Housing | Rents

How many renters are there now compared to before the wildfires?

About 45% of respondents were renting before the fires, but the proportion has jumped to more than 55% now. Most of the increase comes from households who previously owned homes, representing almost 30% of all pre-fire homeowners. However, a notable minority of new renters were previously living with family or friends or unhoused, suggesting that access to disaster assistance may have improved housing stability for some households. Depending on the survey month, the proportion of fire-affected households living with family/friends or being unhoused has been between 25% higher and more than twice as high as before the wildfires.

How have the rental costs of fire impacted people changed compared to before the wildfires?

Survey participants consistently report that rents have risen markedly compared to before the wildfires for all unit sizes. For a 1-bedroom unit, rent has increased by about 30% (from typically around $1200 before the fire to more than $1500 after the fire), and for a 2-bedroom unit, by almost 40% (from about $1600 to about $2200). The increase is most pronounced for larger units, which doubled in price (from typically about $1500 to about $3000). This may be driven by higher competition for larger units that can accommodate displaced multigenerational households. Prices may be pushed up because fewer large units are available for rent. That means larger families are most affected by rising rents due to housing shortages. Our data suggests that median rents for one- and two-bedroom properties have started to decrease by about 10-20% since the beginning of the year. Note that the reported numbers are median (typical) changes in rents overall for the same types of units, not comparisons of the same units before and after the fires.

For most people, spiking rents are not met by rising incomes. For most survey months, between a third and a half of people whose income has remained roughly the same as before the fires are now paying higher rents, and about 45-60% of the people who now have lower incomes have experienced rent increases. This means that many households have to make cuts in other areas. Already a year and a half after the disaster, the persistence of this wide-spread affordability crisis will affect the long-term financial and overall well-being of many Maui households, making recovery more difficult. However, we have seen an overall increase in the percentage of respondents who have about the same incomes as before the wildfires, but now pay less in rent.

How have rental costs changed after accounting for changes in unit size?

Many fire-affected households face these rising costs despite moving to smaller units. While it is unsurprising that the majority of participants who now have more bedrooms are facing increased rental costs, about half of the respondents who downsized to fewer bedrooms also reported rent increases. More than 50% of those who maintained the same number of bedrooms are also paying more in rent. Further analysis of reported unit size shows a drop in the number of households renting 3-bedroom or 4+-bedroom units compared to before the fires, and a corresponding small increase in rentals of 1-bedroom or studio units. Moreover, rent increases are substantial. Compared to before the fires, renters report rents that are 50-60% higher for the same or fewer bedrooms. The price paid for larger units with 3 or more bedrooms has increased the most, with rents rising by almost 90%. Since August 2024, the rental cost burden has not eased. Renters on Maui are caught in a housing vise: paying more for less.