crystal clear snorkeling. There's not a whole lot of boats out there and in addition to that, they're just these glassy, cloudless water as long as you get out there before noon. It's some of the best snorkeling on the island. I bring my kids there all the time.
Kim: Oh, [though] I tell you the kids like it after like afternoon.
Clint: No, when the waves, yeah.
Kim: Yeah, [--] of all the waves but it's just you know I've always liked it because I felt the-- even though, you're on Maui that it's--. It's just it's such a relaxing place and the fact that you are literally on the beach. I mean I don't know a lot about real estate development in Maui but I don't think you could build it on the beach like that [crosstalk].
Clint: No, current setbacks [--] definitely does not allow that. I mean the way the county does change the rules regularly and that's one of the things they're examining now with the potential for sea rise and stuff like that. But they do have new setback standards that are set in place. So unless you have like a geologically-stabilized oceanfront, if you're going to be increasing the square footage of your property, you're really limited on what you can do to it unless you were willing to chop your house or condominium up into pieces and move it back to meet the current [--] standards. Now, Polo Beach, fortunately, is a nice fortified oceanfront location. So erosions not really the big concern there but other locations it most definitely is. That's actually another thing that's really interesting for a different radio show that we did on leasehold properties. Now, when the leases expire, a lot of people are like, "Oh, man, they're going to take the land back." But the truth is what are they going to do with it because then they would have to meet the current standards associated. So it makes no sense for them to you know try to redevelop the land because they would never be able to build anything better than what's already there.
Kim: Yeah. And the other thing I've loved about Polo Beach was it's [very] simple and then--.
Clint: Very, very.
Kim: --the other thing I've liked [okay] is that the HOA fees are not crazy. Yeah.
Clint: Even with all the work that they've been doing I mean it's incredible.
Kim: Yeah. And so you know so when you start adding up all the values and so I first bought a unit on the second floor. Then I bought a unit on the fifth floor and then I totally remodeled and did what I wanted to do with the unit on the seventh floor. But what's interesting to me because you mentioned all the tourists is that you know I'm incredibly busy. You know I have a radio show. I have a global TV show on Bloomberg and you know the list goes on and on and on. So I originally bought 509 for us to live in and then I was going to sell it when we got done with their total remodel of 707. But I put 509 on VRBO just as kind of like an experiment because I also write for USA Today. So I thought you know this would be something kind of cool. I can really relate to how people do VRBOs and what it's like--.
Clint: An educational experience.
Kim: Yeah, I'm like you know so. Yeah, exactly. So just a first-person [view]. And so I put it on VRBO and I thought you know I'm not going to give it to anybody else in [assist] or anything do just because I want to really see how it works. And I put it on. But it's on VRBO and I found I was having like a good time at it. It was became like my hobby like some people garden you know to me. Some people raise chickens. I like to make money. So I found that this satisfied a lot of requirements for me to have a hobby. And so last year was the first full year and I-- you know I'm doing it myself. I have a fabulous housekeeper and--.
Clint: That's an important part of it. Yeah.
Kim: Yes, it's a big part. And I have friends who can come in like you know the Ventura Brothers. They can come in. They'll fix things for me or what suppose. You need to have like some type of support structure.
Clint: And we do have a lot of recommendations here. I mean that's one of the things that we do is connect people on island with trustworthy hardworking people.
Kim: Yes which is really fabulous. Do you need that? But you know really when somebody does the VRBO in Hawaii, they are just so thrilled that they are at the beach. They don't really complain very much. You know what I mean like they're super excited to be there.
Clint: That makes a lot of sense you know. It's kind of funny because I see a great number of units and a whole large number of complexes including there and your units are supremely remodeled. All of them. And you know when they get into these complexes, a lot of times they're going into you know 1970s, 1980s [--] finishes and you know, unfortunately, the view kind of distract from the fact that you've got some shag carpeting but in yours is ultramodern.
Kim: Yeah, no more bamboo furniture.
Clint: No, no more [redtown].
Kim: Was done with all that. So I put it on to VRBO and in just kind of like, let's see to see what would happen. And in the first year, I did $206,000.
Clint: Wow. Yeah, that's incredible. That's some really good numbers.
Kim: Yeah, I mean that's just really-- I mean that was just astounding to me. And this year it's on track to do the same amount. I again like I have to put a lock on it so I can do the key code from wherever I'm located. I have the welcome letters I got the welcome binder which - by the way, I didn't have a welcome binder for the first three months and that was a mistake.
Clint: Yeah, kids are going to be asking you a lot of questions.
Kim: [--] How do I do the blind? You know where's the beach towels? Where-- I actually had somebody write me a note like you're not going to believe it. They were in 509 and they sent me a note and said, "How do I get to the beach?" Okay. I said, "You know you go." And I actually wrote it. I said, "You go out the front door, make a right--.
Clint: Go to the elevator.
Kim: --go down the stairs, and you're at the beach.
