What a Landlord Cannot Do in Hawaii
The main limits Hawaii law puts on landlords — lockouts and utility shutoffs, entering without notice, retaliation, deposits, fees and discrimination — each with the statute or official source.
In short: a Hawaii landlord cannot evict without a court order, cannot punish a tenant for asserting legal rights where state law protects them, and must follow the state's rules on entry, deposits and fees shown below.
| Lockouts & utility shutoffs | Lockout: if the landlord removes or excludes the tenant overnight without cause or court order, the tenant may recover possession or terminate and recover 2 months' rent (or 2 months' free occupancy) plus costs and attorney's fees. Utility shutoff: landlord may not wilfully interrupt water, hot water, electric, gas, or other essential service to regain possession; it is an unfair and deceptive practice with minimum damages of the greater of 3 times the monthly rent or $1,000. § 521-74.5 text at https://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/Vol12_Ch0501-0588/HRS0521/HRS_0521-0074_0005.htm Source: HRS §§ 521-63(c), 521-74.5 |
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| Landlord entry notice | At least 2 days' notice and entry only at reasonable hours, except in an emergency or where impracticable. No other right of entry except by court order or apparent abandonment. Repeated unreasonable entry: tenant may terminate; circuit court may enjoin and fine up to $100 (§ 521-73). Source: HRS § 521-53 |
| Landlord retaliation | While the tenant keeps paying rent, the landlord may not evict, force the tenant out, raise rent, or cut services after the tenant in good faith complains to a government agency or the landlord about health or code violations, an agency cites a violation, or the tenant requests repairs under §§ 521-63/521-64. No fixed presumption period. Tenant recovers damages plus costs and reasonable attorney's fees. Exceptions include waste/nuisance, good-faith owner occupancy, substantial remodeling, and a termination notice given before the complaint. Source: HRS § 521-74 |
| Security deposit limit | 1 month's rent, plus an optional pet deposit of up to 1 month's rent (only if the tenant has a pet; never for an assistance animal). At move-in the landlord may collect only the first month's rent and the security deposit. Source: HRS § 521-44(b) |
| Penalty for withholding | Wrongful and wilful retention: court may award up to 3 times the amount wrongfully and wilfully retained, plus costs. Wrongful (not wilful) retention: the amount wrongfully retained plus costs. Deposit disputes go to the small claims division of district court, where attorneys are not allowed (§ 521-44(g)-(h)). Source: HRS § 521-44(h) |
| Late fees | Late charge may not exceed 8% of the rent due. No statutory grace period. Source: HRS § 521-21(f) |
| Rent control / increase limits | No rent control in Hawaii; no limit on the amount of a rent increase. Notice of increase: at least 45 days for month-to-month tenancies, 15 days for shorter tenancies. |
| Statewide ban on refusing Section 8 / source of income | No statewide protection found. The fair housing law's protected classes in real estate transactions are race; sex, including gender identity or expression; sexual orientation; color; religion; marital status; familial status; ancestry; disability; age; and HIV infection. Source of income and voucher status are not listed. Neither § 515-2 nor § 515-3, nor ch. 521, mentions source of income or Section 8. Source: HRS § 515-3 |
| Cameras & privacy | No landlord-specific statute. It is a crime to install or use, in any private place and without consent of those entitled to privacy there, a device to observe, record, amplify, or broadcast sounds or events (violation of privacy in the second degree), or to capture a person in a stage of undress or sexual activity (first degree, a class C felony). It is also an offense to trespass for surveillance or to use an outside device to pick up sounds from a private place not ordinarily audible outside. Landlord entry generally requires at least two days' notice, during reasonable hours, and may not be used to harass. A rented home is a private place for its occupants; landlord cameras or audio devices inside a tenant's unit without consent are likely unlawful. Exterior or common-area cameras are not specifically regulated. |
| Other rental fees | At the start of a tenancy the landlord may collect only the first month's rent and the security deposit (plus a pet deposit where allowed); no other move-in money. Late charges may not exceed 8% of the rent due. § 521-21: https://data.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/Vol12_Ch0501-0588/HRS0521/HRS_0521-0021.htm. No online-payment-fee or total-cost-of-rent rule found in ch. 521. Source: HRS §§ 521-44(b), 521-21(f) |
Can I sue my landlord in Hawaii? · All Hawaii tenant rights
General legal information, not legal advice. Laws change and local rules can differ; check the linked official source or talk to a lawyer about your situation.