Selling a house in Hawaii: the paperwork

Every document a Hawaii sale commonly touches, who usually produces it, and the law behind it. In most sales the seller's own share is small, and this page shows you which part that usually is.

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4documents are usually the seller's

out of 10 in a Hawaii sale

Usually the seller's to produce

In most sales nobody else prepares these. Whether each one applies to you depends on your home, your title, and your buyer.

Seller's Real Property Disclosure Statement (Ch. 508D)Pre-listing / seller's disclosure packet
Purchase contract (HAR standard or attorney-drafted)In the purchase agreement itself
Cesspool disclosureSeller's disclosure packet
Lead-based paint disclosure (pre-1978)Attached to the purchase agreementOn your list because was the home built before 1978

Usually drafted for you to sign

These commonly arrive already written. Read them, and ask about anything that looks wrong before you sign.

N-288B (reduce/waive) / N-289 (exemption)In the title/escrow closing packet

Usually somebody else's to prepare

Commonly handled by a title company, an attorney, a lender, or the county. Listed so none of them is a surprise.

Conveyance Tax Certificate P-64A / P-64BFiled with a government agency post-closing
N-288 / N-288A (HARPTA remittance)Filed with a government agency post-closingOn your list because do you file u.s. taxes as a citizen or resident
Condominium documents / association disclosures (514B)In the HOA resale packageOn your list because is the home in an hoa, condo, or co-op
DeedRecorded with the county after closing
1099-SFiled with a government agency post-closing

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What catches Hawaii sellers out

The things people find out late here. None of this is a ruling on your sale, and every one of them ends with somebody who can actually answer it for you.

Selling from the mainland can tie up 7.25% of the price

Hawaii holds back a share of the gross sale price when the seller is not a Hawaii resident, and it is withheld from the proceeds at closing rather than billed later. There is a form that can reduce or waive it, but it generally has to be filed before closing, not after. Sellers who find out at the settlement table are usually waiting on a refund instead.

The rule behind it: HARPTA, Haw. Rev. Stat. ch. 235; Forms N-288B / N-288C
Who can answer it: A Hawaii tax professional or your escrow company, early rather than late.

Land Court and the Regular System are two different registries

Hawaii records property in two separate systems, and which one your property sits in decides how the deed is recorded. A document filed into the wrong system can fail to do its job. Mainland title companies do not always catch this, and it is not something the paperwork announces.

The rule behind it: Haw. Rev. Stat. § 501 (Land Court); § 502 (Regular System)
Who can answer it: Your Hawaii escrow company. Ask which system your property is in before anything is drafted.

A cesspool can carry an upgrade obligation

Hawaii has a statutory deadline for converting cesspools, and proposals to move some categories earlier come up regularly. It surprises people who inherited a property as often as it surprises buyers. Whether yours is affected depends on the property and its priority classification.

The rule behind it: Haw. Rev. Stat. § 342D; statutory deadline currently 2050
Who can answer it: The Hawaii Department of Health holds the classification for a given property.

How Hawaii generally runs a sale

The broad shape of a sale there, as the research found it. Counties and cities add their own rules on top of all of this.

Closing model — escrow (title/escrow company); attorney optionalUPL governed by HRS Chapter 605. Escrow companies conduct closings and calculate/remit the conveyance tax and HARPTA withholding.

Community property — NOT applicableHawaii is a common-law state.

Tenancy by the entirety — recognizedfor married couples (HRS § 509-2); both spouses must sign to convey entireties property.

Homestead exemptionHRS § 651-92 provides a creditor-protection exemption ($30,000 head of family; $20,000 others). Not a conveyance-joinder rule; verify current amounts.

Standard deed typesWarranty deed, limited (special) warranty deed, quitclaim deed; recording under HRS Chapter 502.

Disclosure regime — statutory (mandatory)HRS Chapter 508D (Mandatory Seller Disclosures in Real Estate Transactions) governs residential resales; common law governs vacant land/other transactions.

Transfer tax — Hawaii Conveyance Tax, HRS Chapter 247(tiered on two axes: price bracket × buyer's owner-occupant status). Generally paid by the seller (transferor) under HRS § 247-3 unless otherwise agreed; escrow remits at recording.

Non-resident withholding — HARPTA, HRS § 235-687.25% of the amount realized (typically gross sales price) on non-resident sellers; Forms N-288/N-288A/N-288B/N-288C; N-289 for exemption/non-recognition.

RON statusHawaii authorized RON via Act 54, Session Laws of Hawaii 2020 (SB 2275), effective January 1, 2021, codified at HRS § 456-23 et seq.

Recording actRegular System is race-notice (HRS § 502-83); Land Court (Torrens) is a pure-race/registration system with conclusive Certificates of Title (HRS Chapter 501).

Notable local overlaysLava zones, tsunami evacuation zones, cesspools, leasehold estates, Hawaiian Home Lands, agricultural-land classifications.

Other things Hawaii asks about

These come up in Hawaii and almost nowhere else. We don't ask them above because we can't answer them for you yet, but they're worth raising with your title company.

