Big Island log home purchased for $5M

What you might call a dream home for a lover of Lincoln Logs was sold in Hawaii this week — though unlike a typical set of the children’s game that retails for $25 to $50, this model sold for $5 million.

New York-based real estate sales firm Concierge Auctions sold the home in Wai­mea on Hawaii island at a small but lively auction held at the Hapuna Beach Prince Hotel on Thursday.

The home, dubbed Hale Mehana and built in 2004 on 53 acres of agricultural land, was made using cedar logs notched by hand and assembled without nails.

According to property records, the company Malu­hia Hale Lani Farms LLC bought the lot in 2002 for $750,000. The home, according to marketing materials, was put together in Canada where the logs are from. Then the house was deconstructed, shipped to Hawaii and reassembled.

Besides a 7,000-square-foot main house with four bedrooms, five bathrooms and five half-bathrooms, the property includes a guest cabin, a seven-stall horse stable, a riding arena and a 3,480-square-foot tractor barn, according to sales materials.

The lot, which has ocean views and was once owned by Big Island rancher Larry Mehau, is part of a residential subdivision on agricultural land called Wai­ki‘i Ranch, covering more than 3,000 acres. The community, where homesites are generally 10 to 40 acres, includes a polo field, an equestrian and rodeo facility, a clubhouse with a rental apartment, a recreation center with fitness equipment and a racquetball court.

The community homeowners association said each owner has up to 20 percent of their lot under an agricultural easement for recreational purposes and that homeowners may have their own livestock or a community herd of cattle graze on their property.

"This is an incredible home," auctioneer Frank Trunzo said at the auction, according to a video. "This dream could become your dream come true."

Of course, selling a residence that is so unique and pricey can be a challenge.

In 2010 the property was listed by a traditional real estate brokerage firm for $18.5 million.

The price for the estate described as "Hawaii’s premiere equestrian property" was later slashed to $8 million, according to a listing publicized in 2012 by a real estate agent in Canada.

Concierge, which charges buyers a 10 percent auction fee that compares with a traditional 6 percent sales commission, heavily promoted the property in conjunction with local broker Ed Rapoza of Island Resort Property, a Christie’s International Real Estate affiliate.

The auction firm attracted eight registered bidders, each of whom had to have a $250,000 deposit ready. Some bidders attended in person and some by phone. The bidding, which lasted only about two minutes, started at $500,000 and rose steadily in $500,000 increments to $4 million before increments decreased to $100,000 as buyers edged the price up to $4.5 million.

"Four million-five is bid," Trunzo announced in the hotel conference room. "Anybody else above and beyond 4 million-five?"

The $4.5 million winning bid came from a buyer who was not identified. With the auction fee, the purchase price totaled about $5 million.

Laura Brady, president of Concierge, said the price was the most for a home at Wai­ki‘i Ranch. "It was really great bidding," she said.