housing

Legislators are looking for ways to ease the cost of housing in Hawaii. One potential target they’re looking at: foreign investors.

A recent study from the University of Hawaiʻi's Economic Research Organization shows rents in Hawaiʻi are more than 50% higher than the national average. In South Korea's capital, housing costs are also high — but rising even faster.

Hawaii has some of the highest construction costs in the country. That makes building new housing an expensive prospect.

Hawaii will need an additional 65,000 housing units statewide by 2025. Getting there will require more public infrastructure, like water, sewage, and electricity.

There’s a trend that’s taking place around the world — a growing number of households occupied by just one person. It’s a pattern that is becoming especially clear in Asia.

People living on the sidewalks is hard to get used to, yet Hawai‘i residents on every island see it every day.  Recently back from a statewide homeless tour, Lt. Governor Josh Green says two new initiatives on O‘ahu hold promise for making a difference. H4 services and the Kauhale housing initiative would dovetail with successful programs already underway.

The San Francisco based company Landed was created to help teachers working in high-cost areas achieve homeownership. The company has been meeting with teachers across Hawaii this week ahead of its planned expansion into the state.

Eighty percent of Singapore’s 5.6 million residents live in public housing. A 2-bedroom, 1-bathroom apartment can be purchased on the resale market for around $250,000 U.S. dollars. The island nation’s success in making housing affordable has caught the attention of lawmakers in Hawaiʻi.

Officials with the City and County of Honolulu want to build more affordable rental housing. But rather than directly fund construction, they have prepared a package of incentives to make those type of projects more appealing to developers. 

A homeless community on Oahu’s leeward coast is one step closer to finding homes. The group received a $150,000 donation to help fund a plan to transition the residents of Pu'uhonua o Waianae to permanent housing. The money came from some of the biggest real estate trusts in Hawaii.

Abandoned buildings, urban blight, it’s common knowledge now that undesirable neighborhoods with low rental rates attract artists and creatives.   What tends to follow, are eating places, galleries, bars---and gentrification, which ends up pushing the artists out.  HPR’s Noe Tanigawa reports, an 84 unit, affordable, live/work rental space for artists is coming up in Kaka‘ako.

Hawaii has the highest rate of rentership in the nation, with 43% of residents renting the property in which they live. Last year around 1,700 of those renters were evicted by their landlord. According to a new report from non-profit group Lawyers for Equal Justice, 95% of eviction cases in Hawaii resulted in the tenant being evicted. 

The Honolulu City Council has given final approval to a bill that aims to streamline the process for getting a building permit. Lengthy delays in issuing permits have been frustrating builders and homeowners alike.

Members of Oahu’s residential construction industry have been lobbying the Council to address the months-long wait for permits they say is costing them millions of dollars. In an otherwise booming local economy, some contractors have been reducing hours or laying off workers entirely.

Often referred to as paradise, Hawaii’s gorgeous weather, beauty, and relaxed lifestyle comes at a price. The median value of a single-family home on Oahu is now above $800,000. Is that upward trend just the inevitable “price of paradise” or can something be done to change it?

On Hawaiʻi Island, Pahoa’s emergency shelter closed this week — after helping local residents since the latest lava flow broke out in May. Hundreds of homes have been destroyed in the Puna District — the fastest-growing community on the Big Island. That makes a housing shortage there even worse, but now there are plans for a new development that may include 900 homes in Puna.

Maui seems to be getting a handle on its homeless population, but finding affordable rentals is still the main problem, whether you’re on the street yet or not.  A recent study concluded Maui will need 14,000 more housing units by 2025, and while that target may be hard to hit, new ideas in neighborhood living are starting to take root on the Valley Isle.

The latest word is, homeless numbers on Maui may be going down after recent storms, as several families and individuals have decided to seek permanent housing.  At last count, there were about 900 people homeless on the Valley Isle.  HPR’s series about housing on Maui continues with a look at what is working to shelter the homeless, and what is ahead to create housing they can afford.  HPR’s Noe Tanigawa reports.

The Honolulu City Council is wrestling with a half a dozen versions of a bill to slow the growth of so-called “monster homes.” Today we sit down with to talk about a proposed moratorium and to understand what is wrong with our land use laws, and why enforcement is such a problem. 

Guests:

Texas-based developer Hunt Companies is set to expand its local influence. The company is accelerating the redevelopment of Kalaeloa—while working on high-profile projects on three islands. Pacific Business News editor in chief A. Kam Napier has more on what’s ahead for company in the next decade.

Short term rentals are a growing part of the visitor market on all of Hawai'i's islands. On Maui, residents of Paia and Haiku are trying to decide the future of short-term rentals in their community after an unusual discovery: their current community plan and the Maui County Code don't match up. We get more from HPR contributing reporter Colleen Uechi of the Maui News.

It’s well known that Hawaii faces a critical housing shortage. As Pacific Business News reports, different challenges exist at all price points. PBN editor-in-chief A. Kam Napier has more.

There’s no question that Hawai‘i has a shortage of affordable housing. That’s also a frequent complaint for a growing number of cities in the Asia Pacific. And in Hong Kong, some of the projections are dramatic. HPR’s Bill Dorman has details in today’s Asia Minute.

As most of you know, it is hard to break into Hawai‘i’s housing market. The latest census numbers show the state’s median housing value increased 7.4% to nearly $567,000, making it the highest in the nation. But as HPR’s Molly Solomon reports, that’s nothing new. 

When it comes to Honolulu condominium sales, Ala Moana and Kaka‘ako remain king. That’s according to a new report that compares housing trends in neighborhoods across Oahu. HPR’s Molly Solomon explains.

The report, issued by the Honolulu Board of Realtors, found that condo sales in Ala Moana and Kaka‘ako were particularly strong last month. Compared to June of last year, sales for units rose by 42 percent. And the median sales price jumped nearly $300,000 —a 71 percent increase.

Hawai‘i residents have to earn $34.22 an hour to afford a two-bedroom rental.  That’s according to a new study from the National Low Income Housing Coalition. They ranked Hawaii the most expensive state in the nation when it comes to renting an apartment. HPR’s Molly Solomon explains.

Off Shore Wind Farm Proposal; Revisiting the Battle of Midway; Building Smart Housing on Oahu; Preserving Historic Pearl Harbor Site

Proposed Wind Farms in Kahuku and off shore: Henry Curtis

A mobile job center is popping up in neighborhoods around O‘ahu. The program is run by the Institute for Human Services and helps connect homeless people with work. HPR’s Molly Solomon explains.