Hawaii lease agreement requirements: what landlords must include

A Hawaii residential lease has to follow Chapter 521 of the Hawaii Revised Statutes, which caps the security deposit at one month's rent plus an optional pet deposit, requires a signed move-in inventory, and makes the landlord name the owner and a local agent in writing. The same chapter sets the notice to end a month-to-month tenancy at 45 days from the landlord and 28 days from the tenant.

Start with the money. Under HRS 521-44(b), a landlord may collect only the first month's rent and a security deposit at the start of a tenancy. The deposit cannot exceed one month's rent, plus a pet deposit of up to one more month's rent when a pet will actually live in the unit. No pet deposit may be charged for an assistance animal that is a reasonable accommodation under HRS 515-3. The deposit also cannot be applied as the last month's rent unless both sides agree in writing and the tenant gives 45 days' notice of leaving.

On a $3,000 unit where the tenant has a dog, the ceiling is a $3,000 deposit plus a $3,000 pet deposit, and the most the landlord can take at move-in is $9,000, counting first month's rent. Without the dog, the move-in maximum drops to $6,000. If the lease charges a late fee, HRS 521-21(f) caps it at 8 percent of the rent due, which is $240 on this unit.

The statute also limits what the deposit can cover. HRS 521-44(a) allows deductions for unpaid rent, damage from a tenant's failure to meet the duties in HRS 521-51, keys not returned (including key fobs, parking cards, garage door openers, and mailbox keys), cleaning the unit back to move-in condition, losses from a tenant who wrongfully quits, pet damage, and landlord-supplied utilities not included in rent.

Within 14 days after the rental agreement ends, the landlord must return the deposit or send written notice of any amount kept, with written evidence of the costs, such as estimates, invoices, or cleaning receipts. A landlord who misses that deadline loses the right to keep any part of the deposit. Mailing to an address the tenant supplied, with proof of mailing and a postmark before midnight on the 14th day, is presumed to comply. If a small claims judge finds the landlord kept money wrongfully and willfully, the award can reach three times the amount withheld. Any suit over a kept deposit must be filed within one year after the rental agreement ends, and HRS 521-44(e) separately bars a landlord from requiring postdated checks for rent.

Paperwork the lease and move-in must include

HRS 521-42(a) requires an inventory before the tenant first moves in: a written record of the condition of the unit and any furnishings or appliances. Both sides sign duplicate copies, and each tenant gets one. Skipping it is costly. Without an inventory, the unit's condition at move-out is presumed to match its condition at move-in, and a Hawaii appeals decision noted on the statute page (112 H. 302) threw out a landlord's damage award for exactly that reason.

HRS 521-43 covers disclosure. At or before the start of the tenancy, the landlord must give the tenant, in writing, the name and address of each person authorized to manage the property and of each owner or agent authorized to accept legal papers, rent, notices, and demands. The information must stay current and binds any later owner. A landlord who skips this step becomes the agent of every other landlord for those purposes. The section also requires a copy of any written lease for the tenant, written rent receipts (canceled checks count), and the landlord's general excise tax number so tenants can claim a low-income tax credit. An owner who lives out of state or on another island must name, on the written rental agreement, an agent who lives on the same island as the unit.

A disclosure block that covers each item might read: "Owner: [name and mailing address]. Property manager: [name and address]. Agent residing on the island of [island] for service of process and for receiving rent, notices, and demands: [name and street address]. Landlord's general excise tax number: [number]."

Notice periods for month-to-month and shorter tenancies

The tenant rule ties rent to the notice date. A tenant who gives written notice on March 10 owes rent through April 7, the 28th day, apportioned day by day under HRS 521-21(c). A landlord who gives notice on March 10 cannot end the tenancy before April 24. After a landlord's notice, the tenant may move out any time within the 45-day window by telling the landlord the date and paying prorated rent for the days used.

A tenant who stays past the end date without consent may owe up to twice the monthly rent, prorated daily. The landlord must start a summary possession case within the first 60 days of the holdover. After that, if there is no new agreement, a month-to-month tenancy at the old rent takes over. One more limit applies to landlords: under HRS 521-71(f), a termination notice given to get around the rent increase notice rules in HRS 521-21(d) or (e) is void.

Sources

• Hawaii Revised Statutes 521-21, rent
• Hawaii Revised Statutes 521-42, landlord duties and inventory
• Hawaii Revised Statutes 521-43, disclosure
• Hawaii Revised Statutes 521-44, security deposits
• Hawaii Revised Statutes 521-53, access
• Hawaii Revised Statutes 521-71, termination of tenancy