State asks for reports of illegal rental increases on Maui
Has your residential rent on Maui recently gone up?
The Hawaii Attorney General wants to hear about it due to an emergency proclamation that prohibits charging more rent than the rate charged on Aug. 9 as well as threats of eviction for failure to pay rent, taxes or fees.
This applies to landlords re-renting a property to new tenants as well as new agreements with the same tenant, according to the Department of the Attorney General, as long as the proclamation remains in effect. The exception is if an increase in rent was already agreed upon in writing and signed by the tenant before Aug. 9.
Gov. Josh Green signed the seventh proclamation relating to wildfires on Sept. 8, which remains effective through Nov. 6 unless terminated or superseded by a separate proclamation.
“We are aware of reports of Maui landlords raising rent beyond what was being assessed for the same unit as of August 9, 2023,” said Attorney General Anne Lopez in a news release. “The purpose of the rent and eviction restrictions in the Emergency Proclamation is to address the unprecedented humanitarian crisis caused by the August wildfires. If you believe that a landlord on Maui is acting illegally under the Emergency Proclamation, report what you know to the Department of the Attorney General.”
The seventh proclamation also prohibits landlords from initiating, continuing, or prosecuting an eviction action against a tenant for failure to pay all or any portion of the rent, maintenance fees, utility charges, taxes, or other fees for the residential unit.
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Merely threatening eviction under such circumstances may constitute an unlawful act, the department said.
Landlords violating the proclamation may be subject to civil penalties of up to $10,000 per day.
Additionally, the seventh proclamation places a prize freeze on 14 specific goods and services on Maui, including food; water; dairy and non-dairy milk; ice; toilet paper; over-the-counter medicines and sales and rentals of motor vehicles.
Report a Maui landlord potentially violating the proclamation to hawaiiag@hawaii.gov.
