2026-09-10 · Hawaii · Compliance

Oahu’s minimum rental term is 90 days by ordinance and 30 days in practice, and a condominium board that writes the ordinance into its house rules is importing that confusion.¹

What the ordinance did, and what the court did

Ordinance 22-7 (Bill 41, 2022) raised the minimum rental term in Honolulu residential districts from 30 to 90 consecutive days.

In Hawaii Legal Short-Term Rental Alliance v. City and County of Honolulu, No. 1:22-cv-00247 (D. Haw.), the court issued a preliminary injunction on October 13, 2022 and later entered summary judgment for the plaintiffs on Count I with a permanent injunction. The injunction bars the City from enforcing or implementing Ordinance 22-7 “insofar as it prohibits 30-89 day home rentals lawfully in existence at its effective date, or the advertisement of such rentals, in any district on O‘ahu.”

The basis was HRS § 46-4(a), which limits counties from discontinuing prior lawful residential uses. The Department of Planning and Permitting has said it will continue enforcing short-term rentals as less than 30 consecutive days.

A sourcing caution

We could not verify the disposition of the City’s appeal at the Ninth Circuit, and secondary accounts conflict. We also could not confirm from the City’s own pages the ordinance number, effective date or penalty amounts of the 2025 follow-on measure reported as CO 25-02. Treat both as open.

1. Hawaii Legal Short-Term Rental Alliance v. City and County of Honolulu, No. 1:22-cv-00247 (D. Haw.), order granting preliminary injunction ↩
2. govinfo, USCOURTS-hid-1_22-cv-00247 case documents ↩
3. Honolulu Civil Beat, “City Faces Legal Bill After Losing Short-Term Vacation Rental Battle” ↩