Tenants facing eviction hope state will convert Kauaʻi’s Waipouli apartments to affordable housing
Affordable housing advocates are pressuring the State of Hawai‘i to purchase the apartment building and transform all 82 units into affordable housing.
In Hawaiʻi’s housing crunch, tenants are vulnerable to rent hikes and evictions
Advocates say the code lacks key policies needed in Hawaiʻi’s tight housing market, such as longer notice periods before someone can be evicted, caps on yearly rent increases and limits on the reasons landlords can evict tenants.
Mediating rent disputes
The mediation program’s principles are sound. Lawmakers now have many months to refine this bill and get right its final form and funding amounts; they cannot let a worthwhile program die because they can’t get their act together.
Kauaʻi residents seek state’s help to preserve affordable housing
Residents at a Kauaʻi housing project are asking the state for funding to keep rents at affordable levels after the 82-unit complex is sold to a private developer.
State funds for late rent, mediation to be revisited
Key state lawmakers are vowing to revisit a bill that died in the final days of the legislative session that would have required mediation between landlords and tenants before filing for eviction, while providing landlords millions in emergency rent relief.
Housing advocate calls for a departure from the status quo to meet basic needs
Gavin Thornton, executive director of Hawaiʻi Appleseed Center for Law and Economic Justice, discusses the mixed bag of results from lawmakers attempting to address the housing and homeless crises during the 2023 legislative session.
Vacant homes would be taxed at higher rate under possible city plan
Honolulu officials have been keeping an eye on how Maui has managed the issue.
Leasehold condo plan could work
The idea, branded as ALOHA Homes (Affordable Locally Owned Homes for All), is to build and sell the leasehold condos at no long-term cost to Hawaiʻi taxpayers.
State-backed leasehold condo pilot pending
Senate Bill 865 would establish a pilot program to develop one condo project for sale on state land under a 99-year land lease in an effort to demonstrate whether the concept is a viable solution to increase the long-term supply of affordable housing.
Bill creating a luxury home sales tax to fund homeless services misses key deadline
For advocates working to solve homelessness in the state, the measure’s demise continues an ongoing sense of uncertainty for long-term solutions.
Luxury home sales tax to fund affordable housing killed
A bill to tax the sale of multimillion-dollar properties and use the proceeds to fund affordable housing became one of the most popular proposals in the state legislature this session.
Covid has slowed but Hawaiʻi still needs rent assistance
Evictions are harmful to our housing ecosystem and to the landlords who rely on consistent rent payments from tenants.
Thirty percent of bills in Hawaiʻi legislature survive crossover day
Around 950 bills have survived, out of more than 3,100 bills introduced in 2023.
Hawaiʻi taxpayers are paying a high cost for evictions
Every year there are about 2,500 evictions in the islands. And many fear more people will be out on the streets because of the high cost of housing.
Tax to fund affordable housing advances in state legislature
Senate Bill 362, Draft 2, which raises the conveyance tax on property sales over $2 million, has survived committee (a feat that only one in 10 bills achieve) and is set for a final floor vote in the Senate this week.
While a tax hike to fund homeless services may not pass, housing advocates have a plan
When it comes to Hawaiʻi's conveyance tax rates, advocates say the state is low compared to other high-cost areas in the U.S.
Bill to increase conveyance tax on Hawaiʻi homes will potentially fund homeless services
Housing advocates say this new measure will raise hundreds of millions of dollars each year for homeless services and the critical affordable housing need here.
Proposed tax increase to fund homeless services not likely to advance in legislature
SB678 received nearly 100 pages of written testimony, with only two testifiers opposing it.
Property sale tax could create $2.1 million for Kauaʻi homeless
Based on 2018 data, Hawaiʻi Appleseed estimated the tax would generate $174 million for affordable housing and $34.8 million for homeless services statewide, including $2.1 million for Kauaʻi.
Adjust the burden of property taxes
Low inventory of properties and pandemic economic shifts have driven prices up.