Open House Pick of the Week: Manoa

Remodeled cottage offers contemporary charm.

At first glance, this Manoa cottage has the classic style that you’d find in Hawaii homes built in the 1950s, but, once you step inside, the modern touches bring you back to the present.

The owner, according to Chris Friese of Kahala Associates, was a schoolteacher when she first stumbled across this cottage in 1985, when it was much smaller and … well, looking its age. She fell in love with it anyway.

“In the early '90's, she met her Prince Charming and they married. The cottage was greatly enhanced by both of them in 1997,” explains Friese. “They used architect John Howard Wheeler to expand and remodel the old 1950s kitchen and bathrooms. In the process, all the windows were replaced, and the electrical and plumbing updated.”

They also added a new deck at the front of the home, which makes you feel like you’re in a tree house due to the lush setting amid ironwood and bottlebrush trees, and its placement on the large corner lot with Manoa Valley views.

The 1,370-square-foot home sits on a 7,778-square-foot lot, plus has a quarter interest in a private greenbelt roadway (which really adds to the privacy and sets you back from the street below).

There are three bedrooms, one full bath and one half bath, and a two-car carport. The home is within walking distance of Noelani Elementary School and Manoa Marketplace, which is a huge plus.