Clint: That is ridiculous. Oh, they must have it. You know I've noticed that some of the older guests that we've had in other condos like family condos and friends and whatnot and past clients have actually helped a lot of people when they're in a spot and somebody can't figure out how to make the TV work so--. But what I've been helping them do even when it comes time to use the lockbox or the keypad or how the TV-- I have a whole series of videos saved and what I do is whenever they're having a problem with a specific issue like the TV or you know the blinds or something like that. I send that YouTube link to them in addition to an email like how to work all these different things. I actually learned this from renting a place in Vancouver, Canada in West Vancouver and which is a story in and of itself. But it was this beautiful home and there was all these different little unique features like fireplaces and whatnot. And anytime I had a question I just pulled up the email and they had everything and a linkable video. So I highly recommend that if you're thinking about--.
Kim: [Marked].
Clint: Yeah. then you can see it a lot of time.
Kim: [--] video for to do that. I mean you can do it on your own.
Clint: Oh, all minor from a phone. Yeah. And I do them for my clients when especially when I'm doing the same thing like trying to teach people how to use a lockbox which can be a little funny the way the numbers work. But it's very commonsensical to somebody like us. So yeah. So that's been kind of fun. And then when we looked at 707, we actually put that down to the bare bones. There was nothing in there. And you know it was the ability what I wanted to have in 707 is what I call a masterpiece.
Clint: And it is. It really is.
Kim: I wanted something that [because] you know anytime you're looking at condos and now you're talking about relatively small spaces, right? I mean you know we're not talking about McMansion. You're there for the view and I wanted to maximize the view to open it all up and to have that indoor-outdoor living but also you know I don't know how to say this but you know the Europeans have a better way to design things you know what I mean.
Clint: Yeah, absolutely.
Kim: I mean--.
Clint: Good use of small spaces.
Kim: It's like-- yes, and I mean you know they every little nook and cranny there is a spot for it. I mean so like you know where I never even thought like here's a place to put like you know your cookie tins. You know I mean. It's like wow and then being able to get all the junk off the counter because I hate like you know when--. You know I'm talking about like where there's toasters in blender [crosstalk].
Clint: Yeah, yeah, clutters up your space.
Kim: Oh, it's like I don't want to see that. And so when we looked at 707 just in the kitchen counters is that there are these little subtle things that like a lot of people may not notice at first but like the kitchen actually reflects the ocean back to you. It's not the mirror. It's done with the glassware and the position of the cabinets the finish of the cabinet. You know they drank refrigerators because you know in Maui you're going to open that a lot more than the big refrigerator [--].
Clint: Having notes and what she's referring to everybody is that she has these beautiful drawer refrigerator. So when it comes time to grab a drink as opposed to opening the main refrigerator and freezer, you can go over and pull those open and then you can have all your beverages. People don't realize that in addition to just being a smaller space easier to cool, it's actually box-shaped so it keeps most of the cool air when you pull it in and out.
Kim: Which is really smart. And then you know and the cost of putting like instead of just wall outlet I mean how many times do we need to charge our phones, right? I mean so, of course, we're going to have the three-pronged outlet but we're going to put places strategic so that if you wanted to charge your laptop, your tablet, your phone that you could just plug in there.
Clint: Yeah, absolutely.
Kim: And where the wine refrigerator is that you know you're not going to be bumping into anybody. The floors even though they're beautiful and they're off white that they are this type of tile that they're not going to get dirty. The washer and dryer one of these that drove me nuts about this is that you know the washer and dryer in a condo is that you know you'd be taking a shower and some would be like right in the dishwasher. You're like, "Oh, my gosh, what happened to the hot water," right?
Clint: Yes.
Kim: I mean [unless you're] standing there in cold water with shampoo [--] the washer in 707 is a German design that keeps its own water.
Clint: Tell us about that a little bit more about all the materials that you chose for [the unit]. Because that's one of the unique things that stood out in my mind compared to other listings that we get. People do remodels but a lot of their materials are sourced through the limited choices that we have on island. You imported a lot of things from all over the world including Italy, right?
Kim: Right. You know I don't think--.
Clint: Scandinavia.
Kim: -- I think the only thing that we actually sourced on Maui is the piece of [Monkeypod] that on the island and the kitchen.
Clint: Yes. Yeah, it's gorgeous piece.
Kim: Everything else was imported from either Germany or Italy and it is superior. I mean it was something where I said to myself, [you know] we're going to do this right. You only have one chance to do it right. Okay. And I want everything to be just perfect because that's the way I am in my life. I mean I'm pretty OCD about having everything just the right way it is.
Clint: Oh, I love going over to your place and seeing your makeshift recording studio in the back bedroom. When you were there, it's awesome to see it come together and like you know that's my life. We're always work on the go you know.
Kim: Yes and you know I bet you know whoever buys it you know it's meant so that we can just take that [crosstalk].
Clint: Oh, it's all gone, yeah.
Kim: --[and then they're] being a closet for somebody but-- or they could just leave it where the doors are and you know use that as type of address or type of thing. But it's been like the in the master bathroom is that it's not-- they're not just mirrors. Okay, you open those mirrors up and you've got storage behind it [because] in these small areas, you're always looking for these nooks and crannies and so I really wanted to have a place where I could sit down and put on my makeup you know instead of just standing there by a sink--.
Clint: And the closet organizers are fabulous.
Kim: So it's all little things that along the way that really came-- that was my vision. And then Michelle Wagner is the designer [and] now she's fabulous by the way.
Clint: Oh, you're the second person that's used her. Okay. It's good to know.
