In the latest of strange twists In Governor Josh Green’s planned vacation rental ban, he said, “We have too many short-term rentals owned by too many individuals on the mainland, and it is B.S. (he used the full word). Our people deserve housing here…” You can watch the entire video clip below and let us know your thoughts.
This was part of the governor’s latest call to property owners that coincided with the announcement of a highly anticipated legal settlement fund for those affected by the fires. Valued at $175 million, this fund will allocate $1.5 million to each family who lost a loved one in the tragedy.
In addition, the governor said that about 1,500 residences have been secured for those who lost homes in the fires. FEMA is leasing those properties for the use of fire victims. Approximately 500 of those rentals are in West Maui, where the displaced lived, worked, and attended school. Thus, it’s been reported that only a few of the 1,000 FEMA rentals outside West Maui are occupied. The governor is demanding an additional 850 units be obtained from vacation rental owners in West Maui.
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Rental moratorium has been extended one month.
When we first broke the news of a planned vacation rental moratorium on Maui last December, it was supposed to take effect on March 1. But today, the governor unexpectedly retracted the Friday deadline while persevering with his ultimatums, pledges, and now vulgarities. He said that he still hopes he can secure what he deems necessary long-term housing for fire victims by other means, described below.
What if vacation rental owners won’t voluntarily convert to long-term rentals?
At his press conference today, Governor Green warned emphatically that a ban will fall on April 1 for owners who don’t convert to long-term rentals as demanded. Exactly how that would work, or even if it is legal, remains unclear.
The governor is incensed by Hawaii vacation rental owners.
He reiterated that about 89,000 short-term Hawaii vacation rentals statewide cater exclusively to tourism. The owners are declining to sell their properties to residents or enter long-term resident rentals. Speaking to the post-fire situation of Maui specifically, Governor Green added:
“I’m not playing around. People have been in hotels for quite a long time, and it’s very challenging for these exceptional individuals who have survived the wildfire.”
Josh Green, Hawaii Governor.
Here’s the governor’s offer for Hawaii vacation rental owners.
Green has proposed monthly payments of $5,000 for each one-bedroom unit, $7,000 for each two-bedroom unit, $9,000 for each three-bedroom unit, and $11,000 for each four-bedroom unit. In addition to that, those owners agreeing to the plan will become exempt from property tax. Green said that those amounts are “fairly consistent with market rates.”
We agree that those monthly payments seem fair. This is because most vacation rentals that are owned by non-Maui residents use a professional vacation rental company to manage them. The owners share their profit with the company they hire, so to come away with $5,000 for a one-bedroom, they might need $9,000 in rental income.
With the Governor Green plan, however, we are unsure who would be responsible for managing the property, assuming the professional vacation rental company is no longer involved. That also is not clear.
Has governor’s plan resulted in rate increases on Maui vacation rentals?
We are left wondering what the impact of this plan will be on both long-term and short-term rentals on Maui. A friend of BOH editors and a multiple decade resident of Maui said this week she is calling it quits and moving to Seattle. The apartment she’s renting is scheduled for renovation. To her, that meant she was likely going to be evicted so her place could be used as a FEMA rental, which pays far more than her $2,000 monthly rent. This situation could result in the displacement of other long-term tenants on Maui as landlords hope to collect more guaranteed rent via FEMA.
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Should be interesting if he tries to force people to rent their places. First of all that’s a violation of their rights and pretty sure he would face multiple lawsuits. And let’s say somebody does agree to this and they rent their place out and they get their 5000 or 7000 or $9000 a month then after those tenants finally get out of there who’s gonna pay for all those renovations because you can bet there’s gonna be plenty of renovations, that have to be done to make that property suitable to rent out again, anybody has ever been a homeowner that has rented out property faces the same thing.
Bills to change zoning and eminent domain keep coming up without much notice. That’s how he’ll force owners to cave or sell and tourism to come to a halt. It’s already at record lows. By the time I get news of a bill such as rezoning, I have only had a day to oppose and spread the word.
If vacation rentals on all of Hawaii are banned, we will not be back. We hate hotels and can’t afford enough rooms for our family to be comfortable. We rent 3 bedroom homes with 2 bathrooms and a full kitchen. Been coming since 1969 and dearly love the state. But enough is enough.
