Lead paint disclosure in Hawaii

Most housing built before 1978 falls under the federal lead disclosure rule, for sales and rentals alike, according to the EPA. Sellers and landlords have to tell you about any lead-based paint or lead hazards they're aware of. They also have to share whatever records they hold and give you the EPA's pamphlet on lead.

The contract has to contain a Lead Warning Statement, a standard paragraph describing the dangers lead poses in older homes. Buyers get a 10-day window to have the place tested for lead.

The Hawaii statute, HRS chapter 508D, applies when a home with 1 to 4 units is sold, as well as condo and co-op units that people live in. Sellers must provide a written disclosure statement that covers all material facts. A material fact is anything about the property that might sway your choice to buy or the price you'd offer.

The statement must include facts the seller knows about or has control over. Facts visible from areas of the property you can see and reach must be covered too.

The timing rules for this statement come from HRS 508D-4 and 508D-5.

A cancellation has to be in writing. Cancel in time and your deposits must come back to you promptly.

HRS 508D-3 names the sales where no statement is needed:

• A sale between co-owners, or between spouses, parents, and children
• Property passing through a will, inheritance, or court order
• Transfers tied to foreclosure or bankruptcy
• Conversions of leased land
• New homes covered by a developer's public offering statement
• Condo units sold under a developer's public report
• Properties sold as time shares

Hawaii has plenty of older housing. Census data show that about half of the state's homes, and about half of its rentals, were built before 1980. The census groups homes by decade, so this count includes some homes built after the federal rule's 1978 cutoff.

The Hawaii Department of Health, through its Indoor and Radiological Health Branch, credentials people and companies who do lead work: inspectors, risk assessors, supervisors, abatement workers, project designers, and firms. A risk assessor is trained to spot lead dangers in a house and suggest ways to handle them. Lead abatement is work that removes lead paint or covers it permanently.

The state's non-refundable fees, set by Hawaii Administrative Rules chapter 11-41 (most recently updated in 2023), range from $150 for an abatement worker to $400 for a firm, plus a $25 exam fee for inspectors, risk assessors and supervisors.

Hawaii waives the state certification requirement when owners tackle lead-based paint work at their own residences. That freedom goes away if anyone beyond the owner's immediate family is living there while the work happens. It also goes away if a child living there has elevated blood lead.

HRS 342P-20 allows fines up to $10,000 per offense for anyone who breaks the state's asbestos and lead laws or their rules. Every day counts as its own offense. Getting in the way of a Department of Health inspection can cost up to $5,000.

If you're worried about lead paint where you live or are buying, you can contact the Department of Health's Indoor and Radiological Health Branch. The office is at 99-945 Halawa Valley Street in Aiea, and it aims to respond to every complaint.