Kim: Okay, she helped bring-- she's you know what she's phenomenal. I mean she is you know I because I'm building a house now in Phoenix and I talked to her about coming to see and do it in the interiors in Phoenix. If she wasn't so busy, she said she'd do it. But she's at Wagner Pacific, of course, and she's really does an amazing job. So you know bottom line is that you know every place that you look in 707 and also it's 509. That there is a purpose. It just wasn't put there. It wasn't just-- you know even the couch that we have in 707 is [that] fine Italian leather that you know they couldn't figure out how to get it-- fit it in the elevator. I don't think you heard the story.
Clint: No, no, tell me more. They have to haul it up through the deck?
Kim: Yes, they hold it up seven flights over the bough, over the lanais.
Clint: Oh, my goodness. That must have been an undertaking.
Kim: Well, you know, I'm watching this to [--] with the Aloha Movers [crosstalk] one day. Okay, and I'm watching them haul this couch up and you know and these are big guy, right? And they're like hanging onto the lanai railing haul this thing up and I'm seeing myself railing don't fail me now because these guys would have gone over with the couch. But no, everything you know they got it in there [and it was] perfect and it was a feat getting it all in there and then of course because I'm into electronics, right?
Clint: Oh, very much so yeah.
Kim: I mean you know all the electronics--.
Clint: Speaking of which, give us your website. Tell us a little bit about your show just so people understand who aren't regulars to the Kim Komando show.
Kim: Well, thank you. The website is komando.com. That's with a K, of course. You know I realize a [joke], you go commando, Mike. Yeah, okay. That's me though I haven't heard that. But I talk about consumer electronics. I don't do politics. [Tell me] about living the best digital life. I'm on 400 radio stations including [KOAI].
Clint: All right.
Kim: If you're in Honolulu or on KHVH and sometimes, you get [--] on the Big Island too. And then I also host a show once a week on Bloomberg Television that airs in 344 million homes around the globe. That's [--].
Clint: That's some serious numbers.
Kim: Then have a really busy website. I send out 40 million newsletters a month, definitely not an overnight success by any means.
Clint: No, it's a process.
Kim: But I really enjoy what I do and I enjoy making a difference in people's lives. And you know and just seeing how you can help families and people and parents and teachers you know really get a hold of this whole digital life that we have right now that just us all-consuming.
Clint: Yeah, and I mean that's one of the reasons so many people come to Maui too because it's a [plans] to disconnect while still being you know right a part of the world. You know we've been working towards making our economy more tech-oriented savvy you know putting in fiber optic cables. And you know dealing with the influx of tourists is kind of this common you know problem that we were dealing with starting in the 90s up until now. So you know you can work and live remotely but so many people come here and they get the Maui time. You know they start slowing down and really enjoying [crosstalk] themselves.
Kim: [You feel] like you know the first couple of days you're like, yeah, okay, we're going to go do this and get that done and then it's like, well, we could do that tomorrow. Oh, that would be okay. But I'll say it. One of the things that always I-- last time, we were there on island is that we were having dinner at [Spago]. It's just amazing, right?
Clint: Oh, right down the path.
Kim: There was a family: a mom and dad and two kids because we were on their [--] mom and dad. You know all four of them were on their phones for most of dinner. And I just want to like look. I just wanted to like slap [upside] the head and say, "You know what--"
Clint: Look around you.
Kim: "[crosstalk] put it away and like look at that amazing sunset. I mean look at the food that you're eating. Look at the environment. Feel the breeze. Hear the ocean.
Clint: Have you done any shows on tech addiction?
Kim: Oh, yeah, [--] that too. Yeah, it is-- and you know sometimes I'm guilty of it too--.
Clint: Oh, we all are.
Kim: --especially like you know when you're sitting there and somebody says, "You know what, who won the night to [--]?" like I don't know. Let me google that because I need to know that right now, right?
Clint: Yeah. So one last thing I wanted to get into before we go into the nuts and bolts associated with Polo Beach and the work. I actually have the Venturas in the studio with us. Say hi, boys.
Venturas: Hi.
Venturas: Hello.
Kim: I can wait.
Clint: So I wanted to get into just a little bit more about Polo Beach and its location. So what's your favorite shops? You go to Nick's fish market and you know go to their happy hour and there's other restaurants that you like in the area?
Kim: Well, I'll tell you what I really like is that right next door as you mentioned you have [--]. And so you know what's nice is that you can just walk like five minutes--.
Clint: If that--.
Kim: --three minutes maybe and you go over to Ko. And Ko has this amazing dish, Ahi on the Rock. I don't know if you've ever had it.
Clint: No, that sounds amazing.
Kim: Like, oh you have to get it. They give you cubes of fresh Ahi with this rock that's heated up to 500 degrees.
Clint: Oh, don't touch.
Kim: And then you stir your own Ahi, so--.
Clint: All right.
Kim: --just amazing. And they always have great Kama'aina I mean they do.
Clint: All right.
Kim: And then, of course, Nick Fish Market. You can't go wrong and there's Spago. I actually like Duo, too [crosstalk].
Clint: Oh, we actually just ate at Duo a little while ago. They have a really good Kama'aina especially for kids.
Kim: Yeah, It's amazing. And they still do in the cotton candy.