Lanai has been privately owned way before Larry Ellisan. Just check it out on Wikipedia. Castle & Cook (previously the Dole Co.) owned the 98% that Larry Ellison purchased 12 years ago for $300 Million and he spent another $450 Million to renovate the Four Season so that it could open again. Other than that, there isn’t much infrastructure there and many of the island’s landmarks are accessible only by dirt roads. There is only 1 school and it would take longer than rebuilding Lahaina to have any type of infrastructure there so that people could make a living. Most people from Lahaina don’t even want to move to Kihei, so what would they do on Lanai?
Life on Larry Ellison’s Hawaiian island is only for the super-rich
In 2012, Ellison bought 98% of the island of Lanai in Maui County, Hawaii. Maybe old Governor Green should tap
Larry for his land to build for the displaced and leave the little STR’s alone.
We could just avoid all of this by making more government created affordable housing, but the county already has an agenda. They support the mega resorts making more money, while average working class investors are forced to take the burden. A potentially profitable burden for some, but one that will just price more renters out of the market in the long term. Building more housing would solve everything, but yelling at, cursing at, and vilifying STR owners, shirks the blame for the disaster and aftermath off of the county in the short term, and just makes the whole thing worse in the long term.
Does anyone care whether passes constitutional muster. The rates seems attractive enough every individual owner has a right to determine what’s best for them without threats coming from the state government.
A lot of property owned by non-hawaiian sits empty many months of the year. Suppose you rented out a property from dec 25 2023->jan 5 2024
I’d go on you hawaii income tax, it go on federal and home state income, then I would need to file a tat and get for the last half year and full year for 23 ,I would need to file a tat and get for the first half year and full year for 24, I would need Htat(county tat) for 23 and 24.
How many tax forms do i need that income on.
Then if i stay more than 200days in Hawaii my tax rate goes up because i have to file as a hawaii full time resident.
the way govt taxes rental income has a high accounting overhead.
Housing is an issue in the state of Hawaii. This should have been addressed years prior to now. To force homeowners on how to run their business is violating my rights.
Many prefer to do vation rentals is because the tenants have more rights than the Landlord. I just went through an eviction process that is lasting for 5 months.. My loss is about $10,000.00 (including damages)
Pathetic messaging out of his mouth. Pathetic messaging from tourism board as well.
I think a years boycott of visitors would reveal the ineptness of local politics and economy.
If my house burned, I would much rather have a fema trailer on my own lot until I could build a new house and it would surely be less expensive and less damaging to the economy.
A FEMA trailer without power, water, or sewer hookup is just a dark, uncomfortable box. Does Maui have the infrastructure, or the ability to support the infrastructure, that would be needed for regular deliveries of propane, fresh water trucks, and black water handling that would be needed?
Getting the properties cleared, determining what underground (water, sewer, gas?) utilities might be salvageable and connecting them, while also getting pole utilities (electric, cable, telephone/broadband) back up should be a priority that can be seen in action.
Then you can put temporary accommodations (or start rebuilding permanent ones) in.
Sure, let’s confiscate the property of people who worked all their lives to buy a condo in Maui for retirement. While we are at it, let’s confiscate other property that people own, but the government thinks it needs! Let’s start with cars. Many fire victims lost cars, but how many Maui residents have 2 or more cars? These people should have to sell their cars a half value to the fire victims. Does a Maui resident have more than one computer in their home? Confiscate those for the fire victims. This is un-American. As much as some don’t wish it, Hawaii is still in America.
I only wish our words would get to the right ears. Well, said and so darn true. What is next?
We own a condo in a resort since 2014 and had been following the politics in Hawaii. The impression we have is that the governors had always been very populistic disadvantaging off island owners, whether it is the exorbitant property taxes or transient acc taxes. What is the governor offering for all of that tax income to the residents I wonder.
Part of me is appalled at the ineptitude from politicians, the shortsightedness of this Lahaina Strong group, and the complete lack of ethics from the hotel trade groups. If they continue down this path, they deserve the consequences.
On the other hand, the timing of the looming condo market crash might be perfect for my retirement plans.
