Donald Trump has encountered major troubles with several Trump-branded skyscraper projects launched but not completed before the U.S. real estate market boom turned to bust. But the megadeveloper could pull off a stellar success with his Waikiki hotel-condominium.

The Trump International Hotel & Tower Waikiki is on track for September completion, with finished interior rooms up to the 15th floor, high-end kitchen appliances installed up to the 25th floor and plumbing lines started on the highest floor of the 38-story tower a block from the ocean, adjacent to Fort DeRussy Beach Park.

Sales at the described "ultra-luxury" condotel, however, aren't a done deal.

All 464 units sold out during a sales event in November 2006 when the local real estate market was still hot. But buyers still need to close their purchases when the tower is finished, which for many will require obtaining a loan under dramatically different circumstances in lending, jobs and the economy.

As one of the highest-priced residential or resort condo properties ever built in the state, a lot is riding on the project led by California-based development firm Irongate Capital with Trump.

If buyers don't complete their sales, they risk forfeiting deposits roughly ranging between $90,000 and more than $1 million, or 20 percent of the purchase price.

For the project's high-profile namesake, completing the tower with a sellout or near-sellout would give the New York developer a triumph amid a string of recent troubles that include abandonment of a condotel project in Baja California, a 100 percent presold condotel in Las Vegas that opened in April with fewer than 30 percent of sales closed, and a Chicago condotel that remains 30 percent unsold ahead of a mid-year completion amid a legal battle between Trump and a project lender.

"Trump International Hotel and Tower Waikiki is a great success," Trump Organization said in a statement.

Local real estate brokers who have represented buyers in the Trump Waikiki project say some clients have expressed concern about their purchases, given recent negative changes in financial markets, property values, the visitor industry and consumer confidence.

But they also say indications are that buyers intend to complete their purchases at Trump Waikiki.

"It doesn't seem like the high-end luxury market is that affected," said Kathleen Kagawa, president of local firm Hawaii 5-0 Properties, which helped broker 25 sales at Trump Waikiki for buyers from Hawai'i and the Mainland. "Most of the people we sold to are financially solid and intend to close."

Kagawa also bought more than five units with partners, and said the value of the only fee-simple condo units in Waikiki aiming for a five-diamond hotel rating remains strong.

"We're pretty happy with where we are," she said.

UNITS SOLD OUT

John Herkenrath, a sales agent with Trump Waikiki's exclusive broker, S&P Destination Properties, said he's heard from agents representing buyers expressing apprehension over the stability of local real estate values, the upended economy and their ability to get a loan.

Herkenrath said he's sensitive to buyers who may have experienced severe hardship since they contracted to buy a Trump Waikiki unit, but believes the concerns raised, by and large, shouldn't stop buyers from completing their deals.

On the point of real estate values, Herkenrath said median condominium sale prices on O'ahu are up close to 5 percent from the end of 2006, including no change last year.

Also, Herkenrath said it's evident from a few resales of units by the developer after the initial sale event that initial prices weren't as high as they could have been.

"People got a fabulous deal buying these in 2006," he said.

At the initial sale event inside the adjacent posh Halekulani Hotel, units sold out for a collective $700 million, representing an average of $1.5 million and a range from about $460,000 for a 400-square-foot studio to about $9 million for a three-bedroom penthouse.

About a half-dozen sales were canceled within a 30-day rescission period allowing full deposit refunds. Herkenrath said the developer put the rescission fallout units back on the market last July and most sold for 20 percent to 30 percent more than the original prices.

One mid-story makai unit resold for $2.9 million, up from $2.2 million originally. A penthouse that initially sold for $6.8 million resold for $9.5 million, Herkenrath said.

Those resales occurred before much of the global economy carnage unfolded late last year. But Herkenrath said the units retain a positive value even assuming general real estate values have been depressed in recent months.

"It's fee-simple luxury real estate in Waikiki," he said. "It's a finite resource. Come 10 years from now, this is going to be the most valuable property in Waikiki."

DEALS NOT YET CLOSED

Still, some real estate industry observers said it wouldn't surprise them if some Trump Waikiki buyers abandon purchases and their hefty deposits with them.

Ricky Cassiday, a local residential real estate market researcher often paid by developers for feasibility studies, said all the dire economic news combined with plummeting local hotel occupancy rates and lofty Trump Waikiki maintenance fees could spook some buyers into walking away from their purchases.

In Las Vegas, at least a few buyers in Trump's 1,282-unit condotel have sued to get their deposits back, claiming misrepresentations were made by sales agents, according to press reports.

Such lawsuits aren't uncommon after economic circumstances decline and buyers seek to cancel purchases and recover nonrefundable deposits. A similar lawsuit was filed against a Trump project in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and against local developer Brian Anderson by some condotel unit buyers at the Ilikai hotel in Waikiki.

Trump's Las Vegas condotel reportedly was sold out before it was finished last April, but as of July had closed sales on only 400 units, according to press reports. Trump Organization did not provide a sales update for any of its projects outside Hawai'i that was requested for this story.

Average hotel occupancy on O'ahu was 68.2 percent, down 13 percentage points from 81.2 percent in November 2006, when Trump Waikiki units sold out. However, Herkenrath said S&P didn't sell Trump Waikiki based on its investment potential.

Room occupancy and rental rates shouldn't have been a factor for people buying Trump Waikiki units, he said. "These are long-term lifestyle choices people are making. If you're going to a Rolls-Royce dealer and asking about the gas mileage, you're buying the wrong product."

TIMING MAY MATTER

For it to make economic sense for a buyer to walk away from a 20 percent deposit, the condo values conceivably would have to fall by a similar amount — something Herkenrath said isn't likely for such a unique property.

"That's a lot of cake to walk away from," he said.

Mortgage financing potentially will be the biggest challenge for some Trump Waikiki buyers. Loans without income verification that were easy to get in late 2006 don't exist today. Also, some lenders that were making condotel unit loans two years ago based on 20 percent down payments are now requiring 30 percent or 40 percent down, which could trip up buyers.

Herkenrath said Trump Waikiki's developer is lining up a group of preferred lenders for buyers to work with, but how much down payment will be required won't be known for about a month.

Even if buyers face challenging loan requirements, Herkenrath said it behooves them to qualify for a loan and close the sale even if they have to find partners.

If construction proceeds smoothly for the building, which is about 75 percent complete, an opening is expected in September, at which time all sales are scheduled to close.

To be sure, that leaves time for possibly more dramatic changes in the local real estate market and the economy that could affect buyers.

Timing — on which all high-rise real estate deals are dependent — can be just as much a factor as location or a brand name connected to a project.

In Baja California, a 526-unit condotel planned by Irongate and Trump and marketed by S&P lost its construction financing and failed to start construction last year. According to press reports, Trump yanked his name from the project after Irongate failed to meet construction deadlines, and buyers haven't been able to get their deposits back.

Other canceled or postponed Trump projects include towers in Tampa, Fla., Philadelphia and Dubai.

But in Waikiki, Trump remains confident.

"We're sold out, and the project is well under construction — we're already at the 38th floor in construction, and are moving forward on schedule, anticipating completing the project for a late 2009 opening," Trump's company said in its statement.