HAR §15-307-2. Definitions

As used in this chapter: "Administrator" means the executive director employed by the board or the executive director's designated representative. "Applicant" means the primary person or entity who submits a project proposal under these rules. "Assets" means total cash, securities, and real and personal property less any outstanding liabilities secured by the assets. "Assisted project" means a project which is initiated and developed by an entity other than the corporation, and which is being provided state assistance to lower sales prices or rental rates. Such assistance may include, but is not [necessarily]limited to, interim and permanent financing, expedited processing of projects, tax credits, general excise tax exemptions, and rental assistance. "Board" means the board of directors of the Hawaii housing finance and development corporation established under chapter 201H, HRS. 307-7 "Contractor" means a general engineering contractor or general building contractor licensed under chapter 444, HRS. "Corporation" means the Hawaii housing finance and development corporation established under chapter 201H, HRS. "County" includes the counties of Kauai, Maui, Hawaii, and the city and county of Honolulu, and unless the context requires a different meaning, [it]"county" shall mean the county in which the project is situated. "Design professional" means a professional engineer, architect, surveyor, or landscape architect licensed under chapter 464, HRS. "Develop" or "development" means the planning, financing, or acquisition of real property, demolition of existing structures, clearance of real property, construction, reconstruction, alteration, or repairing of approaches, streets, sidewalks, utilities, and services or other site improvements, or construction, reconstruction, repair, remodeling, extension, equipment, or furnishing of buildings or other structures or any combination of the foregoing, of any housing project. It also includes any and all undertakings necessary therefor, and the acquisition of any housing, in whole or in part. ["Diversified agricultural use" means use of an agricultural lot for the cultivation of crops, including flowers, vegetables, foliage, fruit, forage, and aquaculture.] ["Dwelling" means a structure designated for residential use.] "Dwelling unit" or "unit" means the structure and land upon which the structure is constructed, whether on fee simple or leasehold property, developed pursuant to chapter 201H, HRS, which is intended for residential purposes. It may also mean improved or unimproved real property which is developed for residential purposes pursuant to the provisions of chapter 201H, HRS. 307-8 ["Elder"] "Elderly" means a person [who is a qualified resident of the State and] who has attained the age of sixty-two. "Eligible contractor" means a general engineering contractor or general building contractor licensed under chapter 444, HRS, who: (1) Is determined by the board to be qualified by experience and financial responsibility and support to construct housing of the type described and of the magnitude encompassed by the given project; and (2) Meets all other requirements that the board deems to be just and reasonable, and all other requirements provided in [these rules] this chapter. "Eligible developer" means an individual, partnership, cooperative, including limited equity housing cooperatives (as defined in chapter 421H, HRS), firm, nonprofit or profit corporation, limited liability company, or public agency which the corporation has certified pursuant to the provisions of section 15-307-24 of [these rules] this chapter. "Former owner" means a former owner of a dwelling unit: (1) From whom the dwelling unit was repurchased pursuant to section 201H-47, HRS; or (2) Who has obtained a waiver of repurchase rights from the corporation under section 201H-47, HRS. "Government assistance program" means any housing program qualified by the corporation and administered or operated by the State, the corporation, the United States, or any of its political subdivisions, agencies, or instrumentalities, corporate or otherwise, which may be used to effectuate housing development for qualified persons in the State. "Government assistance program" includes, but is not limited to, the following: (1) Any program specified, allowed, or eligible for assistance under chapter 201H, HRS; (2) Any program specified, allowed, or eligible for assistance under laws, rules, or 307-9 regulations of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development and the United States Department of Agriculture; or (3) Any program regulated by either the corporation, counties, or the United States or any of their political subdivisions, agencies, or instrumentalities, corporate or otherwise. "Homeless" means those who meet one or more of the four categories of homelessness established by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, as follows: (1) Individuals and families who lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence and includes a subset for an individual who is exiting an institution where [he or she] the individual resided for ninety days or less and who resided in an emergency shelter or a place not meant for human habitation immediately before entering that institution; (2) Individuals and families who will imminently lose their primary nighttime residence; (3) Unaccompanied youth and families with children and youth who are defined as homeless under other federal statutes; or (4) Individuals and families who are fleeing, or are attempting to flee, domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, stalking, or other dangerous or life-threatening conditions that relate to violence against the individual or a family member. "Household" means an individual; or two or more persons who live or intend to live together as a unit and whose income and resources are available to meet the household's need and who may, but need not be, related by blood, marriage, or operation of law, including foster children and hanai children and whose head of household has reached the age of majority, or is otherwise legally emancipated. ["HRS" means the Hawaii Revised Statutes.] "Improvement" means an addition, renovation, or 307-10 replacement to the dwelling unit which enhances the value of the property, and for which labor and capital are expended. Improvements do not include repairs or maintenance of the property. "Lower cost housing", in the context of identifying the persons or families intended to be served by such housing, primarily