So you have seen all the news regarding how slow the real estate market is around the country in the newspapers, on TV, and in magazines.  So how slow is the Hawaii real estate market?  

This past weekend brought flashbacks of a few years ago during the torrid pace of the previous real estate boom.  People began to line up Friday for a chance to purchase an affordable condo unit in a new development project in Salt Lake.  Over 500 people stood in line by the time the sales office opened Sunday at 10:00am.  That isn’t the sign of a slow market.

“Housing’s crazy,” said one of those waiting, Raymond Almeida. “I’ve been here since 1 a.m. Saturday morning. You do what you’ve got to do for a chance at something you can afford to buy,” Almeida said. Almeida took turns holding a spot in line with his fiancee, Taryn Aname. The 17-story tower will contain 269 units priced from $218,000 to $397,500. Project construction is set to begin in November and be complete by March 2009.