The list of Honolulu hotels in development is larger than anything we can remember. That, as the future of Honolulu vacation rentals remains uncertain.
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115 thoughts on “Twelve New Honolulu Hotels Planned As Vacation Rentals Vilified”
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State on the take to big hotel corporations, selling out the local vacation rentals..
Happening everywhere, first 30 days then 90. Bad enough most land owned by foreign interest.
Keep da country country !!
“There go the neighorhoods”
More crowds,more traffic .
What kind of Green Policy Chaos are they creating.
Happy I lived there in the 80’s 90’s
What happened to Honolulu 😪🤔😎
This is crazy, I taught our legislator was saying after covid we need to deverfied from tourism. The recession new yr going to dry up our main of revenue, going in circles again. Look at kakuaaku park city can’t even provide sprinkler water t that park I was shock to see the hill are all red dirt hill now, no grass. These are tourist paradise promise we can’t even keep it withwaling distance from Waikiki. I don’t expect this yr tourist to return as most said it over rated nothing to do. And too expensive. Today news, food land worker threatening to strike, isn’t grocery expensive enough? Of our governor call it a recession gov, workers / union can’t get a raised. Lead by example. Then the private sector follow, no raises, inflation stops
There’s only so much money to go around and when the State can toss 2 Billion Dollars at the Homeless Problem with absolutely nothing to show for it I call that Fiscal Irresponsible. That money could have been spent on affordable housing and much more. What else have they wasted money on that no one knows anything about? Everyone should keep their eyes on the Elected and Unelected Officials that run the State and Local Governments. It’s for your own good!
Ugh…I just checked out of the Moana Surfrider yesterday after a conference and felt that Waikiki was too busy and crowded to be enjoyable… Can’t imagine that adding more room capacity will make anyone’s trip more enjoyable.
What a scam. The hotels bought off the politicians so now vacation rentals are being driven out of business so the big hotels (with their outlandishly high prices) can flourish.
you are absolutely 100% correct, big hotels buy politicians, the politicians get the public down on Short Term Rentals, creating hate in the communities, so the hotels can take all business and make more money. Classic – the public gobbles it up like sheep, and the hotels just smile.. sad sad sad
100%.. politicians get locals to hate the mom-and-pop short term rentals, then pass laws so they go away, and the hotels make more $$ .. classic
You’re Absolutely Correct and the Voters just gave the Politicians the Thums Up Okay to continue what they’ve been doing. Everyone Wants and Needs Better but keep the same people, and party, that’s failed them for 10 years in power, there’s some non “Critical Thinkers” for you. Even “Common Sense” would have pointed this out after a short time. I’m guessing that the outlook on Hawaii is lots of hotel rooms that Hawaiians can’t afford to stay in and the eventual reelection of the same people. BTW, how many Affordable Housing Units have been built so far? Just Wondering.
Bingo! My thoughts exactly!
This is utter and complete nonsense. Hawaiians, are you ok with all of this?!
Must be..
They absolutely must be Sue, they have just reelected the same people into office knowing that this was happening. If only Common Sense and Critical Thinking could be taught in school Hawaii might be a much better place. 🤔 Have you seen the Rail System in Operation? No one else has either!
As Oahu punishes Existing short term rentals they allow more new construction to absorb the tourists that can no longer rent outside of the city. If no one can see the problem with this they must be on Council. In much of America this would have been met with Lawsuits but in Hawaii there’s no stomach for fighting the status quo. The only hope is that a Judge will rule in favor of the STR Owners and not in favor of Council. I don’t hear Native Hawaiians fighting over the construction, why? Money?
typically they don’t know about the new construction, all they hear is the rhetoric about the short term rentals, then they complain about to many cars, and have no idea why, other than those darn short term rentals.. crazy
I have come to the realization that the verdict will not be in favor of the STR Owners, Why Else would all of this construction be happening? Why would all of the Money be Invested? Figure that the STR Market is about to be destroyed. I really hope that I am wrong.
Well, if not destroyed, building STRs is certainly being stopped in its tracks. On Maui, no more STRs, either built or converted, will be permitted. Passed unanimously by council last week.
