HRS §507-48
Owner can hold back money to cover a filed lien
Read the official text at capitol.hawaii.gov ↗If a contractor hired someone to do work or supply materials for your property, and that person files a lien, you can hold back enough money from what you owe the contractor to pay off the lien.
landowners
The statute, as written — Owner may retain amount due
A copy, taken August 20, 2026. The version published by the Legislature is the one that governs, and it may have changed since. Check it before relying on anything here.
Whenever the work or material for which a lien is filed is furnished to any contractor for use as set forth in section 507-42, the owner may retain from the amount payable to the contractor sufficient to cover the amount due or to become due to the person or persons who filed the lien.
Sections this one refers to
§507-42 When a Lien Is Allowed for Work or Materials
LawTrove is not legal advice. The summary above is a computer-generated restatement — the authoritative text is the official version linked above.