Hawaiʻi County, HALE O Hawaiʻi partner to deliver affordable homeownership

Their dream of homeownership is now reality for the Uyeda ʻohana, who recently received the keys to their new Hilo 3-bedroom, 2-bath home.

The handover ceremony and celebration Aug. 22 marked a milestone in a partnership between HALE O Hawaiʻi Community Land Trust and Hawaiʻi County Office of Housing and Community Development, advancing an innovative land trust model to keep homes affordable for generations to come.

“With this handover, we celebrate not only a new beginning for the Uyeda ʻohana, but also a new pathway for housing on Hawaiʻi Island,” said Hawaiʻi County Mayor Kimo Alameda in an annoucement about the ceremony and partnership. “This partnership between the county and HALE O Hawaiʻi shows what is possible when we combine public resources with community stewardship.”

The home was made possible through county support and stewardship from HALE O Hawai‘i.

It received $300,000 in fiscal year 2023-24 from the county’s Affordable Housing Production Program and was developed on state-owned land conveyed to the county by executive order.

The property for this pilot project was then leased for 65 years to HALE O Hawai‘i.

“This day is about more than one home — it’s about building a model that will keep homes within reach for local families,” said Hawaiʻi County Housing Administrator Kehaulani Costa. “By providing both the land and the funding, the county was able to seed this effort, helping HALE O Hawai‘i grow its capacity to serve our community for years ahead.”

Families purchase homes through a long-term leasehold arrangement as part of the community land trust model. The land itself remains in trust, helping reduce the cost of homeownership while ensuring the property remains affordable in perpetuity.

Immediate family also can inherit the lease, strengthening generational housing stability.

HALE O Hawai‘i Board of Directors President Pete Hoffmann emphasized the broader impact.

“If this is successful, it opens a tremendous opportunity to expand perpetually affordable housing across Hawai‘i Island,” said Hoffmann in the county release. “We are proud to see the Uyeda family step into a home created under this model.”

HALE O Hawai‘i completed construction of a second single-family home in Volcano that was also supported by $300,000 in Affordable Housing Production Program funding. The land trust is in the process of finalizing the sale of the home and long-term leasehold arrangement with the qualified buyer.

Meanwhile, the county finalized the 65-year lease of another state-owned parcel in Hilo conveyed to the county by executive order to HALE O Hawaiʻi in support of additional affordable housing opportunities on Hawai‘i Island.

Supporting community land trusts is one part of the county’s larger strategy to address Hawai‘i Island’s affordable housing shortage.

Alongside efforts to increase affordable rentals, incentivize private development and rehabilitate and preserve existing housing, land trusts provide a powerful tool to create and preserve affordable homeownership opportunities that last generations.

“Together, we are building homes that will remain affordable for generations so that local families can thrive,” Alameda said.

Find more information online about HALE O Hawai‘i — founded in 2018 to make homeownership accessible for working families in Hawaiʻi County — and its work to create perpetually affordable homes.