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The Political Economy of Urban Land Reform in Hawaii

Author

Listed:
  • Sumner J. La Croix

    (Department of Ecoreomics, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, Hawaii 96822, USA)

  • James Mak

    (Department of Ecoreomics, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, Hawaii 96822, USA)

  • Louis A. Rose

    (Department of Ecoreomics, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, Hawaii 96822, USA)

Abstract

In the mid 1960s there were about 22 000 single-family leasehold homes in Honolulu. Dissatisfaction with leasehold led to reform legislation in 1967, allowing lessees to buy leased land. By 1991 less than 5000 lessees remained. This paper examines why landowners elected to lease rather than sell land and attributes the rise of leasehold to legal constraints on land sales by large estates, duties of estate trustees and the federal tax code. Ideological forces initiated land reform in 1967, but rent-seeking forces captured the process in the mid 1970s. It is concluded that Hawaii's experiment with leasehold was a failure due to the difficulties associated with specifying and enforcing long-term contracts in residential land.

Suggested Citation

  • Sumner J. La Croix & James Mak & Louis A. Rose, 1995. "The Political Economy of Urban Land Reform in Hawaii," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 32(6), pages 999-1015, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:urbstu:v:32:y:1995:i:6:p:999-1015
    DOI: 10.1080/00420989550012762
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Barro, Robert J & Sahasakul, Chaipat, 1986. "Average Marginal Tax Rates from Social Security and the Individual Income Tax," The Journal of Business, University of Chicago Press, vol. 59(4), pages 555-566, October.
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    3. R. Schmalensee & R. Willig (ed.), 1989. "Handbook of Industrial Organization," Handbook of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, edition 1, volume 1, number 1.
    4. Fry, Maxwell J & Mak, James, 1984. "Is Land Leasing a Solution to Unaffordable Housing? An Answer from Fee Simple versus Leasehold Property Price Differentials in Hawaii," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 22(4), pages 529-549, October.
    5. Noll, Roger G., 1989. "Economic perspectives on the politics of regulation," Handbook of Industrial Organization, in: R. Schmalensee & R. Willig (ed.), Handbook of Industrial Organization, edition 1, volume 2, chapter 22, pages 1253-1287, Elsevier.
    6. Croix, Sumner J. La & Roumasset, James, 1990. "The Evolution of Private Property in Nineteenth-Century Hawaii," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 50(4), pages 829-852, December.
    7. Sumner J. La Croix & Louis A. Rose, 1995. "Public Use, Just Compensation, and Land Reform in Hawaii," Working Papers 199507, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Department of Economics.
    8. R. Schmalensee & R. Willig (ed.), 1989. "Handbook of Industrial Organization," Handbook of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, edition 1, volume 2, number 2.
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    Cited by:

    1. Dongwoo Yoo & Richard H. Steckel, 2010. "Property Rights and Financial Development: The Legacy of Japanese Colonial Institutions," NBER Working Papers 16551, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    2. Shinichiro Iwata & Hisaki Yamaga, 2009. "Land Tenure Security and Home Maintenance: Evidence from Japan," Land Economics, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 85(3), pages 429-441.
    3. Dongwoo Yoo & Edwyna Harris, 2016. "Conditions of Successful Land Reform: A Study of Micronesia," Australian Economic History Review, Economic History Society of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 56(3), pages 292-316, November.

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