About
About this site
Who writes this, what it covers, and why it exists.
Who writes this
I'm Sun-Ik Ham. I'm the principal of H Plus Design, an architecture and development firm in Honolulu, and vice president of Kalanianaʻole Development LLC. My work is affordable, mixed-income and transit-oriented housing in Hawaii, including projects on Department of Hawaiian Home Lands property and projects financed with the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit.
That means I read the documents this site is about because I have to. The Qualified Allocation Plan, the Consolidated Application workbook, the compliance manuals, the HHFDC board packets, the county entitlement rules — these are working documents in my practice, not research material I picked up for a blog.
What this site is
Hawaii's housing information is public and almost unusable. The 2026 QAP is a 223-page PDF. The LIHTC compliance manual arrives in two separate files. HHFDC's board approves, defers and amends projects every month in packets that are posted and then read by almost no one. The terms of a Dwelling Unit Revolving Fund loan are not published online at all.
So the work here is narrow and specific: take one primary document or one policy change, read it properly, and write down what it actually says and what it changes. Every article cites the sources it was built from, listed at the bottom, so you can check the reading against the document.
What this site is not
- Not a substitute for the agency. HHFDC, HPHA and the county housing offices are the authority on their own programs. If you are applying for housing or for financing, their published materials and their staff govern. Deadlines and figures here can go stale.
- Not advice. Nothing here is legal, tax, accounting or investment advice, and reading it does not create a professional relationship. LIHTC in particular turns on facts specific to a deal. See the editorial policy.
- Not about my clients' projects. I write about public documents and public policy. Confidential information from engagements does not appear here.
Who it's for
Developers, consultants, agency staff, syndicators, lenders and compliance people working in or on Hawaii. Secondarily, owners and buyers trying to understand a market where a condo's master insurance policy can decide whether a bank will lend on it.
If you work in this space and something here is wrong, I want to know. Tell me and I will correct it and note the correction.
How it's funded
This site carries display advertising. Advertising has no influence on what is covered or what the articles conclude; see the editorial policy and the privacy policy for how that works and what data advertising involves.
My firm, H Plus Design, does paid work in this field. That is a real interest and you should read accordingly: I have professional reasons to think Hawaii should build more housing and that the financing tools should be easier to use.
Contact
contact@hplushousing.com — or use the contact page.