Clint: Every time. Yeah. It's-- they started it and they-- that's how they continue to do it.
Kim: Love that. Monkeypod's good too although sometimes it gets kind of crowded. You have to make a reservation.
Clint: Yeah, it does. It does. Yeah, well they're for Hawaii and especially the Wailea area. They started with a really good price point. They've come up a little bit but they're still a good value for the quality [crosstalk].
Kim: Yes, they are. So there's and then, of course, you know you've got the market there right there at the shops at Wailea. And what's interesting to me is I don't know if you noticed about the Louis Vuitton store is that the Louis Vuitton store actually has the lowest prices in the country.
Clint: No kidding. I did not know that.
Kim: Yes, it's the State of Hawaii. There was something going on where like they were charging more than other states. And so now if you buy Louis Vuitton, if you buy it like in Honolulu or the subs of Wailea is that if you're looking for a wallet or a belt or what have you is that it's actually cheaper than if you were to buy it here on the Mainland.
Clint: Wooh, I've never bought anything Louis Vuitton before. I think that's going to have to change.
Kim: Oh, you know keep selling the condos [crosstalk].
Clint: You know it. So thank you so much. I really appreciate you coming on the show. Is there anything else you want to say about Hawaii or that Maui location where Polo Beach is?
Kim: Well, I would like to say that so often when you do remodels that there are a lot of things that go wrong. Okay. I remodeled homes. I flipped homes here in Arizona also in California. And I will tell you that the Ventura Brothers are amazing. I have never had a construction project go so smoothly as it did with them at the helm. I didn't have to worry about anything. I was thousands of miles away but I knew that they were taking care of everything. And if something was wrong they fixed it before they called me or at least they had a solution, a possible solution before they called me--.
Clint: Very smart.
Kim: -- And what's also really nice is that they're now my friends. So I'm not like a client and I'm not a disgruntled client by any means. If you are looking for a remodel and you-- if you are looking for a contractor I [know] it. I know there are no other choices. You just call the Ventura Brothers. That's it. That's all you have to do.
Clint: And of course I have to disclose. You guys are really you know we working and we're co-listing the-- it with Velva Padgett. Velva Padgett's really the hands on the ground long-term friend and person that you guys work with and we're very pleased to be honored to be co-listing this with her. She is one of the agents in our office and I know you have had wonderful experiences with her with all your purchasing.
Kim: Oh, you know what-- how I met her is I was staying because I would go up and down staying at all these different places on the coast [--]. And so I would stay at like you know the Mana Kai as I mentioned, Kam 1, Kam 2, Makena Surf , the beach villas you know. And so I actually met Velva. We were staying in Makena Surf.
Clint: Oh, no kidding.
Kim: Her son--. Yeah, her son at that time was five.
Clint: Oh, man.
Kim: And my son--.
Clint: He's an adult man by the way.
Kim: My son was five. Yeah, they're 18 now. And so we just struck up a conversation and a friendship and she taught me how to paddle foot.
Clint: All right. That's great. So thank you so much for coming on the show today. I really appreciate all that you have to offer with your experiences on Maui and how Polo is an amazing spot. If anybody wants to go see her listing, you can go to our featured condo listings at mauirealestate.net. That's mauirealestate.net or contact me. I could always shoot it to you in an email or a text at 808-280-2764. Thank you, Kim. I appreciate having you on the show today.
Kim: You bet you. Mahalo.
Clint: Aloha. So to get into the nuts and bolts of the actual remodel, I have Brian and Dennis Ventura. Say hi, guys.
Venturas: Hi, Clint.
Clint: So nice warm review of all the hard work and I just to let you know, we've lived on island for over 30 years and I like to tell people I've conceived and raised. I don't get quite born and raised. Yeah, but you know Maui is a magical spot for a couple of things for my family and we grew up on Charlie Young Beach and you know in the Kihei area and then for high school, I went upcountry. But you know my mom and dad, Maui we all worked together as a family and that's really important to us because you know there's a vested interest in not only what we've done in the past but what we're doing in the future and have that ongoing tradition and that's one of the reasons. And we have a whole number of people that we recommend depending on the size and scope of the job. But if you have a big remodel anything from you know just a fancy kitchen to building a home I always like to have Ventura as top on the list. And so to go on a little bit. Tell us a little bit about yourselves and your family because they're a long family tradition of being on Maui and doing jobs here.
Venturas: Well, thank you, Clint. My dad started the business in '77. He was a union contractor or carpenter and then he went on his own, started a business small and ran a nice business for a lot of years. My brother and I we took it over about 12 years ago.
Clint: Oh, you've been working in it since you were babies though.
Venturas: Yeah, we worked with him since we were a little boy. We took it over. He stepped back and we've been blessed to be able to work for people like Kim Komando and do these Polo Beach units and we've been given opportunities to do some really wonderful work.
Clint: And just to get into not so much-- later on, we'll go into more of the general projects but let's talk about Polo Beach in general. So I know that this particular unit was quite an undertaking with all the supply apart. I'm imagining that Kim was the one giving you the materials and the connections. I know you guys are very good with your sourcing and whatnot but tell me a little bit more about how you know working collaboratively with somebody 5000 miles away works and specifically the idiosyncrasies with Polo Beach.
