Yesterday, the U. S. Treasury Department issues a press release stating that it will not enforce the BOI Reporting Requirements against U.S. citizens and domestic reporting companies. The press release states, “not only will it not enforce any penalties or fines associated with the beneficial ownership information reporting rule under the existing regulatory deadlines, but […]
FinCen Plans to Extend BOI Reporting Deadline and Suspend Fines Until After New Deadline Set
Today, FinCen posted a news release that it will not issue any fines or other penalties for any entity that does not file a BOI Report until new interim rules are adopted. Before March 21, 2025, FinCen intends to issue interim rules that will extend the deadline for filing BOI Reports. Read the article…………………………….
Gas grill explosion at Hawaii condo leaves 7 injured, 3 in critical condition
The Maui Police Department, according to their statement, received reports of the explosion which took place at 2481 Kaanapali Parkway at approximately 6:15 p.m. and found seven people, from the ages 18 to 74, injured, ABC News’ Honolulu affiliate KITV reports. Read the article…………………………….
Hawai‘i Condo Owners Could Benefit From State Plan To Prop Up Insurance Market
Four years ago, when Charles Schmidt and his wife retired to Hawai?i, their monthly homeowners association fee at M?kaha Valley Plantation condominium was $550 a month. Since then, the fee has spiked 60% to $880 per month, largely because of rising insurance rates. Read the article…………………………….
U.S. Attorney’s Office Obtains $162,500 Settlement Compensating Victim of Fair Housing Act Discrimination (HI)
Kenneth M. Sorenson, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Hawaii, announced a settlement of $162,500 resolving the United States’ lawsuit under the Fair Housing Act (“FHA”) against Kailua Village Condominium Association (“Kailua Village”), its Managing Agent, Associa Hawaii, the sellers of a Kailua Village condominium unit, and the sellers’ realtor. Read the article…………………………….
Honolulu residents still dealing with aftermath of storm as heavy rains break elevators (HI)
Dozens of people in aging condominiums are dealing with broken elevators damaged a week ago during the storm. “With the heavy rain, I noticed there was dripping like inside the elevator from when you opened the doors,” said Haunani Pohaku. Pohaku is one of them, living in a decades-old building with 12 floors on University […]
Firefighters extinguish 11th-floor blaze at Kapiolani condo (HI)
Honolulu firefighters extinguished a blaze that broke out Monday afternoon on the 11th floor of a high-rise condo in Moiliili. The Honolulu Fire Department received a 911 call at 2:43 p.m. for a building fire at the Kapiolani Royale at 2474 Kapiolani Boulevard. Twelve units with 57 personnel responded, with the first arriving on scene […]
Gov. Green Issues Fourth Proclamation Relating to Condominium Insurance Stabilization (HI)
WHEREAS, in Hawai’i, condominium associations are facing the challenge of limited insurance options for hurricane insurance because of the tightening reinsurance market; WHEREAS, only 3 insurers are offering master policies, which insure the common areas of the condominium, to condominium associations in Hawaii, often covering just 20-30% of a building’s hurricane exposure; Read the […]
State stuck with another dilapidated Banyan Drive property (HI)
The state is once again on the hook for a decrepit building on Banyan Drive after the previous lessee of the former Country Club Condominium Hotel surrendered its permit for the property. The Board of Land and Natural Resources in 2022 approved a revocable permit for Banyan Drive Management LLC to temporarily manage the property, […]
Honolulu Condos: City Might Water Down Fire Safety Law Again (HI)
Seven years ago, after a deadly condominium fire, the Honolulu City Council moved to mandate sprinklers in every residential high-rise, with the premise that sprinklers save lives. Then came outcry from condo owners and associations, who said the requirement would be prohibitively expensive. The council acquiesced, and under a compromise, buildings could either install sprinklers […]
Real Estate Commmission to Host a Free Virtual “Condorama” Education Event (HI)
The Real Estate Commission, together with Community Associations Institute Hawaii Chapter will conduct a free “Condorama XIII” event via webinar, on Saturday, November 9, 2024. The event runs from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. and will feature speakers highlighting topics relating to the condominium community. Read the article…………………………….
