Sumithra Balraj is moving back to her fire-ravaged Lahaina condominium before completing reconstruction after getting a letter from the Federal Emergency Management Agency seeking $2,300 in monthly rent for a unit that was once free since she was displaced from her housing by the Aug. 8, 2023, Maui wildfires.
“What FEMA is going to start charging for a 600- square-foot unit is more than my mortgage, which I already am struggling to pay because of the downturn, and that’s on top of my HOA (homeowners association) fees rising another $252 to $700,” said Balraj, who worked three jobs before the fire but, as a result of Maui’s economic downturn, is now down to just one as a caregiver for her partner.
Balraj, who quickly exhausted the $4,000 housing allowance provided by her insurance company, said she is grateful for the support that government and private donors have provided. But she said that she continues to struggle and worries about the community impact as her household and potentially thousands of others face profound changes to their housing support.
Sen. Angus McKelvey (D, West Maui-Maalaea-Waikapu-South Maui) said a Maui fire-related foreclosure moratorium ended Jan. 1. He said that next, on Feb. 4 a state-issued eviction ban ends, and on March 1 FEMA will begin charging rent for its direct housing program.
“The FEMA cliff is huge. Everybody was led to believe that when the continued resolution (federal Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery) was passed, ($1.6 billion) was being made available for housing until 2026. Now we are hearing that FEMA is communicating with people and saying, ‘Hey, oh, no, no. You have got to pay.’”
Maui United Way and its partners said it’s too early to fully assess the direct impacts of the three major housing changes but that they are preparing for a surge in requests for assistance, particularly in areas such as rent support, financial counseling and homelessness prevention.
Makana Rosete, Maui United Way director of communications, events and advocacy, said in an email, “Nonprofits across the island, including our partner agencies, are already reporting heightened anxiety and inquiries from residents worried about their housing stability.”
Gov. Josh Green in a January news release called attention to the ending of the eviction moratorium on Feb. 4, and to Act 202, which begins Feb. 5 and gives landlords and tenants the opportunity to engage in free, state-funded mediation facilitated by Maui Mediation Services, before an eviction is filed in court.
“The end of the eviction moratorium marks a significant milestone in Maui’s recovery, but it’s essential that we provide a compassionate and structured way forward,” Green said in a statement.
Mediation is available through Maui Mediation Services, which can be reached at 808-344-4255 or 808-446-0511 or at landlord tenanthelp@mauimediation.org.
FEMA told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser on Friday that all households in FEMA Direct Housing, whether in a direct lease unit or the Kilohana Group Site, received 90-day notification letters in November, 60-day notifications in December, and this month received 30-day notification letters informing them of the rent requirement, which begins March 1, and of the process to appeal.
“FEMA’s goal is to assist wildfire survivors in moving towards their permanent housing solution and to help the Maui community to move forward on the long road to recovery,” FEMA said. “FEMA’s programs are temporary and intended to assist households during their time of greatest need.”
FEMA said rental rates, which include utilities, are based on 100% of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s fair market rental rate for Maui along with the household’s ability to pay, and range from $1,750 for a studio to $1,762 for a one-bedroom, $2,309 for a two-bedroom, $3,103 for a three-bedroom and $3,584 for a four-bedroom.
Dustin Kaleiopu, community care navigator lead at the Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement’s Kako‘o Maui, said Maui rents in general have been rising, and some clients have found FEMA rents higher than what they were paying before the pandemic. He said West Maui also has less multigenerational housing or family-owned rentals, which helped lower rental costs before the fire. Kaleiopu said FEMA also requires larger families to live in larger units rather than squeezing into smaller units to save money.
Kaleiopu said he has been working with clients to prepare for the changes.
“There are people who have been able to pay their mortgages and save up their money in anticipation of the rent,” he said. “There are people like that, and then, of course, there are people that made it a ‘later’ problem and not a ‘right now’ problem, and now later is right now.”
FEMA said approximately one-third of households in FEMA Direct Housing have appealed, and requests for rent reductions are processed in the order received. Balraj said she did not appeal because her FEMA direct lease ends Feb. 10, and she does not have enough money to pay for her mortgage and the assessed rent while awaiting a decision.
“The majority of households that submitted an appeal and have been fully processed have been eligible for rent reduction,” FEMA said. “Many households need to submit additional documentation to move their appeal forward.”
Maui community housing consultant Skye Razon-Olds said she is aware of some 300 households that successfully have appealed to FEMA, including a single father with three children whose FEMA-subsidized rent was dropped to $300 from $2,300.
Jeeyun Lee, Maui United Way director of impact, highlighted the need for Maui households to advocate for their own rights internally and through qualified disaster case managers and social service programs as well as the Maui Office of Recovery and CNHA’s Kako‘o Maui.
Lee said that it is important “not just to take no as no, which I think is a very difficult thing for a community that has been traumatized in the way that it has. “
Maui Economic Opportunity CEO Debbie Cabebe said in an email that MEO regularly assists people struggling to pay their rent, and the high cost of rentals versus income on Maui means the housing changes are likely to bring significant impacts.
“How can you build a life if you are worrying about whether you can pay the rent or mortgage with homelessness looming?” Cabebe said. “The situation remains untenable, though some temporary units that have been built have helped. More than half of Maui residents are below the federal poverty level and are cost-burdened paying more than 30% of their monthly income on housing.”
She said fire-affected families with dependent children could be eligible for the Maui Relief TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) Program, which offers up to $5,000 a month for four months and up to a $5,000 deposit.
Cabebe said the county has been replenishing funds for the Maui County Rental Assistance Program, but the waitlist is long and people must provide documents showing they are able to sustain their rent after the subsidy ends.
“We can’t wait (to expand housing opportunities), or we are going to lose even more residents, which adversely impacts the entire community,” she said.
Maui County said it is setting up a Community Development Block Grant disaster recovery program that will aim to assist in permanent housing solutions. Information is available at mauirecovers.org.
McKelvey encouraged the federal, state and county governments to immediately work with those in FEMA’s direct housing program on Maui. He said Maui’s foreclosure moratorium ended with the past presidential administration, but he said the state should keep the eviction moratorium in place, especially since he believes rents were artificially inflated due to the higher day rates that were paid to short-term rental owners to get them to convert their units to longer-term housing.
McKelvey said it is a misnomer that all displaced Maui residents should be ready to assume more independence.
“Some of these people lost everything and they are paying mortgages still, and their insurance is either being held up or being denied or they are getting paid pennies on the dollar,” he said. “Now, unfortunately, some people are like, ‘Oh, they have had this support for so long that they need to start kicking in.’ Yeah, if they had the ability, they wouldn’t be there — but they don’t.”