Venturas: Well, so I ran that job and a lot of it was actually Michelle Wagner working with Kim getting an entire design book and that's one thing she mentioned Michelle Wagner and she is over the top just so detailed. And when we get a set of plans from her, it has and this was a metric built. So we had to go out and get new tape measures ready buddy. It was so detailed to the point where the toolbars, [robohooks]. There's dimensions everywhere on the plan. And it needed to be because you know our normal jobs we'd bring in cabinets from anywhere: Washington, East Coast, West Coast. Doesn't matter. But normally your surfaces, your granite, your [court size], whatever your countertops are, they're fabricated locally. All these came from Italy. And so everything had to be precise--.
Clint: [crosstalk] doublecheck.
Venturas: -because we're dealing with concrete building and in the end, it was off and we had to fight to make this entire system work. My brother did the backsplash, the glass backsplash that she was talking about that is colored and it actually reflects the ocean while still adding to the entire look of this ultramodern kitchen. It was-- you can't cut those pieces of glass.
Clint: No, they looks like it comes together flawlessly. When I take--.
Venturas: [It didn't].
Clint: --anytime I don't even think that anything went wrong. It looks like it came together like you know a Jenga set or something like that because it's flawless. Every single line is perfect on it. The fact that you're telling me that it was even the remotely difficult surprises me. So yeah. Tell me a little bit more about making it look that way flawless.
Venturas: Well, it you know and that's one thing that we work-- how we work together and not kill each other because brothers he has special sets and I have special sets. We know when we come into a kitchen, I don't touch subzero doors if it's a subzero Viking if it's got finish--.
Venturas: Panel ready.
Venturas: -- panel, panel ready fridges. He does it. I just-- there you go. I hit all the crown molding because that's what I'm good at. And so where we love the high-end finishes. And part of what he said, we've been blessed to work with people like [crosstalk].
Clint: Part of the reason having that long list of you know family and familiar connections living here for so many generations. You know just about everyone on island. And you have a really incredible set of workers as well. I was very impressed with their quality and how you worked together as a team. But yeah, go on with then.
Venturas: So the one nice thing about communicating with Kim and Berry was just their availability and that's modern technology. Not in the phones being able to face time, being able to send them photos immediately but it was so-- they were actually really because we were nervous when we first took the job. She's a big name you know and I remember the first time I met her. I was sitting there going, I know that voice. I know that voice you know. I'm like, what the heck is this? And it was fun. It was a lot of fun. But you know you're dealing with a star. You're dealing with a national figure. And so we're like, okay, how is this going to be there and buried right off the bat said he goes, I like things. I'm very specific. I want this. This is what we're going to want provided we'll be fine. And Dennis and I looked at other.
Clint: Clear, concise, and good, yeah.
Venturas: This is going to be easy if this is who they are. And it is exactly who they were. Kim, she got into telling me one day. I got to sit down with her and she told me her story and it was amazing. The woman is truly-- she has a beautiful heart.
Clint: Absolutely.
Venturas: It's so much fun because growing up, I worked at the Four Seasons and I met stars that are fake that when you meet them, you're like, wow, that's disappointing.
Clint: They had a smile on their face in there but they were talking through their teeth.
Venturas: Oh, yeah. And she's so down to earth. I really, really [like her].
Clint: I'm going to blame Maui for that. She's been here a long time [crosstalk].
Venturas: Yeah, there you go. It has that way of doing it.
Clint: But I mean I think it's really nice the fact that I can safely and securely know that when I recommend you guys. You know in this case we did have you know Michelle Wagner working in conjunction with you. But there's so many times in many different projects that we've had the good fortune of our buyers and sellers picking you that things get done. And there's always a stream of communication like you said with phones today and texts. There's never been a time that I have had to wait more than an hour to get in touch with you guys anytime and which is you know everybody needs their downtime. You know we've gotten baseball games and family stuff on weekends--.
Venturas: Soccer.
Clint: --and whatnot but even then it's-- I'm really impressed that you guys go that extra mile so thank you so much.
Venturas: No, we-- that's one thing that Dennis fronts the phone whenever our phone line rings. We now have an office manager. She answers it, calls us. You get a callback. We don't believe in making people wait because--.
Venturas: As much as possible.
Venturas: Yeah, I mean and that is one thing we do. We don't like to bring problems to clients because they don't need to--.
Clint: Not without a solution.
Venturas: deal with that. Exactly. We find two to three solutions then we bring them. We send them photos and we make sure because no matter what these condos aren't just moneymakers. You could hear it even in 509 which she doesn't live in. It's personal to her. She takes pride in that. And so we have to replicate that and take pride in what we do to make sure she's getting exactly what she wants.
Venturas: And we have to thank the Hansens too because [crosstalk] 509 was the first unit we did it Polo Beach. Was that about 12 years ago?
Venturas: Yeah.
Venturas: And I don't think Clint was really involved with the business at that time [crosstalk].
Clint: I have my license 19 years and brokers for five [crosstalk]. So on that particular project, I wasn't I was you know showing and working on other properties but yeah, not that specific one.
Venturas: You know your mom and dad brought us in and since then we've been at Polo Beach and I can tell you it's probably my favorite place to work.
Clint: All right.
Venturas: I love doing work there. The views are spectacular.
