Hawai’i, Put an End to Short-Term Rentals
Short-Term Vacation Rentals Are a Real Problem for Hawai’i Neighborhoods and Residents
Many of you say, “Short-term rentals are the only way I can afford to visit Hawai’i.”
Or… “The only way I can own a place in Hawai’i (usually a second home).”
I say, “I don’t care, because they’re hurting the people who live in Hawai’i.”
I Used to Love Short-Term Vacation Rentals
I often booked short-term rentals. It’s an easy way to have the entire family together — cheaper too (per person). It is so exciting to arrive from the airport at a home or condo (just for you). You have an equipped kitchen, bathrooms, and bedrooms — it’s a home instead of a hotel room.
What’s not to like about that?
A LOT… I Hate Short-Term Vacation Rentals
After living in Hawai’i for two years, I understand why most residents (kama’aina— people of the land), loathe short-term rentals.
My husband and I bought a house in a nice neighborhood — a fixer-upper. We negotiated a “reasonable” price for the home, knowing we were going to put money into the property to bring it back to life. It was a lot of work, but worth it.
This was the beginning of my detest of short-term vacation rentals.
Read on to find out…
Lack of Inventory for “Long-Term” Rentals
In our experience, we needed a long-term rental (a six-month lease or longer) while we looked for a place to purchase. Our options were limited because most of the rentals on the island were designated for short-term rentals (meaning less than 90 days).
Imagine if you are a local in need of housing — there aren’t many options available for you. All the tourists are getting your housing!
High Costs for Long-Term Rentals
The lack of long-term rental inventory means higher prices.
It’s basic economics!
In our experience, with such a limited selection, we decided on a six-month lease for a 700 sq foot condo at $2,000 a month. It was the cheapest we could find. And this was on the “least expensive” island (if there is such a thing). On O’ahu, the prices were about double for the same-size condo.
Crazy expensive!
Many residents of Hawai’i are paying astronomical prices for their housing. When you add in the electricity, fuel, and food prices (all of which are extremely high), their living expenses are through the roof. I, personally, don’t know how most residents of Hawai’i are managing to live.
Here is an excellent article on The Costs of Living in Hawaii in 2022 by Lesly Gregory on Rent.com. I agree with the author and have experienced the prices that she has listed in her article. So very true.
My point is… I believe one of the reasons local residents have to pay more for housing is because the available inventory is in short-term rentals (there aren’t enough long-term rentals available).
The only benefit is to the owner of the short-term rental. And for most of them, these rentals are their SECOND home. They rent out the time they are not here so they can afford their vacation home.
This needs to stop!
We just don’t have land to spare. We need to keep rentals for our locals, not for vacationers. There are plenty of hotels, folks — even one and two-bedrooms with kitchens.
Vacationers Are a Pain in the Ass
The night we moved into our new home (still under repairs, but livable), we opened a bottle of champagne on our lanai, toasting to the awesome sunset we get to live with every night.
Not an hour into our champagne we saw two cars drive up to the house below us. This house is literally within spitting distance. We thought they were our new neighbors coming home.
NOT!
Out piled five 20-something men from each car (that’s 10 young men). They were loud and obviously intoxicated.
My husband and I looked at each other and my breath stopped!
They proceeded to find the hidden key (not so hidden now, because we could hear everything they were saying). Did I say they were loud?
They stumbled into the house and opened all the windows (how nice of them… just for us to hear everything). And they partied… ALL NIGHT LONG!
We had to close all the sliders and windows and lock ourselves inside the house on our first night. There isn’t a word to express how devastated I was when I realized we had bought a house right next to a freaking MOTEL!
At 6:30 am the next morning, I heard car doors slamming and loud music (from both cars). I woke up completely PISSED OFF! My husband was on a conference call and I knew he was steaming (it was a very important call).
I got onto our lanai and yelled as loud as I could, “Shut the blank up!” It took about five times (because they couldn’t hear me over their speakers). Finally, they looked up and said, “Oh, man. Sorry,” with a beer in their hands.
