A home high above Honolulu on the Tantalus ridgeline — designed by and built for a local architect — has hit the market with a $3.9 million asking price.
The 2,798-square-foot house, located on a 1-acre rim lot at 228 Forest Ridge Way, was designed by and built as the personal home of architect Darrell "Buck" Welch Jr., co-founder of Welch & Weeks Architects, who died in 2025.
The home has 3 beds, 3.5 baths and spans 2,798 square feet. (360 Productions and Jenn Ellenburg) 
The home was completed in 2023 as the personal residence of architect Darrell "Buck" Welch Jr. of Welch & Weeks Architects. (360 Productions and Jenn Ellenburg) 
The living and dining spaces. (360 Productions and Jenn Ellenburg) 
A bedroom. (360 Productions and Jenn Ellenburg) 
Another interior view of 228 Forest Ridge Way. (360 Productions and Jenn Ellenburg) 
Work space. (360 Productions and Jenn Ellenburg) 
The home has views of the Pacific Ocean and the Honolulu cityscape, as well as Diamond Head, the Ko‘olau Mountains, and more. (360 Productions and Jenn Ellenburg) 
An interior view of the home. (360 Productions and Jenn Ellenburg) 
A bedroom. (360 Productions and Jenn Ellenburg)
The home, which was finished in 2023, is listed by Hawai‘i Life's Noel Pietsch Shaw.
"Every once in a while in our careers, we get these dream projects that you get to work on, and I'm so honored to represent the family on this special home, especially because new construction ... is so rare," Shaw told Aloha State Daily.
Such homes are typically built for people's personal use, "and we don't get to see them on the open market," she continued.
"When you get new construction, everything's new," Shaw says. "It's all new, it's very in-style. It's working great and it's designed for modern times."
The top of Tantalus was a sought-after location for homes in the 1950s, "which is why the Liljestrand House is there, the Pauling House is there and [noted architect Vladimir] Ossipoff sought it for many of his sites," she told ASD.
Shaw says the home is both modern and timeless.
The three-level house has three bedrooms, three full- and one half-baths, and offers panoramic views of Diamond Head, the Ko‘olau Mountains, Honolulu and the Wai‘anae Range, according to information provided by a representative of Hawai‘i Life.
According to the provided information, the home is designed to follow the "natural slope of the land, prioritizing connection to the landscape, passive cooling through trade winds, and natural light via clerestory glazing."
Additionally, dining and living areas of the main living level are connected by polished concrete floors, vaulted wood-paneled ceilings, a volcanic basalt fire place and access to covered outdoor areas, the information notes. Meanwhile, a sculptural staircase "integrates gallery niches, a window seat, and a reading nook;" the home operates with photovoltaic power and battery storage, water catchment, and septic; and the property borders conservation land.
Shaw says the home has two bedrooms on the first floor, which can allow single-level living for those aging in place, while the third bedroom is large and "almost serves as a second living room." An office on the third floor is tree level.
Shaw says, too, that there are koa trees and ginger in the yard, as well as "lots of room for planting, if someone wanted to have a garden or expand the flowers." The property also has a "flat, very usable yard."
When asked about the ideal buyer, Shaw said the top buyers for a neighborhood like this are those "whose heart has memories or nostalgia for being up on the ridge. That could be someone that's currently in the Islands or that could be someone that has been off the Islands with a yearning to come back home."
Find the listing here and more information about the home here.
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Stephanie Salmons can be reached at stephanie@alohastatedaily.com.