HI-20: Regular System, Land Court, or dual property? → § 2/§ 9 recording.
HI-21: Does the property have a cesspool? → § 6 cesspool disclosure.
HI-22: Leasehold or fee simple? → § 6 leasehold.
HI-23: Big Island lava zone, or tsunami evacuation zone? → § 8.
HI-25: County property-tax classification (owner-occupant vs. non-owner-occupant vs. hotel/resort)? → § 8.
HI-26: Hawaiian Home Lands or iwi kupuna/burial concerns? → § 8.

Before you rely on any of this

This is a compilation of published state requirements, not legal advice, and no lawyer has reviewed it or your sale. Laws and forms change, counties and cities add their own rules, and whether any of this applies to you depends on facts we don't know. Treat every item as a starting point for a question, not as an answer. Confirm anything you plan to rely on against the official source we link, and run your list past a title company or an attorney licensed in your state.

These counts describe a typical sale, not yours. Which documents you need turns on facts about your home, your title, your buyer, and your county, and one unusual answer can add several or remove them.

Who prepares each document is what usually happens, not a rule. Practice differs between states, between counties, and between one title company and the next, and your contract can move work from one side to the other.

Keighbor is not a real estate brokerage and does not represent you. Nobody here is your agent. We don't negotiate, set your price, recommend a course of action, or take a commission. We provide software that helps you organize your side of the sale.

The full Hawaii reference

The rest of the research, with every citation kept. This is the same material our own product is built on, and nothing is held back for paying customers. It describes the law as the research found it, not as it applies to your sale.

ALWAYS-required documents

Seller's Real Property Disclosure Statement

Citation: HRS Chapter 508D (§§ 508D-4, 508D-5, 508D-9, 508D-15).
Tags: [SELLER]. APPEARS: seller's disclosure packet.
Contents: the seller must fully and accurately disclose in writing all material facts concerning the property.
Timing: HRS § 508D-5(a) — the seller must provide the disclosure statement no later than 10 calendar days after acceptance of the purchase contract. The buyer then has 15 calendar days to examine and rescind (§ 508D-5(b)); failure to deliver written rescission within that window is deemed acceptance. If the seller never delivers, or delivers a materially inaccurate statement that adversely affects value, HRS § 508D-6 gives the buyer a right to rescind before closing (within 15 days of discovery or receipt of an amended statement).
Standard of care: § 508D-9 (good faith and due care; the seller need not hire experts).
Delivery / signature: directly or through the seller's agent; seller signs; buyer signs receipt.
Consequences of noncompliance: voidable contract/rescission with immediate return of deposits (§§ 508D-16, 508D-16.5).
Verify current HAR form edition.
Official source: https://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/

Deed

Tags: [TITLE/ESCROW]. APPEARS: Recorded with the county after closing.
Citations: HRS Chapter 502 (Regular) / Chapter 501 (Land Court).
Routing: must be routed to the correct recording system.
Consequence in Land Court: an unregistered conveyance is not valid against the Certificate of Title (pure-race).
Consequence in the Regular System: priority is race-notice (§ 502-83).
Official source: https://dlnr.hawaii.gov/boc/

Conveyance Tax Certificate (Form P-64A)

Tags: [TITLE/ESCROW]. APPEARS: Filed with a government agency post-closing (submitted with the deed at the Bureau of Conveyances).
Citations: HRS §§ 247-1, 247-2, 247-6.
Contents: declares actual and full consideration and the buyer's owner-occupant status (which drives the tax tier); escrow calculates and pays the tax at recording. If incomplete, the form will not be accepted.
Official source: https://files.hawaii.gov/tax/forms/2024/p64a.pdf

SOMETIMES-required documents (triggered)

Trigger — Non-resident seller: HARPTA (HRS § 235-68)

7.25% withholding on the amount realized (typically gross sales price).

Forms: N-288 (return/remittance, due on/before the 20th day after transfer), N-288A (statement per non-resident seller), N-288B (application for a withholding certificate to reduce/waive — must be approved before closing; practitioners advise submitting at least ~10 business days before closing), N-288C (tentative refund after closing; rejected if the N-15 return is available), N-289 (certification of exemption/non-recognition — e.g., resident on the closing date, principal-residence use, 1031 exchange, non-recognition).
Rate history / recent change: the rate increased from 5% to 7.25% by Act 232 (2018), effective September 15, 2018, applying to sales closing on or after that date (Hawaii DOTAX).
Responsibility: the buyer is ultimately legally responsible for withholding; escrow administers.
Nature: the 7.25% is a prepayment against Hawaii capital-gains tax, not a final tax; the seller must still file a Hawaii return (N-15 for non-residents) to reconcile.
Official source: https://files.hawaii.gov/tax/