A BEER at 6:30 am — and they were going to DRIVE!
10 Long Days
Their partying lasted for 10 Days! We eventually got a hold of the owners and rental management company to get this to stop — it didn’t stop.
But WAIT… There’s More…
Over the course of five months, there was an on-slot of short-term renters below us. The moment one set of renters left, the cleaning crew was there preparing for the new renters scheduled for that afternoon. There were NO BREAKS between renters!
One couple had sex three or four times a day (and I mean the screaming-as-loud-as-you-can type of sex). Sounded like fighting, rabid cats.
I was impressed, but then again, upset!
Other renters were just as noisy and had many people over and parties — in and out of the house at all hours of the day and night.
After a while, each time new renters arrived, my neighbor-friend and I would knock on the door and “introduce ourselves.” We told them that we can hear EVERYTHING that happens in this house and we would appreciate their cooperation in respecting the quiet neighborhood (where people live and work) — no noise after 8 pm or before 8 am (Hawai’ian time). If we heard loud noises or parties, we would call the cops.
That got their attention for the most part. This is something that the management firm should do. Right? Good grief!
Thankfully, we found out that we could call the authorities for any nuisance caused by short-term renters and after the “third” call the county would terminate the owner’s short-term rental permit, permanently.
Now, that’s a plan!
All Hawai’i Short-Term Rental Permits Should be Revoked in Residential Areas
I know I’ll receive backlash about this, but short-term vacation rentals are a real problem here in Hawai’i and they should be revoked in residential areas.
Many counties are trying to address this problem. For example, the City and County of Honolulu passed Bill 41 (2021) that, in their words:
SECTION 1. Findings and Purpose. Short-term rentals are disruptive to the character and fabric of our residential neighborhoods; they are inconsistent with the land uses that are intended for our residential zoned areas and increase the price of housing for Oahu’s resident population by removing housing stock from the for-sale and long-term rental markets. The City Council finds that any economic benefits of opening up our residential areas to tourism are far outweighed by the negative impacts to our neighborhoods and local residents.
Yeah… What they said!
Other islands are making some moves. For example, Hawai’i County will not issue any new permits in residential areas but has allowed current permits to remain.
I personally believe that “all existing” short-term rental permits within residential neighborhoods should be abolished within the next five years (or less), on all the islands.
If that means someone can’t afford their vacation rental, then they have time to sell (hopefully to a local resident).
They should not profit on the backs of Hawai’ian residents.
In Conclusion
Eliminating all short-term rental permits in residential areas would increase inventory (home sales and rentals) for the locals. It would allow for a more competitive marketplace and hopefully, control the high prices of housing.
Not to mention, residents can finally enjoy their peaceful neighborhoods for which they pay a LOT of MONEY to purchase or rent.
What Happened to Our Next Door Motel?
Many of you are probably wondering what happened to the motel (rental) below us…
Well, it turns out the owners didn’t actually have a permit for a short-term rental after all, and someone turned them into the county (not me, but I would have had I known). They were slapped with a huge fine — yippee!
I personally believe that some of that fine should go directly to the neighbors that suffered! I could use the money to build a massive rock wall between us.
So, now the owners live in California and they’re unable to rent it out (poor babies). They’ll probably end up selling it, but whoever purchases the house cannot rent it to vacationers. If they do, I know how to solve the problem.
I Don’t Apologize for My Opinion
Our experience proves to me that these short-term rental permits in “residential” areas need to be terminated. I’ve spoken with many locals and their experiences with these types of rentals — all miserable stories.
My neighborhood is so much better off without those vacationers below us and all those noisy parties.
So quite and peaceful without vacationers!
I don’t care if you are an owner of one of these motels (short-term rentals) or if I’ve offended you. You are not living with the consequences of these rentals near your home and you are hurting Hawai’ian residents.
Stay OUT of Our Neighborhoods!
© Jupie Wilder
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