includes housing for persons or families whose incomes are identified as one hundred forty per cent or less of the area median income for each of the counties of Hawaii, Maui, [Honolulu,] and Kauai, and the city and county of Honolulu, as determined by the United States [department of housing and urban development] Department of Housing and Urban Development from time to time, and as adjusted by family size. For the purpose of [these rules,] this chapter, such persons or families include persons or families within the following income groups: (l) "Very low income" -- those earning fifty per cent of the area median income and below; (2) "Low income" –- those earning above fifty per cent up to eighty per cent of the area median income; (3) "Low-moderate income" -- those earning above eighty per cent up to one hundred twenty per cent of the area median income; or (4) "Moderate income" - those earning above one hundred twenty per cent up to one hundred forty per cent of the area median income. "Mixed-use developments" means a development that contains affordable residential dwelling units that may be combined with governmental, educational, commercial, cultural, institutional, or industrial uses; is approved by the county in which the project is located; and is subject to: (1) Chapter 104, HRS; (2) Title 40 United States Code sections 3141, 3142, 3143, 3144, 3146, and 3147; or (3) A project labor agreement by law or contract in the construction of the project. "Mixed-use transit-oriented developments" means a mixed-use development within county-designated 307-11 transit-oriented development zones or within a one- half-mile radius of public transit stations, if a county has not designated transit-oriented development zones. "Mortgage payment" means the owner's payment on any mortgage which is necessary for financing the purchase of an owner's dwelling unit. It may also include payments for lease rent, real property taxes, mortgage insurance, association fees, and any other expenses directly related to financing the purchase of the owner's real property or to maintaining an ownership interest in the real property. "Owner" means the owner of a dwelling unit. "Qualified resident" means the same as defined under section 201H-32, HRS. "Plans and specifications" includes construction plans and specifications and any other documents that may be required by the county in the processing of the plans and specifications for the issuance of permits for construction and building of improvements within a project. "Project" or "housing project" means a plan, design, or undertaking by the corporation or an eligible developer for the development of dwelling units, and includes all real and personal property, buildings and improvements, commercial space, lands for farming and gardening, community facilities acquired or constructed or to be acquired or constructed, and all tangible or intangible assets held or used in connection with the housing project, assisted project, or sponsored project. "Property value" means the value of a property as determined by a qualified appraiser. ["Qualified appraiser" means a real estate appraiser licensed or certified to practice in the State of Hawaii subject to the requirements of section 466K-4, Hawaii Revised Statutes.] "Regional infrastructure improvement" means improvements that would increase the capacity of the infrastructure facilities, including regional sewer systems, water systems, drainage systems, roads, and telecommunications and broadband, if the project 307-12 improvement increases the capacity to accommodate future growth, and not solely benefit one particular project. ["Rules" means these rules.] "Special needs housing" means housing for persons for whom social problems, age, or physical or mental handicaps impair their ability to live independently and for whom such ability can be improved by more suitable housing conditions. ["Sponsored project" means a project which is initiated by the corporation, and is usually located on lands owned by the corporation. The corporation may or may not act as the developer of a project which it sponsors.] "Starter home" or "starter home unit" means a dwelling unit that is designed to meet the basic living capacity requirements of homebuyers with families of limited size by eliminating needless design and space amenities, but which nonetheless enables future expansion, modification, and improvement by the owner to accommodate increased occupancy over time as may be necessary. ["State" means the State of Hawaii.] "Subaccount" means an accounting set-aside within the dwelling unit revolving fund established pursuant to section 201H-191, HRS, for a specific county for the purpose of administering funding sources for regional infrastructure improvements by or for the benefit of that county. ["Subdivision and construction documents" includes all subdivision documents and plans and specifications.] ["Subdivision documents" includes preliminary maps, final maps, subdivision construction plans and specifications, and any other document that may be required by the State or county in the processing of applications and permits relating to the development of the project.] "Subsidies" means the difference between all costs expended by the corporation, less any recoveries by the corporation. It also includes unrecovered development, land, financing, and carrying costs. 307-13 "Substantial construction or soil defect" means a defect or deficiency in a dwelling unit which affects its structural integrity, habitability, or appearance and which is not caused by the act or omission of the owner or a person hired, retained, or engaged by the owner. This includes, but is not necessarily limited to, structural defects such as shifting foundations and bearing walls, structural deficiencies due to the use of defective or undersized materials, defects affecting the health and safety of occupants, and shifting, sliding, or sinking ground of such degree as to affect the dwelling unit on the land or the health and safety of the occupants of the land. ["Sustainable affordable leases" means the same as defined in section 516-1, HRS.] ["Value" means the value of a property as determined by a qualified appraiser.] [Eff 12/04/10; am and comp 4/28/17; am and comp 1/15/22; am and comp ] (Auth: HRS §§201H-4, 201H- 16, 201H-93, 201H-94, 201H-96, 201H-143, 201H-40, 201H-41, 201H-42) (Imp: HRS §§201H-1, 201H-4, 201H-8, 201H-33, 201H-38, 201H-40, 201H-41, 201H-94, 201H-96, 201H-94, 201H-143, 201H-144, 201H-151, 201H-161, 201H- 162, Acts 131 and 132, SLH 2016)