Lead-Based Paint Disclosures: A Small Form With an Important Purpose

When preparing a rental agreement, the lead-based paint disclosure can feel like just one more form in an already crowded move-in packet. For Hawaii housing providers, however, this disclosure deserves more than a quick signature.

Hawaii has a substantial inventory of homes and condominiums built before the federal government banned residential lead-based paint in 1978. A state housing inventory based on 2015 property records counted more than 94,000 single-family homes and 26,000 condominium units built before 1970. Another 108,000 single-family and condominium units were built during the 1970s, many of them before the 1978 cutoff.

These numbers help explain why lead-based paint disclosure remains relevant in Hawaii. Many of our long-term rentals are not new construction. They are plantation-era homes, postwar neighborhoods, older walk-up apartments and condominiums built during Hawaii’s rapid growth in the 1960s and 1970s.

Why Lead-Based Paint Still Matters

The Hawaii Department of Health estimates that approximately three out of every four homes built before 1978 contain some lead-based paint. The older the home, the greater the likelihood. Paint is also identified as the most common source of lead exposure in Hawaii.

The presence of lead-based paint does not automatically make a home unsafe. Paint that is intact and properly maintained is generally less likely to create a hazard. The greater concern arises when painted surfaces peel, chip, crack, chalk or deteriorate. Lead-contaminated dust can also be produced when painted windows and doors rub together or when older surfaces are sanded, scraped, drilled or disturbed during repairs.

That distinction is especially important in Hawaii, where moisture, sun exposure, salt air and ordinary wear can be hard on painted surfaces. Regular inspection and prompt maintenance are not simply cosmetic matters in an older rental property.

Lead exposure is particularly dangerous for young children and pregnant women. Children may be exposed through nearly invisible lead dust that settles on floors, toys, windowsills, hands and other household surfaces. Lead exposure can affect a child’s learning, behavior and development, sometimes without obvious symptoms.

What Housing Providers Are Required to Provide

Federal law generally applies to residential housing built before 1978. Before a prospective resident signs the rental agreement, the housing provider must disclose any known information about lead-based paint or lead-based paint hazards at the property.

The resident must also receive all available records and reports concerning lead-based paint, including applicable information about common areas or building-wide evaluations in a multi-unit property. The housing provider must provide the federally approved pamphlet, Protect Your Family From Lead in Your Home, and the lease must include the required Lead Warning Statement and acknowledgments. A signed copy of the disclosure must be retained for at least three years after the lease begins.

The disclosure must be completed before the resident becomes obligated under the lease. Placing an unsigned form in the file after move-in does not accomplish the purpose of the law, which is to give residents meaningful information before they agree to rent the property.

Housing providers should use the EPA’s updated sample lessor disclosure form. The form was revised in 2024 to require clearer descriptions of what is known, more precise acknowledgments regarding reports and separate initials for the parties and their agents when applicable.

The current English-language pamphlet was updated in January 2026. Housing providers assembling a new rental packet should use the current edition rather than continuing to copy an older version.

“No Knowledge” Does Not Mean “Lead-Free”

One of the most important parts of the disclosure form is the distinction between having no knowledge of lead-based paint and representing that no lead-based paint exists.

Most independent housing providers have never had their property formally tested. In that situation, the provider may truthfully disclose that they have no knowledge of lead-based paint or lead-based paint hazards, provided that they do not possess reports, repair records, inspection results or other information suggesting otherwise.

The disclosure form does not require a housing provider to conduct a lead inspection or certify that the property is lead-free. It requires honesty about what is known and the delivery of any information already available.

A housing provider should never check “no knowledge” merely because the property has been repainted. New paint may cover older layers without removing them. Similarly, a renovation does not establish that the property is lead-free unless the appropriate testing was performed by a qualified professional.

Do Not Forget Lease Renewals

The disclosure requirement is not limited to a resident’s initial move-in. EPA guidance states that when an existing resident renews a lease, the housing provider must provide the pamphlet and any available reports as part of the renewal process. 

This is a good reason to include lead-based paint compliance in every lease and renewal checklist rather than treating it as a one-time administrative task.

Disclosure Is Only One Part of Responsible Management

The disclosure rule should not be confused with the federal Renovation, Repair and Painting Rule. When paid work disturbs painted surfaces in a pre-1978 rental property, additional lead-safe certification and work-practice requirements may apply. The RRP Rule can apply to housing providers who perform qualifying work themselves, as well as to painters, contractors and property management companies.

For the independent housing provider, the practical approach is straightforward. Confirm the year the property was built. Use the current lessor disclosure form. Describe honestly what you know. Attach every available report. Provide the current federal pamphlet before the lease is signed. Obtain all required initials and signatures. Keep the completed documents with the rental records. Most importantly, inspect and maintain painted surfaces throughout the tenancy.

The lead-based paint disclosure is not intended to frighten residents or create unnecessary concern about older homes. It provides transparency, helps residents recognize potential hazards and creates a shared understanding about the importance of reporting peeling or damaged paint promptly.

In a state where so much of our housing was built before 1978, that is not merely paperwork. It is part of responsible rental housing management.