Hawaii makes adverse possession very hard to claim. HRS § 657-31 bars an action to recover land after twenty years, but HRS § 657-31.5 limits any adverse-possession claim accruing after November 7, 1978 to parcels of five acres or less and bars claimants who asserted a similar claim within the prior twenty years.
HRS § 657-31 sets the baseline period: 'No person shall commence an action to recover possession of any lands, or make any entry thereon, unless within twenty years after the right to bring the action first accrued.' HRS § 657-31.5 then sharply restricts modern claims: a person may claim adverse possession only 'if the real property which is the subject of the action is five acres or less' and 'the person claiming by adverse possession has not asserted any similar claim, in good faith, within the past twenty years,' excluding claims made before November 7, 1978. A grandfather clause preserves claims completing twenty years before that date. The possessor must still prove open, notorious, hostile, continuous, and exclusive possession.
No specific statutory penalty. A squatter on a parcel larger than five acres (post-1978) or who recently made a similar claim cannot acquire title; the record owner may recover possession through an ejectment or quiet-title action within the 20-year window.
Other ordinances people look up for this city. Green dot = verified primary-source excerpt.
Kapolei, HI
ROH Sec. 16-6.2 requires Kapolei residential swimming pools to be enclosed by a complete barrier with self-closing gates designed to prevent access by young ...
Kapolei, HI
ROH Sec. 21-4.40 limits fill-containing retaining walls in Kapolei to six feet within required yards and combines terraced wall heights for compliance measur...
Kapolei, HI
ROH Sec. 21-4.60 defines fences to include wrought iron, wire, wood, vinyl, and plastic, giving Kapolei residents a broad palette of compliant materials.
Kapolei, HI
ROH Sec. 21-4.30 controls what Kapolei neighbors can install in required yards along shared property lines, since Honolulu does not have a dedicated city spi...
Kapolei, HI
Public parks in Kapolei are closed during posted night hours under ROH Sec. 10-1.2, though beach parks allow direct traverse to the shoreline during closure.
Kapolei, HI
Kapolei follows HRS Sec. 577-16, which bars children under 16 from public places between 10 p.m. and 4 a.m. without a parent or guardian; Honolulu has no sep...
See how Kapolei's squatter's rights & adverse possession rules stack up against other locations.
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