Self-Insurance Is No Insurance (HI)
One of our newer lawmakers recently penned a piece, “Consumer-Centered Property Insurance Can Help Condo Owners” (Civil Beat, Oct. 18), floating the idea that condominium associations should consider self-insurance as one way to deal with the difficulties, costs, and practicalities of getting insurance for condominium common areas. The author notes that self-insurance entails putting away […]
Lien, foreclosure threats add anxiety over insurance-driven condo fees (HI)
Soaring condominium fees due to insurance cost hikes are putting owners at risk of foreclosure, and trapping others in properties they can’t sell, according to residents struggling to keep up. County and state lawmakers, insurance regulators and the governor all acknowledge it’s a huge problem and are working on all sorts of remedies. But people […]
Maui County trying to collect millions in overdue visitor lodging taxes (HI)
Hundreds of property owners who have failed to pay Maui County the 3% transient accommodations tax for visitor lodgings have been receiving letters saying they need to pay up, and fast. In November 2021, Maui County started charging the tax after the state took away the counties’ share of the statewide pot. Each county was […]
Consumer-Centered Property Insurance Can Help Condo Owners (HI)
Over the past 20 years property insurance carriers have collected nearly $38 billion in premiums from Hawaii property owners, paid out around $14 billion in claims, and amassed at least $24 billion in net profit. Why were many of these insurance carriers allowed to skip town with all that profit just when policyholders need them […]
Gov. Green discusses Maui wildfire recovery progress, possible relief for condo insurance hikes (HI)
Gov. Josh Green stopped by Sunrise with an update on the Maui wildfire recovery progress and possible relief for condo insurance hikes. Video news report……………………..
Developer temporarily halts building luxury condos near Turtle Bay (HI)
A Utah-based developer building luxury residential units near Turtle Bay Resort has paused vertical construction until December 1. The decision comes one month after the developer hosted a community open house with residents……From traffic to environmental concerns, many Koolauloa and North Shore residents are against new development and have been for years. Read the article…………………………….
Beware Of Possible Bias In Condominium Mediation (HI)
Earlier this year, a mediation center that provides condominium-owner-paid Condominium Education Trust Fund-subsidized mediation services provided an instructional session to mediators by Zoom. Superficially, there was nothing unusual. However, a few of those mediators reported — independently of each other — that the instructor spoke disparagingly of condo owners, as if to inculcate a prejudice […]
Community Associations Institute v. U.S. Dept. of Treasury
Community Associations Institute filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Treasury challenging the Corporate Transparency Act and its application to community associations. The law suit challenges the law on the grounds that community associations are exempt under Section 528 of the Internal Revenue Code and several constitutional grounds. Read the article…………………………….
Retired Hawaii lawmaker fights order to pay maintenance fees for her condo that ‘burned to the ground’ in the Lahaina disaster
Retired Hawaii state senator Rosalyn “Roz” Baker is no longer living in the condo she once owned after it was burned down during the Lahaina wildfires last year. However, she claims that’s not stopping the state’s Association of Apartment Owners (AOAO) from “demanding” that she continue “paying for maintenance fees.” Baker said she owned a […]
Hawaii condo owners starting to feel insurance rates increase
Many condo and townhouse owners are starting to pay up for the increased maintenance fees due to skyrocketing insurance costs. A KHON2 view contacted us through our “Report It” feature to share the “never-ending battle.” Read the article…………………………….
‘It feels unfair’ | Lahaina homeowners still paying HOA fees despite fire-damaged properties (HI)
Several property owners from Lahaina reported to Island News they are still having to pay homeowners association (HOA) fees even though their properties were destroyed in the fire. “It feels a little unfair. My husband kind of put it that he feels a little scammed because it’s still the same amount of money and it’s […]
Organizers push for public shoreline access in West Maui, removal of beachfront condos (HI)
A legal battle is brewing over an effort to save beachfront condos in West Maui that were built in the ’70s and are now threatened by erosion. For years, community organizers like Kai Nishiki have been trying to prevent the Kahana Sunset from securing a permit to repair one of its buildings along the shoreline […]
Owner fights back after maintenance fees demanded for destroyed condo in Lahaina (HI)
A former Maui lawmaker says she is getting demand letters to pay maintenance fees for her condominium that was destroyed in the Lahaina disaster. “I never expected that something that was not caused by any of the owners would be used to really kind of entrap owners,” said retired State Senator Roz Baker. Read the […]
Hawai‘i’s Condo Insurance Crisis Is Now Hurting Sales
Honolulu’s condominium market is starting to show the effects of skyrocketing insurance rates for homeowners associations: The number of condo sales in June was down nearly 25% from June 2023, even though more units were for sale than at any time in the last three years. Read the article…………………………….