Without the Legal STRs, what are the the trickle down affects? For example, less people can afford to visit. Therefore, the vacation travel industry’s business and jobs will be lost, hence creating more unemployment, and tax revenues will also be lowered. Affordable housing has always been the state’s problem for a long time but has the state ever stepped in and subsidies the affordable housing projects?
I think they should go after the illegal STRs and not the legal ones since they collect and pay the TAT and GE to the state.
It seems like they’re creating a big legal problem.
Amen!!!!
What about all the new builds we see? Why aren’t any of those for the local Polynesian instead of luxury places /secondary homes for the wealthy. Condos, specifically STRs pay most of the tax $ in the states And they employ the people too. It’s starting to feel fake or like misplaced anger so the distractions are scattered everywhere.
As my favorite cousin told me years ago, there are no Native Hawaiians. We are all visitors, some of our families from Polynesia, some from the Mainland, others from Japan, China, and Europe. But this place was just a rick we all fell in love with.
It depends how far back you want to go. Doesn’t Native Hawaiian mean you were born here and so were your grandparents? There are programs in Hawaii and you need to be of “Hawaiian ancestry”, not just born here. Personally, I don’t think that people should have rights just for the fact that they are born somewhere. I also don’t feel that tourists should feel entitled just because they bring money. Hoping we get the Aloha spirit back, but it’s tough right now.
I thought Hawaii already passed regulations restricting short rentals. Does more need to be done?
Is if fair to force owners to turn over their property in response to a disaster the government failed to prevent?
Can the government pass regulations requiring all homeowners allow displaced residents move into their homes?
Should tax payers be responsible to pay for long-term housing for displaced residents?
Does Hawaii have a master plan to guide rebuilding Maui’s destroyed buildings and infrastructure?
There are no restrictions in place. For now, it has been a lot of “talk”, but many owners of short term rentals are already selling ….
David David Mr Gov is from the government and knows best. Does government officials have renters in their homes or own rental properties? Asking for a friend.
If Hawaii has consciously allowed the growth of STRs (permitted), then It is what it is and will have to be addressed somehow. However, if this is a case of AirBnB running roughshod over the state with unlicensed STRs in R1 (residential) zoning, simply because no one is stopping them, then you got a problem and a choice to make. Rogue and random STRs have become a blight on residential neighborhoods all around the country. Here in SD county it is a huge and thorny issue. If you are among the people that made large, significant real estate investments on that basis, you just may have some chickens coming home to roost. If it’s just a matter of enforcement, there are a lot of absentee property owners in for a very, very rude awakening.
Hawaiis first dictator.
What happened to the families home owners insurance. Why are the insurance companies not paying out to the families who had insurance coverage and why are these families not being allowed to rebuild on Their land. Why Is FEMA Involved At All. And who does our Governer think he is dictating what people should do and if they dont comply, what, he’s just gonna act like a bully?
just wondering because the whole situation looks very fishy.
Folks in the fire zone can’t live or rebuild in the burn zone because power, water and sewer service is unavailable in most cases. The properties are contaminated with toxic ash which is unsafe.
For properties that are mortgaged, The lenders won’t sign off on the insurance claim release except to cover the remaining principal balance of the loan. It has been reported that many owners are uninsured, or underinsured.
I doubt owners could get loans at this time to finance new construction.
Thank goodness FEMA is here to fund, among other things, the costs of housing for displaced fire victims, and funding of the toxic ash removal through the Corp of Engineers.
Exactly. Hope that gives some clarification to those who wonder why one individual cannot just get their house rebuild in the mids of chaos. As much as I didn’t like how FEMA handled the housing situation, at least they are cleaning up the grounds and the Mayor just decided on a permanent site for the ashes and debris from the fire. Looks like things are moving forward.
Exactly! Many were under insured and not insured. That was a choice and should not be put on other taxpayers.
In case you own property, check your insurance. Most people who have owned their property for a long time got their insurance when they bought the property, in many cases 30+ years ago and even with a slight annual increase, it’s not enough to rebuild at today’s cost. I certainly checked my insurance after the fire in Lahaina (I was not affected) and increased my contribution.
