Can a Hawaii neighbor sue over a vacant house used by squatters or drug dealers?
Yes. A property where someone is unlawfully living or staying with no title, lease or other legal claim is a nuisance under Hawaii law, and so is a place used to make or distribute illegal drugs. Any citizen of the state who lives in that county can bring a suit in their own name to abate the nuisance, as can the attorney general, the county prosecutor or a local organization.
Such a place is a nuisance that shall be enjoined, abated and prevented, whether it counts as a public or a private nuisance. The suit can reach the owner, lessee or agent of the building who permits the nuisance.
Once the nuisance is shown to the court's satisfaction, the court shall issue a temporary injunction to stop it.
Fees, costs and fines imposed against an owner in these cases become a lien on the property.
What can a Hawaii county make an owner do about a neglected property?
Each Hawaii county can pass ordinances to remove public nuisances and to make owners clear refuse and overgrowth from unoccupied lots. If an owner doesn't comply after reasonable notice, the county can do the work and put a lien on the property for its cost.
The county must give the owner a chance to contest the summary action and recover the property.
Counties also make and enforce ordinances on building inspection and the condemnation of unsafe structures.
Who gets extra protection in a Hawaii foreclosure?
Owner-occupants. Before a nonjudicial foreclosure sale of a home its owner lives in, the lender must join Hawaii's foreclosure dispute resolution program if the owner-occupant chooses it.
An owner-occupant is someone for whom the home has been their primary residence for at least 200 days in a row before the foreclosure notice is served.
After a nonjudicial foreclosure of a home, the lender can't get a deficiency judgment against an owner-occupant unless the debt is secured by other collateral. An owner-occupant facing a nonjudicial foreclosure can also ask to move the case into court as a judicial foreclosure.
Own an island property that's sitting empty and slipping behind on the mortgage? Read how foreclosure proceeds in Hawaii.
How do you report a run-down vacant property in Hawaii?
On Oahu, file a Request for Investigation with the Department of Planning and Permitting, which only opens a case when someone submits one. An inspector then looks into the property, contacts the owner if needed, and issues a Notice of Violation if a violation is confirmed.
The department says complaints are confidential and the person asking for the investigation stays anonymous. Requests go in through the city's HNL Build system, either logged in to track the request or without signing in.
You can also tell me where it is. I'll find out who owns it and reach out about buying it and fixing it up.