Clint: Hard to get stuff done. Why are those lines straight?
Venturas: Yeah, you know I mean we've done a fair number remodels and we work all over Wailea, Kihei, and Kapalua.
Clint: Upcountry too. I mean you guys live in Kula so--.
Venturas: [--] the house is gone up there right now.
Venturas: That beach, that location, everything about it is-- it's special and that's why people like him buy there.
Clint: And it's good to you know working with the management. They also know you there and there's always idiosyncrasies because you're working with different boards and different management teams. But tell us a little bit more not just about the unit but working specifically through to get stuff done in the complex like you know, was there extra hurdles or any unexpected things?
Venturas: Condo work is always challenging because you're working--.
Clint: Schedules.
Venturas: --in a community where people are-- they're interested in what you're doing. They want to see what you're doing. But it's also inconvenient for them because the noise, the dust, different things like that. So it's a real fine line and you have to figure out what each condo wants because they all have different criteria. So every time you go into a new condo there is a learning curve and you know takes a little more time.
Clint: So and there for Polo, I know that you guys are going to be doing some elevator work?
Venturas: No, we did the-- we're doing all the lobbies in the elevator. So basically--.
Clint: Oh, I see. I see the interiors.
Venturas: --what we just did was, yeah. We redid every single the two walls in Polo Beach as you enter every single lobby, elevator lobby on each floor. We changed the interior tile layout and we added IPE cladding, this rain screen.
Clint: Oh, beautiful.
Venturas: Yeah. So it just modernized the lobbies of the elevators and then we're currently redoing the entire ground floor. They tore out all the old blue square court site and they're putting in flagstone and it is just-- it's beautiful.
Clint: Modernizing it. It's been due for an update but it is a lot of timeless pieces that they have in there but it's looking really ultra-modern now. And it's good to see that work coming along.
Venturas: One of the things about Polo Beach that I know the owners love is the AOAL has very specific construction rules and we are very limited over what we can do so when we look at a unit, when we bid a unit, we know because we've done 10 full units probably about six or seven partials where it's just a bathroom or whatever. And but Andy, their management staff is amazing, the way they take care. In fact, they have some railing work being done and this railing guy remembers the original job. And he said, "Oh, yeah I worked with Jacko when they did this." "We did the original railings.". And he goes, "you know what, I am absolutely amazed." The railings in this property still look like their original condition and it's all to the management and these guys, they're two twin brothers: Andy and Tom. They've worked there for 30 years. They take so much pride in that building. That's their home. Even though they don't live there, that's their home. And now, one of them Andy is the property manager. His sons involved. The way they take care of this-- it's so unique because it's not just the job. They actually love where they live. The owners take care of them. And so it's just that a symbiotic relationship where it is an amazing property and we are so--.
Venturas: [The building] has a weird community in the sense that they're very intertwined and they all seem to be like a family where other buildings work in half the owners don't know each other.
Clint: Or they're never there.
Venturas: Or they're never there or you know you got a couple here that know each other and like each other. That building it just seems like they're one big happy family. They all get along. They all you know-- they all have similar goals and and just love being there.
Clint: I mean they have a real vision for the complex and it's--.
Venturas: Yeah, they do.
Clint: --nice to seeing it come together. And I think that's part of the reason that comparatively most oceanfront complexes you're going to be running you know $1.50 to $2.00 a square foot you know especially with some of the older buildings for their maintenance fee. And I mean they're running like I think $1.25 or $1.20 per square foot. So that's really a good price and I think it's because it's all that extra love that both the owners and the management team are putting into it because like you said they really take pride in it--.
Venturas: Yeah, they do.
Clint: --and obviously, they choose good people so--.
Venturas: When the maintenance that they do-- honestly, when you buy into a condo, you're always concerned about okay, how is the structure, how [it guts] because one thing we just saw Kaanapali Alii and all these other places that have had to go through and change all the cast [iron] pipes. It is a huge expense and you know that and that big bills coming.
Clint: And there's a lot more of those common too. I mean down the line we're getting to that age 1970s, 1980s build all cast iron, yeah.
Venturas: All Maalaea, most of Kihei is getting there.
Clint: So--.
Venturas: But Andy and the management, the AOAL-- every single time we tear open a wall they're like, stop, give us a day. They bring in a plumber and they redo all the cast iron.
Clint: Oh, yeah.
Venturas: When it's open at the AOAL's expense because it's a common area whenever you break into those plumbings, that plumbing chase and so they're being incredibly proactive rather than [crosstalk].
Clint: Reactive.
Venturas: Exactly. And so it kind of gives owners even though I mean basically they are using their fees really wisely. That we-- because we work in a lot of condos and some of the other ones are just chasing their tail.
Clint: I see some of them. You know one of them said actually being proactive is like Maui Vista. They're good. They're going in. They've scoped all the lower floor ones, have been replacing the pipes, and they got a really good deal with it now. Some other complexes I see they're just kind of chasing these leaks around and then it's becoming more and more of a problem before--.
Venturas: Yeah, [for sure].