Pat thanks for the information, in “some ways” and at least for the foreseeable future I agree with the moratorium on New STR Construction. I truly believe that ANY New Construction should be aimed solely at the Affordable Housing Market for Hawaiian Residents. It should be Single Homes for Sale and Multi-Unit Rentals and all of this across Every Island. I have absolutely “No Skin” in this other than the intended Benefits for the people of Hawaii. Until Enough Pressure is felt at the State and Federal Level Politicians nothing will materialize. Phone Calls, Write In, Text and Email Messages all without ending until they get the Pressure of the Weight of the People to Do This! Grassroots Campaigning to the Max! It Can Work.
The only one I found intriguing was Wo Fat…..many years ago, when I worked on Fort Street, we all ate lunch at Wo Fat 3-4 times a month. I think it would be a blast to stay downtown and just spend 4-5 days walking around. I Hawaii in 1969 —- kits if visiting but ignored downtown and Waikiki.
Wo Fats developed properly can and will be a Wonderful Boost for the Local Businesses and Thus the Community as a Whole. The memories of those familiar with the area from 1969 will be an incentive to stay there and for a Revitalization of the Entire Area. I wish that all of this interaction will be beneficial for everyone!
Vacation rentals take apartments, & houses out of the inventory for locals to rent. The $$ for the owners is in short term rentals vs a year long lease. That leaves potential renters scrambling for the limited housing that is available. Also, vacation rentals change the character of the neighborhood and locale. Our friend has a townhouse on the Northshore by Turtle Bay, which is zoned for shore term vacation rentals. The people that live there year around , are so unhappy. New people coming and going every week, trash strewn around the compound, speed limit not adhered to, loud parties. They say it’s a nightmare. Some of these people bought these units, retired to Oahu and are now have no other options.
Why don’t they sell?! They can sell for a ton of money right now and move somewhere else. Their griping and complaining is just for the sake of griping and complaining. They couldn’t possibly have moved to Turtle Bay and expected not to be surrounded by tourists.
Not all vacation rentals are bad, not all guests are bad, and many vacation rentals were built as vacation rentals decades ago. And vacation rentals definitely aren’t the problem with not being able to find rentals. The lack of development of affordable housing is what is causing that. Developers don’t have enough incentive to build average-cost housing. The government should subsidize the builders, and I wouldn’t mind at all if my tax dollars were used for that purpose.
Why should they sell? They bought with the intention of retiring there. If they sell where will they buy? Hawaiian real estate has gone through the roof.
Again, short term vacation rentals in certain parts of non-tourist Honolulu neighborhoods shouldn’t be allowed!
Because you stated with conviction that your friends were living a nightmare. They can easily sell, move to one of the thousands of luxury residences on the island that don’t allow short-term rentals, at the same price as they are selling theirs. Anyone who is living a nightmare who can easily do something about their torturous lives is just whining for the sake of whining.
Short-term rentals should be allowed where they have always been allowed, but should be capped to inhibit unfettered growth. That is the fair and decent compromise.
In “certain areas” I wholeheartedly agree. Enforcement is Key to keeping things on the up and up, Landlords need to be held Accountable, Property Managers too. Many of the STR’S have not been a problem and operate properly. Some have been purchased as part investment, part time residence in areas that have Real Estate Worth in the Millions of Dollars, it doesn’t effect the Average buyer that couldn’t afford it! Hawaiians need to wake up and see what is Actually behind all of this!
Requiring Contractors and Developers to build affordable housing to receive their permits is used in many other States, do it in Hawaii!
And the Upscale STR Market that doesn’t cause any problems, that isn’t affordable and is only available 8 or 9 months a year? If it was available for 1 year lease the price would be $12,000.00 per month minimum, do you have that???
You’re absolutely right. Those properties you mention would not be accessible to long-term renters, because of the price of rent, and if the market dictated that rents must come down to meet the needs of the average long-term renter, the owners would just sell to national and international 2nd home buyers, who wouldn’t rent them out at all. They would just sit vacant for most of the year.
