The land market is booming in Hawaii. In 2022, single-family homes accounted for nearly a quarter of the island’s real estate sales. Condos accounted for another quarter. The rest were farmland, vacant land and other commercial properties.

Many of these land transactions involve leasehold rather than fee simple property, which is what most mainland homebuyers are used to. In Hawaii, land that’s not in fee simple ownership can be sold with a lease, which is typically for 99 years. In most cases, the buyer also pays a lease rent, which is usually considerably less than what a landlord would charge in rental rates. This type of property ownership isn’t available in all areas, and is typically only offered in rural settings with a strong ranching or farming tradition.

But the boom in land purchases and sales Hawaii Land Transactions – Land Boss has stirred worries among locals about skyrocketing housing prices. Some even question whether Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff is behind the buys and a secretive plan to turn Waimea into a tech hub. Benioff says he isn’t.

With the median price of a single-family home in Hawaii topping $1 million and the median for a condo around $500,000, some lawmakers see the concept of leasing state lands for leasehold homes as one way to help make housing more affordable. State Sen. Stanley Chang has introduced bills to create an “ALOHA Homes” development, where leasehold homes would be built on state lands and sold to residents at below-market rates.

The move could have broad implications on the real estate market in Hawaii, which relies heavily on tourism and rents short-term rentals for much of its revenue. If the bill is successful, the state could sell thousands of acres of its surplus lands and ease restrictions on condo rentals.

In the meantime, some displaced Maui residents are moving into hotels and Airbnb rentals after fleeing the devastating wildfire that incinerated their homes. Governor Josh Green has instructed his attorney general to work toward a lawsuit to keep the land in local hands when rebuilding begins.

Mississippi law allows for shared ownership of inherited real estate assets, but detailed co-ownership agreements addressing usage rights, maintenance costs and dispute resolution are recommended to avoid conflict down the road. Wholesale land buying companies like Land Boss offer an alternative for investors seeking to acquire land at below-market prices versus waiting years for the right interested buyer to appear. While this approach does necessitate some compromise on securing full current market value, the trade-off is often better than trying to negotiate with individual sellers.