Clint: --you kind of start getting these catastrophic failures on a regular basis. And so it is really important to be proactive and it's going to be a lot cheaper in the long run. But you know that's why it's important to have a good board that like Polo Beach that sees you know a forward-thinking prevents problems and expense down the line. It's-- I never heard of any kind of major issue with a common area element. You know there's always mistakes that happen you know between water heaters breaking and whatnot but they're there and they're on top of things.
Venturas: But for sure.
Clint: Now, stepping away a little bit from Polo Beach. Name some-- you know I know that you guys do anything from like just a full kitchen remodel to you know gutting a home or building a home from the sticks up. But let's just talk about projects in general. Can you tell us some of the other like complexes and projects that you've worked on and you know working through associations? Is that something that you can do and have?
Venturas: Absolutely. We're in working at Makena Surf right now. We have a one project going there. We're-- we've been at the Mana Kai for years and doing condo work as well as AOAL work done working [crosstalk]
Venturas: Iron Woods.
Venturas: Iron Woods, Bay Villas.
Clint: I think you're one of the only people that has more miles on their car than me. I see [crosstalk] you everywhere.
Venturas: On the red trucks. But yeah the associations, they're good to us. If you follow the rules and you respect them, they're always respectful of you and they always appreciate you and we try to do that as a company. And then we do have our new homes. We've been blessed to have a couple real nice ones over the last two years, two or three years. One we just finished by on Halama St. [All right]. That came up pretty nice. I was pretty proud of that one.
Clint: Yeah, that was that one that's-- it's not three stories you got like kind of a basement level and then above the [crosstalk].
Venturas: No, it's a two-story home that's in the flood zone. So we had to elevate it above the flood zone a little bit.
Venturas: And that took 16 months to get through the county. And we do want people to understand that did go through the county and the county was the one that required it to be that high. The owner did not want to build the house that high but the county required that they actually elevate it because of the flood plain.
Clint: Yeah, because everybody-- all the ocean fronts have that little bit of elevation up on top of it but it slopes down after. It's almost like a berm--.
Venturas: [crosstalk], yeah.
Clint: --because from what I understand that whole area and like the late 1930s, early 1940s was all engineered by the Army Corps engineers. They came in, pushed all the rock up along the coast. So you have these little slope areas. Now, on either side of the street, you're relatively fine because you've got the hill and the berm. Now, that home is lower you know than a lot of the other homes in the area. Funny thing you might not realize is I actually grew up at that house back in the day. I used to mow that lawn and because my buddy he lived there so I'd ride my bike from you know Kam 1 all the way down through a park and you know go hang out there and I love that street, Halama.
Venturas: It's a great location.
Clint: So [and then] we have the listing right across this area, 18760. It's the most affordable oceanfront property in all of South and West Maui right now. And I mean it's like 11,000 square feet. It's got two structures and it's this 19-- you know 55, house old Hawaii style.
Venturas: I saw the new listing. [That's right].
Clint: Yeah, it's really well-maintained. You know most likely somebody is going to-- we're selling it. That's a reason so cheap at land value but it's literally move-in ready you know. We've had so many offers on that property and we're like look you know it's going to be somewhere North of 3. It's you know and we've gotten like half a dozen offers you know below the 3 mark and we just fell out of escrow. We were like pretty close to asking and going back and forth and then you know before closing, [they're] like, I'm sorry, I don't have the cash. Oh, what? How does this like-- where do you come from? But you know they just-- they [were] on top of it and being able to perform and get the rest of their cash here. So I think they'll probably come back a little bit later down the line when they sell something else and get in. But if somebody is looking for one of the best locations, it's nice because Halama, a lot of them-- it's more of a private intimate relationship with the ocean as opposed to being like us when we grew up here. You know Charlie Young Beach, we had a path right in front of our house so we were a part of the community. You know Halama, there's a lot more privacy if you're looking for that you know--.
Venturas: Oh, definitely.
Clint: --compared to other oceanfront properties. Now to go on a little bit more about the projects. Sorry.
Venturas: We've got two houses going on upcountry now. One's addition renovation that's really, really interesting. It was built by-- the original house was built by our grandmothers, our grandfathers mom's side of the family, the Ponce and really nice old Portuguese. It's a private road but these people bought the house from the grandma and holy smoke man those Portuguese know how to build. It was--.
Clint: [crosstalk] [Some thick] beings.
Venturas: It's a well-built houses that were tearing apart to remodel and modernize. And you know one of the big things now is aging in place and so a lot of what we're doing are these flow in showers and this family actually has a niece that comes and visits them. It's like their daughter and she's already in a wheelchair. So everything has to be [88] then. But we really-- the one thing we really enjoy we get another house that we're working with another architect and structural engineer out of Seattle that's going on up in Kula. That one's a fun project but a lot of rock up in Kula. There's [crosstalk].
Clint: Oh, the whole island. I mean people are like, oh, I want to put a pool in and I'm like, you know it's going to be like minimum 80,000 and then they're like, what? I can do this in the mainland, 50. I'll back and bring people over and I'm like, you don't understand. Have you ever dug into blue rock before?
Venturas: Sticker shock is one thing. You know it things do cost more here because the cost of living is more. We had a job in the villas, golf villas [up] in Kapalua where the guy actually he owns a carpet once sold like miles says Hawaiian corporate one. He has four in Idaho and he actually brought out his granite fabricator to do the granite countertops himself because it was cheaper and we asked the guy we said, "What do you pay your lead installer, your fabricator, lead installer." He goes, "Oh, my main fabricator is my installer." And he's got four shops. He goes, "I pay him--." What was it?
