Kakaako on Oahu's southern shore is right between Downtown and Ala Moana. It's one of the trendiest new neighborhoods in Honolulu, and a variety of new condo and retail developments are underway. Kakaako has Ward Centers, a complex with over 120 shops, 19 restaurants, and a farmers' market. There's also a brand new 150,000 square foot entertainment center. The Ala Moana Beach Park across from Ward Centers has beautiful golden sand, and the Kakaako Waterfront Park is perfect for surfing. Here are some of the hottest new Kakaako condominiums.

Koolani

The luxurious 48 story Koolani highrise is off Queen Street between Ala Moana Center, the largest open air shopping center in the world, and Ward Centers. All of its two and three bedroom units feature designer decor as well as quality materials and finishes. Most units offer stunning ocean views, and the building has a fitness center, a pool, a game room, a BBQ area, a dog walk, tennis courts, and a spa. Unit size ranges from four bedrooms and four baths to two bedrooms and two baths.

Keola Lai

This modern highrise is close to Downtown, so views are of the city with the ocean in the background. The large, impressive lobby features beautiful Polynesian-inspired decor, and it opens onto a landscaped deck with a pool, a barbecue and picnic area, and a fitness center. The one, two, or three bedroom floor plans all include high ceilings and floor to ceiling windows.

Moana Pacific

The Moana Pacific condos offer panoramic mountain or ocean views. The two 48 story towers are connected at the sixth floor by a large recreation deck with two tennis courts, three driving cages and a putting green for golf, barbeque areas, a water feature, a playground, a spa, a pool, and a children's pool. Each tower has its own theater, party room, and fitness center. The tower lobbies, gyms, and recreation deck all have Wi-Fi access. This popular community is near Ala Moana Beach Park and Ala Moana Shopping Center. Units have two or three bedrooms and two baths.

The Kakaako neighborhood is in the middle of a real estate boom, and many companies are converting commercial space into residential space to keep up with demand. A highrise condo is a smart real estate investment as well as a relaxing, luxurious home.

Real estate investors are well aware of the fact that home prices and business properties are on the rise throughout the entire United States. Investing in the booming market is sure to lead to solid profits for anyone with the foresight to put their money in the right place presently. While potential investing is solid all around the nation, no market is displaying numbers as strong as those being seen in Honolulu and Oahu. When you break down the numbers and look at the average prices of homes in the continental United States, major cities such as Boston and Los Angeles lead the way in home prices. Homes in these cities have an average price tag of $370,000 to $430,000. However, these prices are almost half of the average price being received for a home in Honolulu. Here, investors are able to sell properties for as much as $625,000.

On the islands of Hawaii, it is not unusual for owners to receive their asking price for properties at the very minimum. Real estate investors are organizing their portfolios based on the fact that they regularly receive multiple offers from several bidders, driving up their asking prices considerably. These real estate trends in Hawaii also seem to be immune to the market fluctuations that are being seen around the rest of the nation. A large majority of the boom is thought to be due to the sudden demand for the real estate in combination with a limited supply of available properties. Investors and buyers are running into situations where bids that include figures that are 8 percent above the asking price still fail to secure the property.

Studies being conducted by the University of Hawaii Economic Research Organization (UHERO) indicate that the boom will not slow down in the near future. Their reports indicate that the median price for homes in Honolulu could climb as high as $815,000 by the end of the year. Economists have also predicted that the price of a single-level home on Oahu could easily exceed $1 million by 2020. Buyers also have a considerable number of choices when they decide to invest in this burgeoning market, according to the most recent numbers. Over the past year, there have been as many as 356 homes for single families and 521 condos that have come onto the market. Also adding to the fire are incredibly-low interest rate for borrowers. Buyers can count on rates of 3.5 percent on most fixed, 30-year mortgages.