Focusing on legal, short-term rentals to attempt to solve housing issues is barking up the wrong tree. Affordable housing MUST be built, with the permitting process simplified, and with incentives and subsidies provided by the government. Thousands and thousands of new properties must be built to satisfy the housing shortage.
its hard to live in a complex that is short term rental, you hear suitcase wheels all the time. These complexes are expensive to own, and are not conducive to long term tenants because of the cost to own there. limited parking, storage, high property taxes, high condo dues, mortgage payments, assessments to owners all not cheap. Its typically not the vacationers that are loud, it could be a neighbor with 3 kids. The good thing about living in a vacation resort, is the neighbors aren’t there long term. If they were and you didn’t like your neighbor,, oh well they’re not going anywhere, which happens everywhere.
🤣😂 Turtle Bay is not a local renters market..
The potential termination of the STR Properties will not put that many units back as Affordable Housing as everyone has been led to believe by Council, it’s a proven. For Council to attempt to Force property owners to significantly reduce the cost of renting will not work, the Best that could be offered would be “Subsidies” to offset the rent paid directly to the Owners IF the Owners are willing to Accept It. Too often those who rent under these terms effectively destroy or severely Damage the property, unless fully compensated why would an Owner want to constantly be effecting repairs? Screening potential tenants is paramount to make a decision.
Love it…..would try most, especially wo fat and mandarin….we use bus exclusively so downtown rejuvenated is a great appeal…..stock up at costco many times and love, if still there, suschi place off dillingham (YOSHEI?)and little noodle house. GreaT locations for bus patrons.
Please stop the corruption! Local families should be allowed to benefit from visitors coming. These hotels make billions of dollars, hire as few people as they can, pay workers as little as possible and all the profit leaves Hawaii to mainland corps or international investors. Who is benefiting from these visitors coming? Not our people! Often, even the upper management are brought in so not even the few higher paying jobs at hotels help locals. When tourists stay in our communities, in homes (or parts of homes) that belong to Hawaii residents, local families are directly helped. Money stays here! They dine at our local eateries, shop in our local stores, learn our ways and culture. Local families should be rewarded for owning a home!
Thank you soo much for your post! Finally, someone who isn’t parroting the nonsense the hotel lobby has put in their brains!
I used to work at Sheraton 15 yr ago as a cook and was making 23 hr way back then. We get pension also.everybody their get good wages as all but Hilton Hawaiian are al in local 5 union but we follow after their contract . So it pretty much the same pay
I Agree that families with homes of rental potential should have the ability to benefit from it, unfortunately the Council, who are not in need, don’t side with the general public on this. Their Intent is to Destroy the STR Market by Regulating it to its Demise. They are determined to Advocate for the Resorts and Hotels and eliminate All Competition from STR’S. Anywhere else in the country this would be met with Lawsuits and the Litigation would be Successful in the Vigorous Defense and Ensuing Compensation to the Injured Parties. But this is Hawaii. Read into that whatever you want as it will probably be True!
John De Fries, of Hawaii Tourism Authority is playing Land and Power with Hawaii like a Monopoly game. It’s sad see Hawaiia’s own destroying Hawaii, destroying communities and aina for personal gain. We need to recognize the powerful people and stop them from destroying Hawaii and displacing Hawaiian families… Please
The HTA doesn’t control things anymore. That job has been taken over by the The Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement.
you just elected more of them.. oh well, no one campaigns on lets clean up the homeless, lets fund schools, lets get some public housing releif for residents, all they do is campaign against Short Term Rentals, totally ignoring hotels, and everyone drinks the koolaid
Beni You Are a Breath of Fresh Air! You’ve summed quite a lot up in your comment and it’s All the Truth. By Electing the Same People and even more Carbon Copies of them does Anyone understand the Harm they’ve chosen for Themselves? Things Will get much Worse, they all have had their Kool-aid and will continue to support their Big “Donor’s” Schemes to cancel out Any Competition. The Airport can’t get Permits but the Resorts and Hotels have lots of them, how?$$$? Hawaiians have Doomed Themselves and many Others, Sad but True!
Beni if they had campaigned on any,or all,of the issues they might have been held to their lies. It probably wouldn’t have made that much of a difference but they know that they will be reelected easier this way. They might have at least said that they would “look into” these issues while, ^5ing each other, laughing about it behind the scenes. Hawaiians have no idea how to use Their Votes to get what they need, Civics Class was a total waste.