Hawaii Has Done Little To Shore Up Neighborhoods Against Fire. Some Are Doing It Themselves
A group of residents at The Island and Bluffs at Maui Lani recently explored the pill-shaped subdivision on the western edge of Kahului, backyard by backyard….The residents walked with firefighters and staff from the Hawaii Wildfire Management Organization, looking at fence lines, roofs, gutters, windows and walls. They pondered the preened lawns and foliage. They […]
Emergency Proclamation On Condo Insurance Doesn’t Solve The Problem (HI)
It may also be said that attorney fees may be the tail that wags the dog in rising insurance costs. Natural catastrophic events are not the only causes of increased insurance costs. The American Property Casualty Insurance Association and Reinsurance Association of American reported in their joint study of the origins and causes of increasing […]
Condo closings fall in wake of short-term rental phase-out bill announcement (HI)
Closings of condominium sales have dropped by double-digit percentages in the three months since Mayor Richard Bissen announced a proposal to phase out thousands of short-term rentals in apartment-zoned districts, according to monthly statistics from the Realtors Association of Maui. Read the article…………………………….
Gov. Green signs emergency proclamation to address condo insurance crisis (HI)
Gov. Josh Green, M.D., signed an emergency proclamation on Wednesday aimed at stabilizing Hawai‘i’s volatile condominium insurance market, which he said has seen unprecedented rate increases due to a hardening global insurance industry and recent increase of catastrophic events around the world. Hawai‘i’s property insurance market faces significant challenges due to its small size, high […]
Officials address condo insurance crisis, but is it too late? (HI)
Insurance premiums are skyrocketing for condo owners with no relief in sight. Now the state is taking some action. But will it be enough? “We are doing everything we can to help stabilize the market,” State Insurance Commissioner Gordon Ito said. He said insurance premiums for homeowners have spiked in large part due to increased […]
Oahu Condo Owners Are Debating Best Way To Limit Fire Safety Costs (HI)
Automatic fire sprinklers are great — but not, some condominium unit owners say, when installing them means uprooting their entire lives and spending thousands of dollars. At Kahala Towers, a high-rise residential building in Honolulu, the condo’s board of directors is pushing ahead with the installation, saying it’s needed to mitigate soaring insurance costs. Owners, […]
The View from the Other Side of the Table (Insurance)
I am well versed at sending emails and hosting meetings telling managers and board members that their insurance has been non-renewed and / or premiums are going up 200%+. Well recently, I was on the receiving end of that email. I can now quite literally say that I feel your pain. Some of you know […]
8 people displaced after fire tears through Kahului condo (HI)
A fire burned through a Maui condo over the weekend, causing extensive damage. Maui fire officials said the flames began sometime just before 3:20 a.m. Sunday. Multiple engines and units were dispatched to the scene at the Harbor Lights Condominiums in Kahului. Residents were evacuated as crews quickly got to work battling the flames. Read […]
On Hawaii Island, government and citizens are joining forces to better prepare for wildfires
In the year since the Lahaina wildfire disaster, the head of Hawaii County’s Civil Defense Agency says he’s implemented additional training for emergency management staff with a focus on messaging and the use of the public alert warning system. Read the article…………………………….
Condos’ High-Rising Insurance Premiums Are A Top Issue In These Legislative Races (HI)
Jillian Anderson was planning to make fighting crime in Waikiki the top issue in her campaign for a seat in the Hawaii House of Representatives. Then came the letter from her condo association announcing a 300% increase in insurance premiums, which would be passed on to owners through an assessment. Read the article…………………………….
Maui Repair Or Retreat? An Ocean-Battered Maui Condo Complex Grapples With An Uncertain Future (HI)
John Saunders fondly remembers family gatherings at his condo along Napili coast in West Maui. He loved to watch his kids learning to swim and snorkel with sea turtles in Keonenui Bay, a crescent-shaped cove just a short walk from the 1970s-era Kahana Sunset complex. The Orange County, California, coin collector and real estate investor […]
Plan to ban 7,000 Maui short-term rentals targets resort condos (HI)
A luxury apartment-hotel, a $4 million beach house and condominiums at a resort golf course don’t typically constitute workforce housing in Hawaii, but they are targets of a plan on Maui aimed at converting short-term vacation rental properties to long-term housing for residents. Read the article…………………………….
