Irrational? We'll Soon See

Asking price: $599,000. Lot: 2,414 sq. ft.  Bldg: 766 sq. ft.
Built: 1941, The yellow dumpster is overflowing.

The house in the old neighborhood is nearly unlivable.

After their parents died, the son moved to the Mainland, and the daughter, who 50 years ago would have been institutionalized, lived by herself. The weeds climbed over the fence, and the eyesore became a health- and fire-safety hazard.

A few months ago the brother returned and moved his sister to a mental-health facility. Because of its central Honolulu location, he is trying to sell the property for $599,000. However, modern zoning restrictions (for example, set back distance from the sidewalk) make a tear-down strategy very hard to make work.

We'll soon see just how irrational the Honolulu real estate market may be.