Sadly. It the same party that in charge now. Too long to explained. But their been in office for over 10 yr and look at the decay. Pr growth only bring more problems on a bigger scale. Look at the Mississippi River that barge are scraping bottom, in warm our representatives in personal letters last yea. And a solution to kick start our farmer industry with tax 5 buck tax from golfer that goes to credit 5 buck matching their for low income at farmer market yo get 0 buck of veggies a week. Simple right? Not a single of 4 email I send got a interest replied. They don’t care.
And farmer cheep city water that free to them. The same price as it’s 53 golf courses they pay 78 cent per 10 thousand gallon. They say it recycle water that wrong only at ewa point that true. Farmer pay 1.45 for the same. It online
Anything that takes away from the Current Situation of Resorts and Hotels coming before what’s good for the people is Not being seriously considered. After all of these years doesn’t anyone yet understand this? Anything as “Experimental” as Farming must be approached with “Serious Discussion,” Many Study Committees, Soil Testings, More Discussions over Lunches and Dinners before the final reports decide that too much Fertilizers would potentially destroy the ecosystem! Sounds like $50 to $60 million wasted. The “Status Quo” Must Be Maintained!
Ewa Beach?! Well That should be interesting.
We’ve stayed on Oahu in vacation rentals many times. One time due to a hurricane threat we had to stay in a “resort” that was overpriced and not even close to our tiny vacation rental. Last year we stayed at a hotel in Honolulu for one night before we went to our rental because we had our adult kids and wanted them to experience Honolulu areas since this was their first trip. Our stay was not even close to our vacation rental. We’re coming this summer ’23 to a rental for our more than likely last ever trip to Oahu. These new rules say they are to protect Oahu. We love it here and are so careful of the environmental factors and the residents privacy. We will never stay in an overpriced hotel that can measure up to the vacation rental!
I meant to say the hotels can’t measure up to our beautiful vacation rentals.
That is the problem, more comfort and room at more sensible prices doesn’t fill the Resorts and Hotels. When They gain the upper hand by the elimination of their competition They become the Only Game in town. I do predict that if, or when, this occurs there will be a time frame of calm before the Next “Feeding Frenzy” begins. That’s when Every Resort and Hotel begins to Feed Upon the other for Prominence leaving the others to fend for whatever they can. The Blame for all of this is Traceable back to the Voters that keep the same party in charge. Do these voters go to Casinos and keep letting their money “ride” until it’s all gone? I often wondered who kept the Casinos Healthy, Wealthy and Wise, now I believe that it’s apparent Who!
Families would rather stay in affordable vacation rentals than in hotels.The move to kill vacation rentals in Oahu and give solely the privilege to hotels turning their facilities as vacation rentals is outright unfair, unacceptable and obviously prejudiced. Oahu has thrived because tourists on low budget could still come and enjoy especially those with young children. A reconsideration of existing policies and laws passed only to favor a select and influential few is in order and urgent for Hawaii’s growth and sustainability. Otherwise with existing economic conditions all over,who would go to expensive Hawaii even if they want to?Who would fill up those new hotel rooms? A case of big fish eating up small fish. Please be fair and just!
There are two issues here. Firstly that of Hotel chains charging appreciably more than Vacation Rentals and one can see the argument to allow a more cost effective option. Secondly is the location and provision of facilities. Many residents have found vacation rentals being set up in residential areas to the detriment of local residents particularly those with young kids or the elderly who do not mix with heavy traffic and some of the excesses in late night noise and activity which rentals can bring. I guess the compromise would be to allow zones where such rentals can be lawfully provided. I suspect that these would not be prime tourist choice sites and any development in these areas would attract Mainland speculation and drive up prices.
As far as “late night noise and activity” go, long-term renters have been having loud parties since time immemorial. Not to mention trash, couches and cars in the yard, Very loud music blasting from their own stereo systems facing outwards Every weekend. And they are a Lot harder to get rid of! At least short-term renters will be gone in a few days. Should long-term renters be banned from neighborhoods also?