Insurance Crisis Worsens in Hawai‘i’s “Condoland”
It’s been a bad year for Hawai‘i Condominium Associations, with many seeing the price of their master insurance policies increasing 300% or more in one year. A few buildings saw those premiums increase by an extraordinary 900% to 1,300%. It’s unlikely to get better any time soon. Read the article…………………………….
A ‘Hard Market’ Is Battering Condo Owners (HI)
When the Peninsula at Hawaii Kai condo community got news of its insurance bill for 2024, the condo owners were in for an unpleasant surprise. The association’s premium was going up almost tenfold, to $3.3 million from less than $400,000, said Kris Hanselman, an owner in the community. Read the article…………………………….
Condos In Hawaii: 3 Key Issues To Know
Some 400,000 of us here in the islands live in condos, governed by quasi-governmental agencies. Sometimes residents can face legal fees in the thousands over fairly minor disputes, as Stewart Yerton has reported. And for some, insurance costs have skyrocketed lately. Watch the video………………………….
An aid to condo owners, easing maintenance and energy costs (HI)
Governor Green has signed several bills into law aimed at alleviating challenges faced by condominium owners. The new legislation opens avenues for condo associations to secure financing for various building improvements, spanning from plumbing upgrades to the installation of fire sprinklers. Read the article…………………………….
Condos In Hawaii: Are Owners Protected By State Laws?
We explored the often polarizing issues surrounding condominium association governance and management, and the impacts they have on owners at our Civil Cafe: Condo Issues panel discussion on Friday, May 24, 2024. Panelists included condo resident and advocate Lila Mower, broker Richard Emery, and attorneys Jane Sugimura and Terry Revere. The event was moderated by […]
‘It will get better,’ Insurance, fees for Hawaii condo owners continue to rise
Skyrocketing insurance costs are hitting Hawaii owners hard, especially those with condominiums. The rising costs worsened in the wake of natural disasters nationwide including the Lahaina fires. Some residents are finding home insurance costs to be more than double what they used to be. In addition, those who are living in community associations face increases […]
Property insurance rates skyrocketing for condo owners (HI)
Even before the Lahaina fires, insurance rates had been spiking because of natural disasters, global instability and other risk factors driving up costs. Video news report……………………..
Residents of a Kaua?i condo are unsure about relocation plans following DHHL purchase (HI)
Condominium residents of the Courtyards at Waipouli Apartments on Kaua?i are concerned that they will be displaced once the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands acquires the property. The Hawaiian Homes Commission held a special meeting back in January to approve a request by DHHL Chair Kali Watson to move forward on purchasing the 82-unit property. […]
Hawai?i Residents Fighting Wildfires Before They Happen
Seven years ago, Erin Peyton made her home on this small island known for its Hawaiian culture, its broad sandy beaches, and high cliffs. Despite Moloka?i’s natural beauty and rural charm, Peyton understood that the dry grasses and wild foliage surrounding her townhome complex could also fuel destructive wildfires. Read the article…………………………….
New Hawai‘i law aimed at tackling illegal short-term rentals, provides counties with home rule authority
Gov. Josh Green touts it as a pivotal tool to tackle Hawai‘i’s housing crisis. Opponents say it doesn’t even address the real causes of the housing shortage. No matter which side you’re on, it’s significant for the state’s short-term rental industry. Green on Friday signed Senate Bill 2919 into law. The bill is aimed at […]
Some Hawaii residents pursue member-owned insurance cooperative
After most of the recently proposed legislative solutions have failed, Puna residents are hoping they can solve their district’s impending housing insurance crisis. When the last major home insurer announced last year that it would be leaving the Hawaii market by August of this year, homeowners in Lava Zones 1 and 2 discovered that their […]
Marconi Point condo verdict deferred on $3.1M in potential fines (HI)
The state Board of Land and Natural Resources on Friday was poised to make a landmark decision on fines for alleged violations on conservation lands on Oahu’s North Shore. Violations included the unauthorized decimation of two acres of critical habitat for Hawaii’s endangered yellow-faced bees, plus the unpermitted construction of an iron fence contributing to […]
Rising insurance costs push aspiring condo buyers into a tough spot (HI)
Housing affordability is getting squeezed by a new pressure — the cost of insurance. At a recent residential real estate roundtable held by Pacific Business News, industry leaders expressed concerns that soaring insurance costs are pushing home ownership further out of reach for many. The condo market is getting hit especially hard. Read the article…………………………….