The following testimony was submitted by the Grassroot Institute of Hawaii for consideration by the House Committee on Housing on Feb. 12, 2025.
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Feb. 12, 2025, 9 a.m.
Hawaii State Capitol
Conference Room 430 and Videoconference
To: House Committee on Housing
Rep. Luke Evslin, Chair
Rep. Tyson Miyake, Vice-Chair
From: Grassroot Institute of Hawaii
Ted Kefalas, Director of Strategic Campaigns
RE: HB421 — RELATING TO CONTRACTORS
Aloha Chair Evslin, Vice-Chair Miyake and other members of the Committee,
The Grassroot Institute of Hawaii supports HB421, which would allow owner-builders to lease any homes they build within one year of their construction.
Owner-builders currently can build a home for themselves or their families on their own lands, but they cannot either sell or lease the house within a year of its construction.
The state of California allows owner-builders to lease their homes under their owner-builder exemption,[1] so there is already some precedent for this type of change.
Removing this bit of red tape would help Hawaii homeowners seeking to build an extra unit on their land, and would complement many of the strategies being now used to ease the state’s housing shortage.
Thank you for the opportunity to testify.
Ted Kefalas
Director of Strategic Campaigns
Grassroot Institute of Hawaii
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[1] Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 7044. Building or improvement by owner, accessed March 25, 2024.
