A fair number of celebrities own property in Hawaiʻi — and it's been that way for many years.
But when they sell their homes, they often do it quietly. And doing that sales process without publicity is gaining in popularity — and not just for the rich and famous.
Nearly anyone who's trying to sell a home will have their real estate agent list it on the Multiple Listing Service. That's the network of databases that feeds every residential real estate website you can think of, including Zillow.
Listing on the MLS exposes a home to the widest possible audience of potential buyers, which in most cases is a good thing.
But some people don't want just anyone to be able to see their property — think celebrities or billionaires.
Other times, it's an exclusive estate or well-known landmark that goes on the market quietly.
But some real estate agents say more regular people are asking to keep their listings private for a variety of reasons.
Some sellers want to avoid negative ratings that could come with being listed on a real estate website. Or they want to keep their privacy. Or they don't want a for-sale sign posted outside.
For real estate agents, relationships are key to marketing private listings.
Neal Norman is one of the top agents at Hawaiʻi Life — about half of his $200 million in sales last year were never listed publicly.
Norman says other agents had to call him to find out about those properties for their clients, and those that didn’t were missing out on $100 million in properties.
He says that's a substantial amount of real estate for the public not to see.
