HONOLULU (KHON2) — There’s a new model home in West Oahu that’s the first of its kind in Hawaii. It doesn’t look like your typical home here, but some say it’s a perfect fit for anyone looking to get into the market.
Ahakea at Hoopili is DR Horton Hawaii’s newest offering. On the inside, these homes feature everything a buyer would want – a smart home with luxury vinyl flooring, stainless steel appliances, and split A/C.
But on the outside, you can see these homes are different.
“My first thought was wow, this is skinny,” said Matthew Faufata-Pedrina, Ahakea buyer. “But then I walk in the house and I actually feel kinda spacious.”
These Gen-homes are no more than 12 feet wide, and no bigger than a thousand square feet. Matthew Faufata-Pedrina liked the home so much, he’s one of the first buyers – scheduled to close in about a month.
“I’m excited,” said Faufata-Pedrina. “Hopefully everything works out. Super excited. It’s good. Set me and my family up for a bright future.”
“On our first grand opening, the first two days, we had over 200 people show up,” said Jurel Shinjo-Mattison, DR Horton Hawaii new home specialist. “We had our first release, completely sold out.”
On paper, these homes might be smaller than what some buyers want. But the developer says they’ve maximized every inch to make it feel as spacious as possible, like a setup with the upstairs living area having the TV mounted in the stairwell.
“Try to maximize all the space here,” said Shinjo-Mattison. “For these new generational homes, we try to be as efficient as possible.”
“I think the way it’s laid out, it just makes it feel like it’s not 880 square feet,” said Faufata-Pedrina. “It makes it feel kinda like a single family.”
Prices are in the $700,000 range, well below the $1.15 million median for single-family homes on Oahu.
“I think there’s a market for it,” said Trevor Benn, Honolulu Board of Realtors President. “I’m a proponent of any kind of mixed options for our buyers. I think it’s a lower price point. I think it’s great to be the first rung, potentially on a housing ladder, to get into the market.”
These are single-family homes, but do have a common area maintenance fee and association fee totaling about $150/month.
Right now, Hoopili’s master plan has 91 of these homes available.
With amenities like playgrounds, parks, basketball and pickleball courts and a Skyline station just a couple of blocks away, realtors say this is an up-and-coming neighborhood.
“When you buy a home with us here in Hoopili, you’re not just buying a home, you’re buying a whole community,” said Shinjo-Mattison. “And so if you haven’t come out to see our community just yet, it’s worth the drive.”