Best apartments and housing in Hilo

[xxthinkpinkxo]

Thank you for the responses. My dog (a golden retriever) will be on the mainland until April which I'm hoping is enough time to find rental. Leaving her or giving her up isn't really an option for me -- I rescued her almost three years ago with the understanding she was my responsibility and commitment, and I don't think it'd be fair to her to give her up simply because I decide to move to an island in the Pacific Ocean. She'll be staying with a family member but I don't think it's fair to them to make them adopt my dog, either. It's the tough life of a pet owner I suppose ... I do wish Hawaii was more dog-friendly but I see why landlords generally don't allow it. If it was my property I'd probably be the same way or at least require a hefty pet deposit....I appreciate the information about Hilo Val Hala. Checking that off the list!

[terracore]

"A pet urinating on a floor is a pet companion issue, not a pet problem"

More accurately, if the renter put down a huge deposit, it's the renters problem. If not, it's the landlord's problem.

"And if you can get a doctor to write a "prescription" for a service animal, no one can do anything once you move in and the dog arrives. "

What are laws on renting to a person with service dog?
Contrary to popular belief, some landlords ARE exempt from the regulations of the Fair Housing Amendments Act. The exceptions include (a) buildings with four or fewer units where the landlord lives in one of the units, and (b) private owners who do not own more than three single family houses, do not use real estate brokers or agents, and do not use discriminatory advertisements. The FHAA also does not apply to publicly owned (government owned) housing or to section 8 housing. Other laws, such as Section 508 of the Rehab Act and Title II of the ADA may apply in some cases. Consult a qualified attorney to learn which laws if any apply in your specific situation.

In most cases, landlords are not required to accept "emotional service dogs" in any instance unless the owner of the dog is also physically disabled and " A landlord is permitted to require some sort of proof of [physical] disability as a condition of accommodation, and some sort of proof the animal in question is a trained service animal..."

Sources: http://www.servicedogcentral.org/

[Harpaint]

Originally Posted by xxthinkpinkxo

Thank you for the responses. My dog (a golden retriever) will be on the mainland until April which I'm hoping is enough time to find rental. Leaving her or giving her up isn't really an option for me -- I rescued her almost three years ago with the understanding she was my responsibility and commitment, and I don't think it'd be fair to her to give her up simply because I decide to move to an island in the Pacific Ocean. She'll be staying with a family member but I don't think it's fair to them to make them adopt my dog, either. It's the tough life of a pet owner I suppose ... I do wish Hawaii was more dog-friendly but I see why landlords generally don't allow it. If it was my property I'd probably be the same way or at least require a hefty pet deposit....I appreciate the information about Hilo Val Hala. Checking that off the list!

I hope you can find a satisfactory place to rent; maybe a house rather than an apartment would be better. It isn't that the people in Hilo hate dogs and many people walk their dogs along the bayfront in the evening. The problem is that the apartments are VERY small. In fact some are just converted motel rooms. Anyway, good luck and I wish I could offer better suggestions.

[84121tk]

Tiny apartments in Waiakea. Used to be a hotel. You are basically renting a hotel room. I've stayed there. What's a big Golden going to do all day, in a five hundred square foot noisy apartment, when you are gone all day?
Please, think hard about taking a dog, especially a large dog, to Hilo and putting her in a tiny apartment. It may not be in her best interests.

[xxthinkpinkxo]

Thanks everyone im currently renting a one bedroom place in Waiakea Uka that's on four acres -- I.e plenty of space for a golden. I plan to keep her inside but she will get plenty of exercise on this property. Dog friendly places are out there they're just not always easy to come by. I recommend going with private landlords though, it's much easier to work something out.

[smarino]

Glad you found something, and thanks for keeping us updated. Often no one knows what happens on these things. I agree 100% on going w/ a private individual to rent from vs a rental agency. We had nothing but trouble from agencies when we rented, and ditto for buying from a realtor, even a "good" one. They really have no use, and charge way too much money for the tiny amount of work that they do. Anyone who has bought and sold property knows how simple it is. Just make sure you have a clear title or deed by using a title company and you're set. If it's w/ a mortgage, the lender, will usually know all the ropes too. Roof! Roof!

There is a lot of misinformation regarding service animals here. This is from the horse's mouth on the rights of an individual to have a service animal in Hawaii, and the exemptions listed on a post above are not there. Here it is, from the Hawaii Disability Rights Org. I don't know how to link a PDF here, so just look at the first few listings on the page below for the one that says "Service Dogs and Companion Animals" toward the top. Any restrictions put in place by a private landlord or public housing officer MUST be waived for someone disabled w/ a properly certified service animal, and any questions about said animal are legally limited to only two (2) questions. If anyone is denied housing due to unlawful actions against themselves and their service animal, their first order of business should be to contact the Hawaii Disability Rights Center at 949 2922/ 1 800 882 1057, as well as an attorney.

No one, disabled or not, should be denied housing for wanting to keep their pet friends with them. That is just plain wrong. What's next, kicking out grandma or the baby because they wet the bed, or accidentally damaged something? Many dogs I've known aren't as akamai as cats, but most animals are considerably smarter and better "people" than a lot of human animals I've known over the years.

https://www.google.com/search?site=&...14.tZvThCXQBI8

[Irish Eyes_Mrs. Z]

Smarino, I only wish I could give you more rep points right now.

[hotzcatz]

And the two questions landlords are allowed to ask? I'm guessing it's
1. Is that a service animal?
2. what service has the animal been trained to provide?

If we said 'no pets' on one of our rentals and someone sneaked a pet in with an invalid service animal 'prescription', we'd probably not renew their lease when it came up.

We aren't anti-pet, we just wouldn't like someone trying to pull one on us. One of our rentals has a largish but older dog and the other one has a younger busy dog which is an outside dog and he also has two goats. The goats are actually more beneficial than the dogs since they keep the yard mowed. They never go in the house, either.

[whtviper1]

Any person who played the service animal game with one of my rentals would show up in multiple google searches or other search engines as "do not rent" (very easy to do) with very explicit reasons why - that game while may work short term would be painful long term.

[Buckeye77]

Not sure how this thread on renting a place around Hilo became a forum on pets. I love my two little yappers, but I would not rent to me. The older one, Annie, a 15 year old Shih Tzu, has never been perfectly trained and is now becoming increasingly incontinent. So some days I clean up multiple puddles off of the hardwood floor. Carpet would be a major issue, and if I were a little less diligent, then even the hardwood absorbing odors would be an issue.


We have a small (500 sqft) detached ohana that could easily be rented but we don't simply because I don't want to deal with all those folks who think it is their God-given right to bring their pets into a place they do not own, trash said place, then refuse to pay rent because the place is trashed, then refuse to move because they are already living there.


So, note to OP - dogs/cats aren't really the problem. It is inconsiderate dog/cat owners.
Mahalo