Of course, not all long-term renters are like this, but the Vast majority of short-term renters aren’t either!
Has there been an Environmental Impact Study been done of the combined impact of full development and occupancy of all these projects?
This massive development sounds awful! What about infrastructure? Water? Power? Sanitation? Traffic? Oahu already has overdevelopment issues. This will only make it all worse.
Why would Anyone dare to honestly appraise those situations? If all of that were to occur then outlying areas might be cut off to provide the services to the new construction. Won’t the New Rail System, when finished in 2237, eliminate the congestion on all of the roadways in the area? That is the “Premise” behind building it. Bringing Problems to the Surface is “Counterproductive” and typically causes problems for those that should never have been affected. Remembering that should keep the Essential Services going, even if it becomes at a “Snail’s Pace!” Don’t worry until the Sewage Backs Up into your house.
You are witnessing the destruction of the island of Ohau.
These are only some of the finishing Touches of This Phase, it’ll get Much Worse.
It’s discussing the amount of development that is being allowed, does no one care about the locals who already can’t afford to live there so greedy corporate interests get rich..
Honestly No. It’s all about the Money that Tourists Spend. Your lives are very rarely considered and continuing to vote for the same types of people and their policies is Exactly what allows them to do what they please. If it sounds as if I’m throwing it in everyone’s face, it’s coincidental. Corporate Dominance and Greed are some of the Motivating Factors in all of this and Benefits the Politicians Immensely. Why continue voting for failed policies that don’t benefit yourselves? Maybe eventually?
So it didn’t take long why the $50 visitors fee is needed because new hotels are being built.
The $50 Fee is intended to Benefit the Specific Island that collects it. More picking the pockets of Tourists without any real identifiable Benefit. One thing for certain, it won’t go towards building affordable housing!
Once we found a vacation rental we loved on Oahu, there was no going back to hotels. We much prefer the North Shore when we visit. To be honest, we have not considered Oahu as a destination since they clamped down on vacation rentals. All the new rules and over-regulation of everything geared towards visitors has placed a big dark shadow over what used to be a fun destination.
I had warned previously that Oahu was the “Test Case” and when the legalities were settled it would be coming to Every Island, I was doubted. It will Effect Every Island and Green will make certain of it, Ige is His Hero.
I thought that one of the main reasons to go after vacation rentals was to limit the number of visitors, what a joke!
Absolutely. They had to find some excuse that we voters will by into. They (the councils) started out talking about the absence of affordable housing, and when it was proven to them that vacation rentals are not appropriate for us locals both in terms of rental rates and amenities, they quickly switched to “overtourism” being the culprit.
Thank you for this article. I look for vacation rentals because the timeshares are nearly impossible to get into when I need them and the hotels don’t offer full kitchens in many units.
We stay for 10 days most of the time. We don’t want to eat out for a ton of meals, so we also prefer vacation rentals as they are often not far from grocery stores.
We come for the Honolulu Marathon and to visit family and explore Oahu.
I absolutely *Hate* staying in hotels when we visit Hawai’i. It doesn’t provide the experience that we’ve been used to for 25+ years. That experience being: living more like a resident while we’re there. It’s a Totally different experience than what you get in a hotel. We quickly get tired of eating out all of time and like to eat a leisurely breakfast in our bathrobes and like to cook our own meals using local produce, fish, etc. We will never stay in hotel when visiting Honolulu, O’ahu or any other island…
Another timeshare tower at HHV by Kalia Tower? As a owner at Kalia, that is not good news. So now Hawaii wants our money?
Aloha Rob+Jeff Do we really need more/all these hotels? Paving paradise+ now even the parking lots for more concrete. The developers are really destroying Hawaii. They complain to have less tourists, and yet are continuing to build these mammoth behemoths. The air quality is going to be like Los Angeles with all of the carbon footprint it is creating with the construction. It’s becoming more of a turn-off to visit there.They should build more affordable housing for the locals and the homeless instead of catering to the $$$$$$ people. Mahalo as always for your constant updates.
I think the entire goal is to eliminate the vacation home business. I think the hotels have put a lot of pressure on the local government to eliminate the competition. The caps of 30 to 90 day minimum stays is truly egregious.