Trigger — Cesspool on property

Cesspool disclosure. [SELLER]. HRS § 342D-72 (Act 125, SLH 2017): every cesspool in the State, excluding those granted a Department of Health exemption, must be upgraded/converted to an approved wastewater system or connected to a sewer before January 1, 2050 (amended by Act 87, SLH 2022). Cesspool status is a disclosable material fact under Chapter 508D. Verify any accelerated priority-1/priority-2 deadlines (legislative proposals have sought 2030/2035 dates for the highest-risk cesspools). Source: https://law.justia.com/codes/hawaii/title-19/chapter-342d/section-342d-72/

Trigger — Condominium

Association documents/disclosures. [HOA / MGMT CO]. HRS § 514B-154.5 requires the managing agent/board/association to make available the financial records, declaration, bylaws, house rules, master lease (if any), a sample conveyance document, and public reports/amendments in order to comply with resale disclosure requests. Developer sales carry a 30-day cancellation right (HRS § 514B-86) and a 30-day rescission on material change (§ 514B-87); resale-by-owner condition disclosure and the pre-closing rescission right run through Chapter 508D. Pre-July-1-2006 condos may retain aspects of prior Chapter 514A.

Trigger — Exempt conveyance

Form P-64B (exemption from conveyance tax), HRS § 247-3; may require Department of Taxation Technical Section approval or direct filing at the BOC.

Trigger — New single-family residential construction

HRS § 196-6.5 bars building-permit issuance for new single-family residential construction using electric-resistance water heating — mandatory solar water heater since 2010, with variances.

Trigger — Pre-1978 structure

Federal lead-based paint disclosure (see § 10).

Prescribed-language items (substance-over-form)

Chapter 508D disclosure receipt / rescission right

HRS § 508D-4(2) requires that the receipt for the disclosure statement provide that the buyer has the right to examine the disclosure statement and to rescind per § 508D-5. The purchase contract/receipt must carry this right; HAR forms build it in. A FSBO must reproduce the receipt plus the 10-day-delivery/15-day-rescission mechanics.

Conveyance-tax certification (P-64A)

The buyer's owner-occupant certification on P-64A drives the tax tier; the form language is prescribed by DOTAX.

Cesspool

Disclosure of a cesspool, its 2050 conversion deadline, and its priority level is required as a material fact under Chapter 508D as informed by § 342D-72.

Local / municipal overlays

Not exhaustive — notable examples include:

Conveyance-tax tiers (HRS § 247, verify current): owner-occupant purchaser — $0.10/$100 up to $600k; $0.20 $600k–$1M; $0.30 $1M–$2M; $0.50 $2M–$4M; $0.70 $4M–$6M; $0.90 $6M–$10M; $1.00 above $10M. Non-owner-occupant purchaser — higher tiers ($0.15/$100 up to $600k, escalating to $1.25/$100 above $10M). Verify any 2024–2026 legislative changes; the significant 2025 Hawaii tax legislation was the Transient Accommodations Tax "green fee" increase — confirm whether the conveyance-tax schedule itself changed. Source: https://files.hawaii.gov/tax/legal/hrs/hrs_247.pdf
Property-tax classification (owner-occupant vs. non-owner-occupant vs. hotel/resort) is set at the county level (Honolulu, Maui, Hawaii, Kauai) and materially affects carrying costs and the HARPTA analysis.
Lava zones 1–9 (Hawaii County) — disclosure norm; affects insurability/financing.
Tsunami evacuation zones — disclosure norm on all islands.
Leasehold vs. fee simple — significant leasehold inventory (e.g., Kamehameha Schools/Bishop Estate); lease term and renegotiation are disclosable material concerns.
Native Hawaiian burials / iwi kupuna — HRS § 6E-43.
Hawaiian Home Lands — ancestry-restricted (Hawaiian Homes Commission Act).
Agricultural lands — Land Use Commission classification; State Water Code, HRS Chapter 174C.

Post-closing obligations

Recording at the single statewide Bureau of Conveyances (Regular System race-notice, § 502-83; Land Court under Chapter 501).
Conveyance tax paid at recording via P-64A (HRS Chapter 247).
HARPTA N-288/N-288A filed and withholding remitted on or before the 20th day after transfer; N-288C for tentative refund; seller must still file a Hawaii income tax return (N-15 for non-residents).
1099-S / capital gains / mortgage satisfaction / FIRPTA — see § 10.

Federal overlays (cross-reference)

See 01-methodology-v2.md § 8 for the full federal overlay set: Title X lead paint (pre-1978); FIRPTA (26 U.S.C. § 1445 — note FIRPTA and HARPTA stack for foreign sellers); 1099-S (26 U.S.C. § 6045(e)); wire-fraud advisory; Fair Housing Act (42 U.S.C. § 3601); RESPA/TRID.

FinCEN Residential Real Estate Rule (31 CFR 1031.320) — currently suspended. The Rule was effective March 1, 2026 and vacated nationwide March 19, 2026 (Flowers Title Companies, LLC v. Bessent, E.D. Tex.); DOJ is appealing to the Fifth Circuit; a conflicting M.D. Fla. ruling (Fidelity National Financial, Inc. v. Bessent, Feb. 2026) upheld it. Treat as suspended pending appeal.

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