Exemption Path Opens for Maui Vacation Rental Phaseout

7/14/2026

The Maui County Council has established two new hotel zoning district classifications that could be applied to as many as 4,500 condos facing a ban on short-term rental use that is set to go into effect on Jan. 1, 2029, in West Maui and Jan. 1, 2031, in South Maui. Council members recently voted 7-2 to establish the new zoning categories despite recommendations against doing so by planning commissions on Maui, Lanai, and Molokai. Owners of the condominiums that have been long approved for vacation rental use may now be able to sidestep an approaching ban intended to increase the housing supply for residents after losses in the 2023 wildfire that destroyed much of Lahaina.

The Garden Island (07/13/26)