Yes, this must be the reason, along with the giant amount of spam we receive each day online about “unreasonable chores” and “exorbitant cleaning fees”. I think the hotel lobbies are behind all of it. And many readers are naive enough believe it.
Anyone that believes voting in the same Failures and expecting things to get better would surely believe whatever they read or saw on television, it surely explains a lot.
“If or when one is confused about ‘why’ something is happening, always follow the money trail”
The mega-hotel chains are the giant gorillas in the hotel world. Wikipedia says that Marriott is worth $25 Billion; same for Hilton; Hyatt is worth a measly $13 Billion. It would be very interesting to see which politicians have profited recently from all of those building permits, as well as which ones are on record of voting for / or against those hotel building permits. The truth will likely never be known without a serious investigation. Meanwhile, struggling local home-owners in Hawaii are being shut out of the vacation rental business by all the horrendous red-tape, including permits, the permit process, regulations, and high taxes.
Totally agree. They are going after the low-hanging fruit – like the little local couple who are using a home they own to make ends meet with a little extra income. Going after them while at the same time giving giant conglomerate hotel corporations free reign is unconscionable.
I think it is pretty well accepted as ‘the reality’ now, that the Hotel Kings virtually ‘own’ Hawaii, not just Oahu. They tell the councils about all that ‘hotel tax’ they are going to get, and they ‘rubber stamp’ apps to build new lodging. HI doesn’t Need more lodging for tourists. It’s all about the taxes. The city/county councils don’t really care about the quality of life, for either the locals or the tourists, otherwise they would stop the building.
Hi has only so much room. It’s not LA, and I don’t think anyone wants it to be. There has to be breathing room, you can’t pave it over, or people will quit coming, and no one wins.
Visit Hawaii and regular basis, typically twice a year (even during covid) always choosing VRBO. The impression is Hawaii is trying to restrict mainland visitors. If the trend continues we will definitely be choosing a new alternative to Hawaii.
Awesome, get rid of all the vacation rentals. Hawaiians need the housing returned to the citizens; tourists should stay in hotels only.
Many vacation rentals were built as vacation rentals 60 years ago. So it’s misleading to say they are being “returned to the citizens”. Citizens never lived in them. They are built such that they are only suitable for short-term visitors – not enough parking, not enough storage space, no playgrounds for children to play, etc.
I agree that houses in neighborhoods that were previously long-term rental stock should not be allowed to expand. There are many illegal short-term rentals in these neighborhoods that should be shut down.
Sorry. Wrong. Vacation rentals are a far more recent phenomenon in Hawaii. Shoots! Even the mainland.
Well let’s just say All the vacation rentals were outlawed. they are now back on the market and have to be sold. Does anyone think that they will be sold at “affordable housing prices”? Whatever that is. Heck no. They will be sold at the going market rate and it won’t move the needle one bit in relation to those who need “affordable” housing.
Thankfully the choice is not yours. Many rentals are not affordable for the average family if they were for lease. It might free up some of them but not hardly enough to make a difference. Find out from your Elected Officials why nothing is being done to create affordable housing, stop being a handmaiden of the Resort and Hotel Industry!
Much of the STR Properties are Unaffordable to the average income Hawaiian whether it’s to rent/lease or to purchase so there’s never been a realistic possibility to do either. The Council has spoon fed this idea, which you have said, about freeing up units and houses, They Lied and yet you believe them. STR’S take money away from Resorts and Hotels, eliminating them by Lying to You Increases Their Profits, No Competition and You did it for Free! How does it feel to be “Used?” Believe what you want or You can Believe the Truth.
We love airbnb and VRBO.
Not interested in hotel stay. We’re coming for a month in February!!
Yikes! Just sweep everyone off their feet!
Aloha
Homewood Suites /Res Inns are perfect for those who want kitchens, limited service is a great product. All the comforts of home without the surprise fees associated with vacation rentals. I am glad they are building a wide variety of properties to serve a wide variety of traveler. I am over vacation rentals, I hope they can return most of them back to housing stock for the people of the islands.
Thousands of short-term rentals have always been short-term rentals and would not be conducive to long-term use. They will never be “housing stock”.
