Posted on: Thursday, May 19, 2005

AKAMAI MONEY
You're liable until lease expires

By Deborah Adamson
Advertiser Staff Writer

Q: My husband and I moved to Moloka'i in August 2004. He took a teaching position with the high school. We signed a year's lease, which will expire in August. My husband did not retain a teaching position for the next school year so we are relocating to Alaska. Our landlords are refusing to terminate the lease and are demanding we pay the rent up through the lease agreement and have threatened to take us to court at our expense. What are our rights as tenants? — Melinda Breske, Moloka'i

A: Since you entered into a legal contract, there isn't much you can do to get out of it.

"As a general proposition, loss of employment or income is not a sufficient defense if someone is trying to enforce the terms and conditions of the lease," said Steve Levins, the state Consumer Protector. The rental contract "is a legal document. Unless there are breaches by the landlord, you're obligated to comply with the terms, which would include paying the rent."

Breaches include the apartment is not inhabitable and the unit poses an immediate health and safety hazard, said Michael Callahan, a housing attorney for Legal Aid Society of Hawaii, which gives free or low-cost legal help to low- or moderate-income families.

You also can terminate the rental agreement if the landlord locks you out of the rental unit without court permission, he said. But absent any breaches, you're stuck with the contract.

If you decide to pack up and leave before the lease expires, you're still liable for the remainder of the rent, Callahan said. If the landlord sues and wins, not only will you have to pay the rent due but also attorney fees and court costs. However, state law caps lawyer fees at 25 percent of the money owed the landlord.

If you stay in the unit without paying rent, the landlord has to notify you in writing that you have five business days to pay up or leave the unit. If not, the landlord can sue for eviction. The entire process takes about three weeks, Callahan said.

If you still don't leave the premises even after being ordered by the court, the sheriff can go to your house and ask you to vacate quickly. If not, you and your belongings will be forcibly removed.

You can try to negotiate with the landlord, but they're generally more lenient if it's easy to find new tenants, which is the case on O'ahu. Unless there are restrictions on subletting the unit in the rental contract, the state said, you also can try to find someone else to move in.

You also can ask if the landlord is willing to use the security deposit toward any back rent. However, landlords generally are reluctant to do so because they want to be able to cover any damages to the apartment once you leave, Callahan said.

For help, call the state's automated help line for landlord-tenant issues at 587-1234 and press 1. If you want to listen to the information by phone, press 1 again. If you want it faxed to you, press 2. When asked for a 4-digit code, dial 7660 for a directory of landlord-tenant topics.

Live help is available by calling 586-2634 on O'ahu from 8 a.m. to noon on weekdays excluding holidays. From Kaua'i, call (808) 274-3141, then punch in 62634#. From Maui, call (808) 984-2400 and then 62634#. From the Big Island, call (808) 974-4000, then 62634#, and from Moloka'i and Lana'i, call (800) 468-4644 and then 62634#.

The Residential Landlord-Tenant Handbook and state statutes pertaining to landlords and tenants are available online at www.hawaii.gov/dcca/areas/ocp/landloard_tenant/.

If you don't have access to a computer, the handbook can be mailed to you by writing the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, Cashier's Office, P.O. Box 541, Honolulu, HI 96809. There is a $2 fee. To read the state code, go to any public library and look up Chapter 521 of the Hawai'i Revised Statutes.

If you need legal help, call the Legal Aid Society of Hawaii at 536-4302. The nonprofit provides free services for people who make no more than 125 percent above the federal poverty level. For a family of four, the maximum gross income allowed would be $2,319 a month.

If you make between 125 percent and 250 percent of the federal poverty level — the monthly gross income maximum would be $4,638 for a family of four — Legal Aid has an "Affordable Lawyers" program. For information, call 527-8027.

Got a consumer or personal finance question? Contact Deborah Adamson at dadamson@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8088.