Lease Agreements in Hawaii

Get an overview of what's included in our Hawaii Lease Agreement

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Written by Melissa
Updated over a week ago

TurboTenant’s Hawaii lease agreement has been written and reviewed by Hawaii legal professionals. It’s been drafted to keep you compliant and covered as you rent out your property.

Click this link to see an example of the Hawaii Lease Agreement.

Overview

The Hawaii lease agreement is split up into three sections.

  • Section 1 contains information specific to you, your tenants, your rental property, and the details of your lease. This is all information that you add during the lease creation process in TurboTenant.

  • Section 2 contains clauses in accordance with Hawaii law. In order to stay compliant with the law, you will not be able to edit any details in Section 2.

  • Section 3 contains general clauses for landlords in the United States. It was drafted with best practices in mind for the landlord, tenant relationship. Like Section 2, you will not be able to edit these details.

While you may not edit all of the specifics directly, remember you can add additional provisions that supersede any existing language in the lease by using the Additional Provisions section. This gives you customization and flexibility should you have unique things you want to ensure are covered in your lease.

Section 1 - Custom to You

Section 1 contains the custom details relevant to you, your tenants, and your rental property— who is on the lease, rent amount, utilities, etc. You’ll add these details during the lease creation process

We’ve set up the lease agreement in a way that is easy for you and your tenants to understand. You’ll see the main details you’ve added to the summary table at the front of the lease agreement. The remaining items—like smoking, utilities, keys, etc.—are outlined in the rest of Section 1 as you can see in this example Hawaii Lease Agreement.

Here are a couple of other items in Section 1 worth mentioning:

Additional Provisions: this is where you can add any property specific rules, necessary local clauses, or other specifics you want to include. We recommend that you review any additional provisions with a lawyer.

Lost Key: if your tenants do not return all keys to you when they move out then they are required to pay for the full cost of rekeying the property.

Section 2 - Specific to Hawaii

Section 2 includes language that is specific to Hawaii. In order to help make sure you stay compliant with local laws, we’ve not allowed you to edit the details here.

There are some clauses in Section 2 that we wanted to call out so you understand how it affects you and your tenants.

Late Fees - Section 2.1

Rent is due in full on the first day of each and every month. If the rent is not received on or before the 5th day of the month, you may charge your tenants a late fee of 8% of the total unpaid rent amount. So for example, if today is the 6th and your tenants have not paid their $1,000 monthly rent amount, then you may charge them a late fee of $80.

Security Deposit Provisions - Section 2.4

Security deposits requirements may vary quite a bit from state to state. In Hawaii:

  • A landlord shall not demand or receive a deposit in an amount in excess of one month's rent for a rental agreement. Pet deposit, if charged, cannot be greater than one-month’s rent (and is in addition to the regular security deposit).

Security deposit returns in Hawaii also have some unique rules:

  • Landlord must return the security deposit within 14 days after the termination or expiration of this Agreement.

Entry/Access to Premises by Landlord - Section 2.8

Landlord shall have the right at all reasonable times during the Term of this Agreement to enter the Premises for the purpose of inspecting and exhibiting the Premises and all buildings and improvements thereon. In non-emergency situations, Landlord will make a good faith effort to notify Tenant at least two (2) days prior to entry by one of the following methods: telephone message, email message, or door hanger, and having made such good faith effort shall enter as necessary. In an emergency situation, or if a repair is requested by Tenant, Landlord is permitted to enter immediately without prior notice. Tenant understands that Landlord will typically commence showing the Premises to prospective tenants one hundred twenty (120) days or more before the expiration of the term of this Agreement, but may show the Premises to prospective tenants, purchasers, or lenders at any time. Landlord shall further have the right to display “for sale", "for rent", or "vacancy" signs in or about the Premises.

Designation of Agent - Section 2.15

Pursuant to 521-43(F), H.R.S., If Landlord does not live on the island where the Premises is located, Landlord must appoint an on-island agent for such property. The name and address of each person authorized to manage the premises, who will be receiving and receipting rent, notices, service of process and demand, must be presented to Tenant in writing, before or at time of commencement of lease. The authorized manager of the property’s information must be current at all times. We added this to our lease agreement wizard to make it easy to add.

Section 3

The clauses in Section 3 are standard to most lease agreements. Along with the rest of the lease agreement, we worked with experienced landlords to make sure you are following best practices in your lease agreement.

Subletting - Section 3.1

Your tenant is not at all allowed to sublease the rental property without your written permission.

Altering or Improving the Property - Section 3.2

Your tenant cannot make any alterations or improvements—like repainting—without your written consent. Unless agreed upon, when they move out, the property must be in the same condition that it was in when they moved in.

Choice of Law - 3.11

The rental agreement will be governed and construed in accordance to Hawaii's own laws. Also there is a requirement to consent to the use of the county courts in which the property is located.

Follow the Law (noise, drugs, etc.) - Section 3.14

Your tenant cannot break any law or ordinance (federal, state, or local) while on your rental property. This also includes a clause saying they are not allowed to be annoying or a nuisance to neighbors while on the property. Any of the above can be good grounds for terminating the lease agreement.

Missing something you want to make sure is included?

This article only includes an overview of some of the details included in the Hawaii Lease Agreement. You can read the whole agreement and double-check for specific details by clicking this link to see an example of the agreement.

We wanted our lease agreement to handle the majority of use cases for landlords in Hawaii. However, we do know that some rental situations are unique. If there are other specifics you want to outline in the lease agreement, you can do so in the Additional Provisions section while creating your lease agreement in TurboTenant. We recommend that you review them with a lawyer to ensure you stay compliant with the law.

Disclaimer: Changing some terms in the lease may conflict with state or local laws. If you make large edits, we recommend speaking with an attorney. Please have a look at your specific state lease agreement for more information. TurboTenant is not responsible for edits that are not compliant with state laws. TurboTenant is unable to provide legal advice.

DISCLAIMER: This lease agreement is not warrantied, either expressly or implied, by TurboTenant, Inc. as to their effectiveness or completeness. TurboTenant, Inc. does not provide legal advice. TURBOTENANT, INC. AND ITS SERVICES, DOCUMENTS, RECORDS, AND PRODUCTS ARE NOT A SUBSTITUTE FOR THE ADVICE OF AN ATTORNEY. The user is advised to check all applicable state and federal laws before using this agreement, attachments, disclosures, forms, or parts thereof and to have them reviewed by competent legal counsel prior to use.

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