Just a few cities and countries (most much larger populations than the entire State of Hawaii) where speculative short term rentals have been severely restricted ……or banned entirely:
– New York City
– Barcelona
– New Zealand
– Palm Beach
– Berlin
– Amsterdam
– Santa Monica
– San Francisco
– Canada
– Malaysia
– Irvine
– Japan
– Many, many more cities and countries….
Everyone knows speculators hoarding housing to try to make a profit with mini-hotels in areas zoned residential is terrible for society.
Clearly about 98% of the comments on this site are from non-Hawaii residents with speculative properties in Hawaii.
Not true. Many of us are joining this forum and are locals. We need to speak up to save our islands economy or we will have to leave. Leaving is no longer looking like an option as we foresee a glut of inventory about to be for sale and values dropping. We are faced with selling quickly before this happens and before restrictions are put on us as far as who to sell to. Again, we all have choices and opportunities for an education, career and to purchase property. We should not be penalized for the choices others have made. Those against tourism have a rude awakening coming. Unemployment ran out and being on welfare will not qualify you for a rental or to buy a home.
Hawaii is a double edged sword. Many resent tourists, yet the economy & infrastures, survives off that tourism. Yes if they want to go back to minimalism, which some would be willing, most like their current economic status: rich, middle class or poor. Because without tourism, each class would be worse off economically.
Not all of us want to ban tourism! We are dependent on tourism. Every single household is dependent on tourism in one way or another. I am ashamed for our island that some are content to live off welfare and others. Many of us are hard working and responsible. We are saddened but need to move forward with a solution not destroy our economy which will result in more job losses, property values plummeting and then the very rich mainland investors coming which is who they they think they are battling. Please do not judge all of Maui on the words of the governor, mayor and those that scream the loudest feeling that they deserve to be taken care of indefinitely on the backs of others. I can only hope that they can see reason.
They missed a huge point here. Most owners won’t rent to FEMA because what happens when the money runs out ? Most of us fear squatters and losing our income for years to come. Fix that and I’d happily give up my property for the 175% of FMV they are offering…
Don’t forget. Many of them are not squatters. They were homeowners who lost their home in the fire.
They become squatters when the subsidies expire and they can’t pay rent and refuse to vacate the premises. Then the owner has to evict them at great cost and time. And no, I do not own any property anywhere in Hawaii.
Absolutely one reason but many owners use their homes for personal use and rent during the times they are not using their homes.
Josh Green is nothing more than a politician that thinks he can strong arm and bully people that own property in Hawaii, who may or may not live there full-time. WHO does he think he is? The increasing fees and taxes on visitors, and now his unreasonable demands of property owners. Like it or not, Hawaii is part of the United States of America, Not communist Russia or China. It’s time for the people of Hawaii to start electing people that truly care about them, and not how much they can line their political pockets.
I don’t know Governor Green personally, but based on listening to him in the media, a governor he is not. His Robin Hood approach to the Maui wildfire disaster is understandable given his role. However, like it or not, Maui is the United States of America, and therefore fairness is required to settle legal disputes. Short-term rental owners did not cause the disaster and therefore are not responsible to pay for relocation costs of our displaced fellow citezens. Anywhere in the U. S., whether you lost your home in a wildfire, flood, tornado, or whatever, you need to use all available personal, public and private assistance to transition to a new living situation. It’s unfair to try to take advantage of short-term rental owners.
Amen to this. Very true. Definitely not a responsible, professional official but one that knows he will not be re-elected. The ignorance and unfairness is baffling and will result in legal action. I hope some legal action is personal and we don’t end up suing ourselves by having to pay up. He had options for housing which he chose against. Now housing is being refused unless in West Maui? Many are renters. They can go anywhere. I understand keeping those that lost their homes near where they will be rebuilding. Now FEMA refuses to pay for those. Understandable.
You know what’s B.S., Governor? Hotel rates on Maui. Don’t know about you but we can’t afford $500-$1,100 a night for a room. Plus taxes and resort fees. That’s why I rent for a fraction of that. You take away that option and you’re taking away many of the people who will come to the island.
The fire victims need to be attended to. But don’t balance their needs on the backs of people who are supporting tourism, which still accounts for most of the GDP on the island. Saber-rattling accomplishes nothing.
