41-160 Huli St, Waimanalo, HI 96795 — 19.5% Cash-on-Cash

About this property

41-160 Huli St is a 3-bedroom, 1-bath single-family property on Hawaiian Homelands in Waimanalo, listed at $380,000 after a $45,000 price reduction.

A few things make this listing atypical before you even run the numbers. It sits on Hawaiian Homelands, meaning any purchaser must be at least 50% Native Hawaiian — a legal eligibility requirement that narrows the buyer pool significantly. The property is also leasehold, not fee simple, which is a material distinction that affects financing options and long-term equity accumulation. Neither of these facts appears buried in fine print; they're front and center in the listing description and warrant serious due diligence before proceeding.

At 924 square feet across three bedrooms, the footprint is compact. The property has been on the market 128 days — well above typical absorption in this area — and has already seen a $45,000 price cut. Public records show a tax-assessed value of $860,500, which is more than double the current asking price. That gap is almost entirely explained by the leasehold structure: fee-simple comparables in Waimanalo trade at a substantial premium, and the assessed value likely reflects land + improvement value under different ownership assumptions. Investors should not interpret the assessed-to-list spread as hidden equity.

The leasehold designation and Hawaiian Homelands eligibility requirement are the defining characteristics of this property — they shape every aspect of the investment calculus.

The investment case

Rent covers 1.6 times the total monthly payment here — an unusual margin for any Hawaii market — producing metrics that look strong on paper but require context.

List Price

$380,000

Monthly Payment (PITI+HOA)

$2,114

Principal & Interest

$1,898

Property Tax

$89

Insurance

$127

HOA

$0

PMI

$0

Est. Monthly Rent

$3,351

Estimated rent based on automated valuation of comparable listings.

Cash-on-Cash Return

19.5%

Cap Rate

10.2%

Monthly Cash Flow

$1,237

Gross Rent Multiplier

9.4

DSCR

1.7

The estimated monthly rent of $3,351 against a total monthly payment of $2,114 yields $1,237 in monthly cash flow. Annualized, that's $14,844 in pre-tax income on a 20% down payment of $76,000, which drives the 19.5% cash-on-cash return. The cap rate comes in at 10.2%, with net operating income of $3,224 per month. The gross rent multiplier of 9.4 and a debt service coverage ratio of 1.7 both indicate the property services its debt with meaningful headroom.

These numbers are genuinely strong in isolation. The question is whether the rent estimate holds up. With zero rental comps available in ZIP 96795 for 3-bedroom units, the $3,351 figure is an estimate without local transaction support. That's not a reason to dismiss it, but it does mean the cash flow projection carries more uncertainty than a market with active rental inventory would.

The city average cash-on-cash return is 0.0%, which means this property's 19.5% CoC isn't just above average — it's in a different category entirely. Whether that reflects genuine income potential or an aggressive rent assumption is the core underwriting question. At $380,000 with a $89/month property tax burden and no HOA fees, the cost structure is lean. Figures exclude depreciation tax benefits, which vary by individual tax situation.

The financial ratios are exceptional, but the rent estimate is unverified by local comp data — that's the single biggest variable in the investment case.

Annual return outlook

The 5-year total ROI of 27.6% is driven primarily by cash flow, with appreciation and mortgage paydown as secondary contributors.

Breaking down the 27.6% five-year total return: cash flow contributes 19.5%, mortgage paydown adds 4.2%, and appreciation accounts for an estimated 3.8%. Cash flow is doing the heavy lifting here, which is unusual — most Hawaii investment theses lean on appreciation because cash flow is thin or negative. This property inverts that pattern.

The 3.8% annual appreciation figure is an estimate, not a figure derived from recorded transaction data. Waimanalo is a small, relatively illiquid market with limited comparable sales volume, so any appreciation projection carries wider error bars than a high-turnover urban submarket would. The for-sale comp spread in this ZIP — from $749,000 to $6,998,000 — illustrates how heterogeneous pricing is even within a small geographic area.

For a leasehold property specifically, appreciation dynamics differ from fee-simple ownership. As the lease term shortens, property values can compress regardless of broader market trends. Investors need to understand the remaining lease term and any renewal provisions before factoring appreciation into their return expectations. If the lease has substantial remaining term, the 3.8% estimate may be reasonable; if it's approaching expiration, that number could be optimistic.