Venturas: $15.
Venturas: $15 an hour.
Venturas: And I looked at him and said--.
Clint: I can't live on Maui.
Venturas: I said you can't pay a guy to sweep your jobsite, $15 an hour on Maui. That is-- and he looked at us. He's like, wow, no wonder, it's so expensive. So there are challenges here but you know you weigh that and the value-- I mean when you look at that VBRO numbers that she threw out.
Clint: VRBO, yeah.
Venturas: Yeah, VRBO. It's amazing. I mean the income that you can produce on a piece of property like Polo Beach where it is rental vacation rental. It's an investment. I've been looking at [crosstalk]--.
Clint: Right.
Venturas: --eventually not a Polo but you know there's other properties on this island where if you produce something, we have renovation packages where we've done rentals in Maalaea and North Kihei and there are affordable packages that people can bring up the quality and also bring up their income.
Clint: Yeah, I mean there's some smart choices obviously getting rid of carpet and you know putting in something that's a bit more durable. Everyone's like, oh, I want to put wood in and I'm like you know you do have to realize you're in a moist environment here. Wood contend to change and warp. Get some of this laminate that looks like wood. You know you can drop a wet towel on it for a week and it's not going to harm it.
Venturas: Yeah, absolutely.
Clint: And it's not only affordable. It also looks amazing. So making right good choices for anything from a smaller job to anything to the absolute pinnacle of customization is that's one of the reasons I love to give you guys your number out to everybody because everything that you do is right on target.
Venturas: We appreciate.
Clint: [And] very flexible.
Venturas: When we try and-- we try and meet that standard every time that's sort of-- that's our goal is.
Clint: So one last thing, I know we kind of got off specifically but are there any things that you would say? Because [one] just a course a brief question. Have you noticed a difference putting in permits in the last year in the county compared to in the past? Because I've been talking to a few people and they've had a lot more success and things have been a little bit quicker so.
Venturas: Zoning.
Venturas: Zoning, yeah.
Venturas: Zoning is definitely gotten better with the [SME]. I mean that seems to improve a lot. There's still some room for improvement but what are the permits--.
Venturas: At least they're working.
Clint: Yeah, water department. Well, they tried to shake things up in there. I mean they tried to get rid of the water guy and do some things and then I think he's still in his position so you know sometimes to have bigger changes, you need to start from management down and it's not that he's doing a bad job but you know there's new ways to get stuff done.
Venturas: Yeah and that's been holding up some of our permits. They've been having adding additional requirements to associations into homeowners that weren't there in the past.
Clint: And costs.
Venturas: And costs that have slowed it down. Overall, it stayed about the same maybe a little better but--.
Venturas: You know the reality is this. I'd rather than double the price of the permits.
Clint: Yeah and then they could [crosstalk].
Venturas: An improve. Yeah, because when you-- in the mainland they're paying more for permits but they're getting them in the third quarter of the time. And so if it's a staff issue but a lot of times it's counteracting rules. So the water department has rules that--.
Clint: Overlap.
Venturas: Zoning, yeah.
Clint: It doesn't [--]. It conflict [crosstalk].
Venturas: So it's challenging. But you know what I will say this if you're going to go on for permits, be nice.
Clint: Yes. It's so surprises me.
Venturas: Because they're just doing their job and they're not I mean--.
Venturas: They're always very helpful if you show them respect. They've never--.
Venturas: The ladies in [crosstalk] phenomenal.
Clint: Thank you. So tell me a little bit. What website should I'd be directing people to for the Venturas?
Venturas: That's vccmaui.com, Victor-Charlie-Charlie, maui.com.
Clint: And a phone number.
Venturas: 808-876-0341.
Clint: Oh, right. Nice timing. Thank you for joining us today on Maui Real Estate Radio and we're broadcasting today on 11:10 AM, 96.7 FM, 98.7 FM, and our friends on the West Side at 95.5 FM. This is Clint Hansen with Maui Luxury Real Estate. You can tune in Mondays at 7:00 AM to listen to this or go to [music] mauirealestateradio.com to get the podcast. And there's a whole slew of shows on there, everything from 1031 exchanges, how escrow works. You name it. We got it. Again, our website is mauirealestate.net or the radio show mauirealestateradio.com. Aloha.
List of Shows to Date:
Show 1: Mortgage vs. Rent
Show 2: Buying on Maui. Deciding where to purchase.
Show 3: Leasehold, affordable ownership and Na Hale O Maui
Show 4: Inspections with Beau Petrone
Show 5: 1031 Exchange
Show 6: Hospital
Show 7: Insurance with State Farm agent Kit Okazaki
Show 8: Understanding the escrow process with Pam Teal of Fidelity National Title
Show 9: Everything you need to know about solar on Maui as of 06/17/2019
Show 10: The Hansen's a family tradition in Real Estate
Show 11: Paul Brewbaker discussion on Maui
Show 12: Keli with Creative Financial
Show 13: Pets and Pests
Show 14: Clint Hansen with Kim Komando
Show 15: Clint Hansen with Bob Hansen and Donna Hansen
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