Christina, for those of us who have Never had any “Surprise Fee’s” associated with a vacation rental maybe You can explain your Association with the 2 properties that you have mentioned as I believe that it is more than “casual.” A STR has the benefit of feeling at home in a residential area, free parking and creature comforts, not an institutional sanitary look and feel and paid parking in a City Setting. The differences are notable and include the additional costs of your suggestions. You sound like a Paid Advertisement for those properties.
Vacation rental
I am a hotel kind of guy but I am very upset by the Californification of Hawaii that is going on. We will end up with another SoCal style metro in the middle of the Pacific and lose the history and past that makes Hawaii what it still is, for now. The rise of the cookie cutters.
Even when I was stationed there in the late 80s, my opinion of Honolulu was that it was a city trying to imitate Los Angeles and failing.
It’s sad that Hawaiis beautiful scenery will soon be gone because of all of these hotels.
So im guessing you dont live here? We have a housing shortage…vacation rentals make the problem worse . A hotel takes less space and boosts our economy. Vacation rentals mostly benefit one individual .
Here’s a thought. Instead of developing more hotels, we develop more housing.
But who is paying for those houses to be built? Hotels are paid for by the corporations. You think the gov’t is going to pay for building all those houses / condos / apartments?
This is still America (or is it?) where a “home owner” should have the right to rent to whomever they want to, and that should include vacationers.
Yes, I live here.
Vacation rentals, especially condos and houses in resort areas, do not make anything worse. The average renter could never afford the rent on the typical vacation rental. Just the HOAs alone on many vacation rental condos are over 1K a month, not to mention the property taxes, which are 5X as high as we pay. The owners would have to charge 4-5K a month just to break even. If they had to, they would much rather sell as a 2nd home, in which case the rental would be vacant most of the year. That’s even worse, with no money coming into the communities in the form of a huge amount of taxes, and their use of all the local businesses that support tourism.
Do some research before you summarily dismiss short-term rentals.
The amount of money that is Taken in fee’s, certification, Taxes would spin your mind!
I see that you have fallen for Council’s speech hook line and sinker by believing STR’S are causing a lot of the Housing Shortages, try thinking for yourself. The speech was an Attempt to turn people against STR. Most people can’t afford to live in or purchase these properties but they are taking money from the Resorts and Hotels, they don’t like any competition. That’s what’s going on, eliminating the competition by “Using” You. The loss of the STR Market only benefits the Resorts and Hotels which will continue Expanding and Building wherever they desire once they Eliminate their competition. Short sightedness and unaware of reality only helps Them.
We stay in a time share in the Hilton Hawaiian Village twice a year, and I and I think adding more towers and rooms is absurd. It is crowded most of the year, and that doesn’t make for a very enjoyable experience, at times. I don’t know if the tower you talked about is the new time share tower that is planned next to the Kalia Tower, or if there is another tower in the plans. Just too many people in too little space.
Maui just passed a similar type of ordinance last week. The islands must be in cahoots with each other. The ordinance capped legal vacation rentals to number that currently exist, but the moratorium on building new hotels has been lifted, so hotels have free reign to build with abandon. How is this solving overtourism, which according to the ordinance, was the intent? Scratching my head…
Pat G, this has been the plan all along and never had reducing Tourism in mind. At a certain point of time those STR Properties will suddenly fall into the unwanted category because of the money that they take away from the Resorts and Hotels. They won’t allow anything to stand in the way of Profits. From the beginning all eyes were on Oahu for regulations, once the hurdles are out of the way all of the Islands will initiate the same rules and regulations making it uniform. All in the name of Profits $$$$$.
Does anyone know if the Marriott Vacation Club location for Waikiki that was announced in February 2020 is still going to happen? I can think of lots better locations to stay in Hawaii, but Waikiki is sometimes nice for a night or two. Then it’s time to go somewhere else to enjoy the real Hawaii!
I kinda like the idea of boutique hotels, especially the ones that take an existing old building and bring it back to life; and those with a small number of rooms — 23 rooms, 16 rooms, even those under 200 rooms.
So 16 rooms are OK, but 1 or 2 rooms is not ok?