All lip service too many illegal rentals here in Hauula, on Oahu Hawaii. You report them nothing happens!
It seem that the governor should be seeking as much willing cooperation from short term vacation rental owners as he can before imposing strong controls on some owners.
I for one, own a unit on the Big Island and would rent it for a fix term lease if payments, and return of the unit at end of lease were guaranteed by the state.
At least get the ball rolling with a bill that would stop sales of single family residents to non residents. If you buy a resident here you
must live in it. No renting of single family residents by non residents. Also we need some sort of rent control based on average income.
Jerry,
You may prefer living in Cuba. Beautiful island paradise, and the government controls all housing. Nothing is private. And talk about rent control!? No one has any property rights, plus you would not be part of that pesky USA and it’s silly laws preventing a state from excluding residents of other states from buying property. And in Cuba, they know a few things about forcing people to live where the government says, and how to keep outsiders off their island.
Stepping on rights is not the answer. What you would consider average income won’t pay a mortgage. Many of us worked hard for an education and multiple jobs to afford to buy a home. We are not the ones that should be penalized or not have the option to sell our homes for what they are currently valued at. And yes, I live here in the home I co own with the mortgage company. Getting rid of tourism will result in major job losses and then you will not qualify to rent let alone buy a home. Get real!
If you’re worried about the value of your home, you should probably sell your house as soon as possible. If it’s your retirement plan you absolutely should be worried. US News ranked Maui as the most overvalued real estate market in the entire country, by a big margin. Their analysis showed that it would take 95% of per-capita income to pay for housing costs (affordable is considered to be around 30%), leaving 5% to eat and live on. Prices have to meet affordability, and I doubt the local income is going to 3x any time soon.
Your governor is destroying your state, he clearly doesn’t know how business works and has no intelligent solutions to the problem. He is just trying to bully people!
Amen Bill! Thank you for speaking up. Voices of reason need to get louder!
Airbnb started where owner lived in house or apartment and that was great. When became business only, problems are now out of hand and communities destroyed.
As a person wanting to invest in a Hawaiian property. With all this drama the governor is forcing on short term tenants only housing. I am thinking about investing elsewhere. I may want to stay 8 months one year and 2 weeks the next. So renting out on those years we don’t want to stay long term. Leaves it so we can’t do as we see fit with the home we would own. In my opinion that is bad business on a state the relys heavily on tourism.
Me visiting is B.S.? I love to travel, but my last time in Maui I felt like the enemy. I want to go somewhere people like me. Costa Rica is awesome for that. And they have monkeys! I actually felt more welcome in Cuba a number of years ago than I did in Maui this year. Crazy.
I am so sorry to hear this but understand. Some of us still practice aloha and have the sense to know that we need tourism to survive. Whatever craziness they come up with with not last. It will correct itself. Please do not give up on our beautiful islands. The governor wants us fighting with eachother so they can drive prices down to claim eminent domain and pay less or sell to hotels. We appreciate you and need you. Mahalo for coming but again, I understand. My friend who lost her home in Lahaina that is now staying with me stopped a local who was abusing a tourist in Dollies bathroom. She lost her home and still knows the right thing to do. She has also chosen to work (past 3 months) then be part of the problem. There are jobs.
I have one small vacation rental in S Maui. It is my main income as a retired widow. Living in California has shown us what fires mean. Many property owners are from out of state or foreigners. Tourism is a huge industry here and around the world. Does this mean we should all stop traveling? Maui is not the only place with issues, regardless of tragedy. This is a recurring topic, not a new one, now being blown up instead of focusing on a real solution.
It’s stuff like this is why my wife and I won’t go back to Hawaii. I’m sure some other states would like me to spend money in their state. A governor who violates the Constitution of the United States over the seizure of property without due process.
Unfortunately, there are other US states that violate the constitution. I don’t see it this way in Hawaii. People stand together. It’s a real community. Very local. Tourists are welcome (I was one of them before moving here), as long as they respect the land, ocean and culture of Hawaii.
