Callum Jones
A woman who spent $22,000 on a Hawaiian island lot was left shocked to find a $500,000 house built on it by mistake.
Back in 2018, Annaleine 'Anne' Reynolds purchased a plot of land in Hawaii, only to later discover a rather expensive home was built on it without her knowledge.
During that time, Reynolds had been residing in California and was alerted to the construction company's mistake when she received a phone call from a realtor.
"[The realtor] informed me, 'Oh well, I just sold the house, and it happens to be on your property'," Reynolds recalled. "So we need to resolve this. And I’m like, what? Are you kidding me?"
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Following that, Reynolds had been offered an adjacent plot of land of equivalent size and value.
She ultimately decided to reject offer, citing that she only wanted the initial plot she purchased.
"There’s a sacredness to it and the one that I chose to buy had all the right qualities," she told Hawaii News Now.
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Reynolds had hopes of building a women's wellness retreat on the land, while herself, construction company, the architect and others, were sued by the developer.
Anne's attorney James DiPasquale said of the suit: "There's a lot of fingers being pointed between the developer and the contractor and some subs."
Peter Olson, an attorney representing the developer, told the Associated Press recently: "My client believes she’s trying to exploit PJ Construction’s mistake in order to get money from my client and the other parties."
Reynolds filed a counterclaim against the developer, stating she was not made aware of the 'unauthorized construction'.
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During the legal dispute, Reynolds has also been hit with other unexpected costs.
She claims that she's paying several thousand dollars in tax, with Real Estate Hawaii reporting that properties in Hawaii County are taxed anywhere between 0.61 percent to 1.36 percent of the home's fair market value, meaning Anne could be paying as much as $6,800 each year.
Reynolds has also had to pay for fencing around the property to prevent squatters, which has been a huge cause for concern in the local area.
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"Before they put the fence on the property there were people coming, looking inside," a neighbour said.
Squatters had apparently left the house is a 'disgusting' state after someone had defecated in the hallway and in the bathrooms.
"Both had poop. The hallway one had poop on the floor," the local resident added. "It was disgusting."
In the summer of 2024, a judge decided the property would need to be torn down by the developer.