Cash flow is the reliable return driver here; appreciation is plausible but secondary, and leasehold-specific depreciation of value is a risk the headline ROI number doesn't capture.

How it compares to nearby for-sale listings

Three active for-sale listings in ZIP 96795 provide pricing context, and this property sits dramatically below all of them — largely because of its leasehold structure.

The for-sale comp median in this ZIP is $1,925,000, against this property's $380,000 ask. At first glance that looks like a 80% discount to market. It isn't. The comps are fee-simple properties; this listing is leasehold on Hawaiian Homelands. Those are fundamentally different asset types, and comparing their prices directly would be misleading.

What the comp set does confirm is that Waimanalo fee-simple inventory trades at significant premiums. The nearest comp by bedroom count — a 3-bed, 2-bath at 1,524 square feet listed at $749,000 — implies a price-per-square-foot of roughly $491. This property at $380,000 across 924 square feet implies $411 per square foot, but again, the leasehold discount makes that comparison imprecise rather than informative.

The 128 days on market here versus 19 to 34 days for the fee-simple comps is telling. Leasehold properties with eligibility restrictions take longer to sell because the qualified buyer pool is narrow by definition. That extended DOM isn't necessarily a signal of property-specific problems — it's structural to this asset type in this location.

Rental demand in this zip

There are no recorded rental comps for 3-bedroom units in ZIP 96795, which means the $3,351 monthly rent estimate is the central unverified assumption in this deal.

Zero rental comps in the ZIP is a significant data gap. The $3,351 estimated monthly rent cannot be cross-checked against actual leasing transactions in this market. That doesn't mean the figure is wrong — Waimanalo is a low-inventory area where rental listings don't always surface in aggregated data — but it does mean an investor can't validate the number without direct market research.

The practical approach is to contact local property managers operating in the Waimanalo and broader Kailua/Kaneohe corridor to get current asking rents for comparable 3-bedroom units. If actual achievable rents are closer to $2,500 to $2,800, the cash flow picture changes materially. At $2,500/month, for instance, monthly cash flow drops from $1,237 to roughly $386, and the cash-on-cash return compresses accordingly.

There's also a tenant eligibility question worth raising: if the Hawaiian Homelands designation restricts not just buyers but also tenants, that would further constrain the rental pool and potentially affect achievable rents and vacancy rates. This is a legal question specific to the lease terms, not a general market observation, and it needs a direct answer before underwriting any rent assumption.

Verify achievable rent independently and confirm whether tenant eligibility restrictions apply — those two questions determine whether the cash flow projection is real or theoretical.

Who this property suits + risks to weigh

This property suits a very specific investor: one who meets the Native Hawaiian eligibility requirement, understands leasehold ownership, and can verify local rental demand independently.

Best fit

The eligible investor here is, by legal definition, at least 50% Native Hawaiian. Beyond that eligibility threshold, this deal fits someone comfortable underwriting a leasehold asset — meaning they understand that the land isn't owned outright, that lease terms govern the investment horizon, and that exit liquidity is structurally narrower than fee-simple. An investor who's already familiar with Hawaiian Homelands leases and has relationships with local property managers who can validate the rent assumption is better positioned than someone approaching this cold.

The financial profile, if the rent holds, is genuinely attractive: 19.5% cash-on-cash, $1,237 monthly cash flow, and a 1.7 DSCR. For an eligible buyer who plans a long hold and values income over appreciation, those metrics are hard to match in Hawaii at this price point.

Risks to weigh

The risks stack up: zero rental comp support for the $3,351 estimate, a leasehold structure that introduces lease-term and renewal risk, a restricted buyer pool that limits exit options, 128 days on market despite a $45,000 price reduction, and an assessed value of $860,500 that reflects fee-simple land assumptions rather than leasehold reality. None of these risks are disqualifying on their own, but together they demand more due diligence than a standard fee-simple transaction. The assessed-to-list gap in particular should not be read as upside — it's an artifact of how leasehold properties are assessed relative to their market value.

An investor who can clear the eligibility hurdle, verify the lease remaining term, and confirm achievable rents with a local property manager will have a clearer picture of whether the headline metrics survive contact with reality.