(a) It shall be unlawful for any creditor to discriminate against any applicant on the basis of marital status with respect to any aspect of a credit transaction.

Terms Used In Hawaii Revised Statutes 477E-3

  • Applicant: means any person who initially applies to a creditor directly for a loan or credit, or who directly applies to a creditor for an extension, renewal, or continuation of credit, or applies to a creditor indirectly by use of an existing credit plan for an amount exceeding a previously established credit limit. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 477E-2
  • Credit: means the loan of money, or the right granted by a creditor to a debtor to defer payment of debt, or to incur debts and defer payment therefor, or to purchase property or services and defer payment therefor. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 477E-2
  • Creditor: means any bank; savings and loan association; trust company; financial services loan company; credit union; mortgage loan originator; mortgage loan originator company; pawnbroker; mutual benefit society or fraternal benefit society; debt adjuster; the issuer of a credit card as defined in § 708-800; any person who initiates, extends, renews, or continues loans of money or credit; any person who regularly arranges for the initiation, extension, renewal, or continuation of a loan of money or credit; or any assignee of an original creditor who participates in the decision to grant, extend, renew, or to continue a loan of money or credit. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 477E-2
  • Lien: A claim against real or personal property in satisfaction of a debt.
  • Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
(b) An inquiry of marital status shall not constitute discrimination for the purposes of this chapter if such inquiry is for the purpose of ascertaining the creditor’s rights and remedies applicable to the particular extension of credit, and not to discriminate in a determination of creditworthiness.
(c) A request for the signature of both parties to a marriage for the purpose of creating a valid lien, passing clear title, waiving inchoate rights to, or assigning the earnings and profits, in any transaction involving real property shall not be construed to be discrimination under this part; provided that this provision shall not be construed to permit a creditor to take marital status into account in connection with the evaluation of creditworthiness of any applicant.
(d) Consideration or application of the real property laws directly or indirectly affecting creditworthiness shall not constitute discrimination for any purpose of this chapter.
(e) Whenever either party to a marriage contracts separately for credit or a loan, the contracting party shall be solely responsible for the debt so contracted.
(f) Whenever each party to a marriage separately and voluntarily applies for, and obtains, separate credit accounts or loans with the same creditor, those accounts or loans shall not be aggregated, or otherwise combined, for purposes of determining permissible finance charges, or permissible loan ceilings.

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