Thank you for your input Al but please do not give up on us. Many of us know that we need tourism and practice aloha. I have traveled and though many beautiful places, there is nothing like Hawaii. You are so right about the governor. Many of us stayed quiet believing that this would work out but as our rights get stomped on we are speaking up. I am a resident and homeowner of 30 years. I have the right to sell my home which is my retirement plan to anyone I choose. IMy friends that own rental properties have the right to rent them to visitors, recoup their investments and yes make a profit when possible. Most barely break even but this is their retirement plan. We have rights!
It is “b*llsh*t…. The governor is right on this! Gee let’s move to Hawaii but we can’t afford it… well I have an idea, buy a house, rent part of it to visitors from the mainland like us and have them pay our mortgage… never mind the neighbors! And make it to expensive for the locals!
The Gov’s a good guy in a tight spot. Paying fair market rent to temporarily house displaced families is the responsible thing to do. However applying punishments to those who have made substantial economic commitments seems a little unfair. There are a lot of emotions at play in this drama. Most are related to the island inability to enter the twenty first century. Oahu seems to have done it, why not Maui. One reason maybe the inability of local leadership to rise above the challenge. Grieving and rebuilding are not mutually exclusive. Lahaina is the economic engine that makes Maui go. Time to temporarily move families to S. Maui until Lahaina is rebuilt. Then move them back.
Did you read the BOH article Doc? It stated that only a few of the 1000 FEMA rentals outside of West Maui are occupied. This includes South Maui. I think that the governor’s plan would do well in North Korea.
Its when people are under pressure that you see their true character.
I am still buffled by this. Most short term rental places are small and more expensive because they are geared towards tourists. On the other hand, there are many owners of long term condominiums and single family homes on the West side that are mostly unoccupied. Some of them use their place for themselves, friends/family a couple of weeks a year. Why they don’t penalize those before going after an owner who might just own a small rental unit? I agree that if someone owns several units, at least 1 should be used for fire victims. On the other hand, there are too many restrictions (Launiupoko being one of them) for owners to build an Ohana for tenants. Stop protecting time shares and resorts and stop building them in the 1st place.
The Governor is insane. I know he wants to help people in need but to punish others in the process is not the American way.
My idea: let only local owners be permitted to operate short-term rental properties. This keeps the outsider profiteers at bay and let’s locals manage their own properties and obtain that much needed income.
Keeping the mainlanders out should be the main priority. Locals always do right by others locals. It’s how we survive.
“Keeping the mainlanders out” is the main priority. Do you think that “mainlanders” are the only people who own rental properties in Maui? You can bet that there are folks from multiple other countries around the world who own Maui rental properties.
Sure, but they are the minority!
For those of us that grew up in hawaii,,we don’t drink the happy juice our 3rd world politicians drink. Hawaii is a 3rd world country controlled by good old boys and unions. And worse, the same gang keeps on being elected!
And if and when you want to move to another state Johnny, they should take your rights away as well. Again this is America. We all have rights. We make our own choices in our education, job choices and in many cases if we want to work. If you get an education and get a job that pays enough to buy property then you have the right to it wherever that is. Dictatorship and restrictions are not the American way. What a contradiction.
Rob M – very unfortunate situation. Local Housing for displaced is paramount. Am not familiar with HI Real estate Rules, but should favor locals vs. Zuckerberg, Oprah, Ellison, Bezos, etc. you get the picture…follow the $….hopefully you can establish a commission/committee to address…our last trip to Lahaina was in 2022 & have nice memorable pictures of town, Banyon & whales -will miss Wo Hing Museum, shops, restaurants (we stayed at Hilton). Good luck.. .mahalo..Aloha
It’s so sad, the fleecing of Hawaii by the real estate companies and the wealthy non-residents that buy up our land changing our precious lifestyle of ohana and the love for our aina in the name of profit and greed. The lyrics from the song “Paradise” by the Eagles succinctly sums it up.
Daniel P — I have only one question. Who were the original owners of the land purchased by “real estate companies and the wealthy non-residents changing your precious lifestyle of ohana and the love for your aina? If the land was not sold in the first place then maybe there would not be a problem. Greed goes back to the original land owners.
Exactly this! They can’t buy if you don’t sell. And who keeps allowing more and more hotels and resorts that are most certainly not “locally” owned? Just asking.