# Value of Hawaii
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/value-of-hawaii/421073
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [September 30, 2007, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/value-of-hawaii/421073 "2007-09-30T22:01:24Z")
**Posts on this page:** 13
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Danalan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Danalan)
#### Post date: [September 30, 2007, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/value-of-hawaii/421073/1 "2007-09-30T22:01:24Z")
I’m working on a way to salvage our country from this crippling load of debt we’re carrying, but I need some factual information for my proposal.
Anybody know how much Hawaii is worth? I need the value of both the real estate, and the expected annual value of commerce from agriculture, industry, and tourism.
Thanks!
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### Author:  [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)
#### Post date: [September 30, 2007, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/value-of-hawaii/421073/2 "2007-09-30T22:02:10Z")
Who are looking to sell it to, the Chinese?
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### Author:  [@Desert\_Nomad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Desert_Nomad)
#### Post date: [September 30, 2007, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/value-of-hawaii/421073/3 "2007-09-30T22:07:05Z")
I’ll give you $500 for it, cash… so long as you can document clear title.
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### Author:  [@Danalan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Danalan)
#### Post date: [September 30, 2007, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/value-of-hawaii/421073/4 "2007-09-30T22:26:12Z")
Japan holds $612 billion of US debt, China $420 billion. China holds $1 trillion in dollar assets, US debt just being a part of that.
Note that I’m not ready to discuss details of my proposal at this point. I’m just looking for some facts to (hopefully) support my plan.
Oh, and clear title? Maybe [not so much](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hawaiian_sovereignty_movement).
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### Author:  [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)
#### Post date: [September 30, 2007, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/value-of-hawaii/421073/5 "2007-09-30T23:47:12Z")
I’d heard (translated: no cite) that Japanese interests buy up Hawaiian real estate as quickly as it becomes available, so I doubt we could swap them any of what they growingly already own.
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### Author:  [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)
#### Post date: [October 1, 2007, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/value-of-hawaii/421073/6 "2007-10-01T00:30:22Z")
[QUOTE=Danalan]
Japan holds $612 billion of US debt, China $420 billion. China holds $1 trillion in dollar assets, US debt just being a part of that.
Note that I’m not ready to discuss details of my proposal at this point. I’m just looking for some facts to (hopefully) support my plan.
Oh, and clear title? Maybe [not so much](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hawaiian_sovereignty_movement).
[/QUOTE]
Never mind what your plan is. Who are you going to present it to? 😕
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### Author:  [@EvilGhandi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EvilGhandi)
#### Post date: [October 1, 2007, 6:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/value-of-hawaii/421073/7 "2007-10-01T06:22:24Z")
Guys, Granted the Op is absurd.
> [@](#):
>
> I’m working on a way to salvage our country from this crippling load of debt we’re carrying
But he is correct to assume that US holdings in the Hawaiian islands are not a paltry sum.
For instance the [Hale Koa](http://halekoa.com/index_secure.htm) hotel is owned by the US army. Not a cheap peice of land.
If I had to come up with a blanket figure I’d go with about a Mil an acre. Of course seaside land goes for much higher and watershed land cant be sold but I would guess it’s a pretty fair average for shits and grins.
So Op calculate the total acreage of the Hawaiian Islands and tell us how you will save the world.
BTW Try selling ANY land in Hawaii, Pfffft. It’s all sacred.
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### Author:  [@EvilGhandi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EvilGhandi)
#### Post date: [October 1, 2007, 6:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/value-of-hawaii/421073/8 "2007-10-01T06:44:24Z")
Had to think about this after I missed edit.
> [@](#):
>
> Oh, and clear title? Maybe not so much.
I am what is known in Hawaii as kupuna and am fully qualified to debate Hawaiian Sovereignty issues, though I fail to see how it could help your case.
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### Author:  [@DSYoungEsq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSYoungEsq)
#### Post date: [October 1, 2007, 10:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/value-of-hawaii/421073/9 "2007-10-01T10:09:43Z")
I tend to think you’d still make more money for the US selling off Alaska than Hawaii…
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### Author:  [@Chief\_Pedant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chief_Pedant)
#### Post date: [October 1, 2007, 10:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/value-of-hawaii/421073/10 "2007-10-01T10:17:25Z")
[QUOTE=Danalan]
I’m working on a way to salvage our country from this crippling load of debt we’re carrying, but I need some factual information for my proposal.
Anybody know how much Hawaii is worth? I need the value of both the real estate, and the expected annual value of commerce from agriculture, industry, and tourism.
Thanks!
[/QUOTE]
Hawaii is worth just a titchy bit over 1.033 trillion, exluding Ni’ihau. 😉 This is a very nice number; as it turns out it is almost exactly enough to pay off the PRC and Japan–the two most obvious buyers. An added bonus is that the PRC can shift to a pretend ownership of Ni’ihau instead of pretending to own Taiwan.
Alas…selling assests to get rid of a debt problem is a bad plan unless the underlying predilection to get into debt in the first place is cured.
May I suggest pulling a Kamehameha-Keoua with congress and the White House (assuming the sacred slaughtering altar of Pu’ ukohola Heiau hasn’t been turned into a Wendy’s)?
In my opinion the current congress will do but it would be a shame to leave all the fellas from the last 8 years off the invite. Perhaps we could also invite anyone else enamored with collecting more in bennies than they pay in taxes.
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### Author:  [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)
#### Post date: [October 1, 2007, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/value-of-hawaii/421073/11 "2007-10-01T14:18:15Z")
I have a much simpler solution that doesn’t require selling anything - default on the debt.
Who’s going to break our legs trying to collect?
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### Author:  [@muttrox](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muttrox)
#### Post date: [October 1, 2007, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/value-of-hawaii/421073/12 "2007-10-01T16:10:54Z")
Well, besides the fact that we could never borrow money at reasonable rates again, it’s unconstitutional.
”The validity of the public debt of the United States, authorized by law, including debts incurred for payment of pensions and bounties for services in suppressing insurrection or rebellion, shall not be questioned.”
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### Author:  [@Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freddy_the_Pig)
#### Post date: [October 1, 2007, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/value-of-hawaii/421073/13 "2007-10-01T16:29:12Z")
[Hawaii’s annual GDP](http://www.hawaii.gov/dbedt/info/economic/data_reports/qser/outlook-economy) is about $50 billion.