Buyers closing on Hawaii real estate frequently see deed names that do not appear in mainland transactions. A standard residential file in Honolulu, Hilo, or Wailuku might present a bargain and sale deed, a limited warranty deed, or an apartment deed depending on the seller, the property type, and the chain of title. Each instrument allocates risk differently, and the recording path inside Hawaii’s dual-track land records system adds another layer of complexity.
The choice of deed matters because Hawaii is one of only a few states that maintains a parallel Torrens-style registry (Land Court) alongside the older Regular System recording office. Every recorded conveyance also triggers a state conveyance tax obligation that ranges from $0.10 to $1.25 per $100 of consideration, evidenced by a Form P-64A or P-64B filed at closing. Missing those mechanics can void title insurance coverage or delay funding by weeks.
This article compares the bargain and sale deed, the limited warranty deed, and the apartment deed used in condominium transfers. It walks through Land Court versus Regular System recording, the conveyance tax certificate requirement, and the situations where each deed type is the right choice for a relocating household, an estate, or an investor.
The five deed types Hawaii closings actually use
Hawaii practitioners draw from a relatively short menu of conveyancing instruments. The five most common are the general warranty deed, the limited warranty (or special warranty) deed, the bargain and sale deed, the quitclaim deed, and the apartment deed used for condominiums and townhouses. Each one carries a different bundle of promises about title and a different appetite for risk on the part of the grantor.
The most protective end of the spectrum is the general warranty deed, where the grantor warrants title against any defect arising at any time. The least protective is the quitclaim, which transfers only whatever interest the grantor happens to hold and warrants nothing. Bargain and sale, limited warranty, and apartment deeds occupy the practical middle of Hawaii residential and commercial transactions.
A side-by-side reference helps clarify the differences before the article goes deeper into each instrument.
| Deed type | Title warranty scope | Typical Hawaii use | Risk to buyer |
|---|---|---|---|
| General warranty | Full, perpetual covenants | Rare in residential resale | Lowest |
| Limited warranty | Only grantor’s period of ownership | Bank REO, builder, trustee | Moderate |
| Bargain and sale | Implies grantor holds title, no warranty | Arm’s-length resale, estates | Moderate |
| Apartment deed | Varies by accompanying covenants | Condominium unit transfers | Depends on text |
| Quitclaim | None | Family transfers, divorce, trust | Highest |
Anyone comparing instruments will benefit from reading the parallel breakdown of quitclaim and warranty deeds in Hawaii property transfers, which covers the two endpoints of the warranty spectrum in more depth.
Bargain and sale deed: scope and limits
The bargain and sale deed is the workhorse of Hawaii residential resales. It transfers the grantor’s interest in the property and, by virtue of the recitals, implies that the grantor in fact holds that interest. What it deliberately omits is any covenant that the title is free from defects, encumbrances, or claims of third parties. Buyers carry the risk that an undisclosed lien or boundary issue may surface later.
This may sound risky, but the bargain and sale deed is almost always paired with an owner’s title insurance policy. The American Land Title Association policy issued by First American, Old Republic, Title Guaranty of Hawaii, or another local underwriter does the heavy lifting that the deed does not. Premiums on Oahu typically run $5.50 to $7.25 per $1,000 of policy value, with lender’s coverage stacked beneath the owner’s policy.
Three drafting elements distinguish a Hawaii bargain and sale deed from a true quitclaim:
- The granting language uses “grant, bargain, sell, and convey” rather than “remise, release, and quitclaim.”
- Consideration is recited as a specific dollar amount rather than the nominal $1.00 used in most family quitclaims.
- The conveyance tax certificate accompanying the deed will use Form P-64A, not the exempt P-64B.
The instrument is especially common when the seller is an estate, a trust acting as fiduciary, or a corporation winding down assets. None of those grantors want to expose themselves to perpetual title warranties that survive closing, yet the buyer needs more than the bare-bones quitclaim to satisfy lender requirements.
What the bargain and sale deed does not promise
The buyer receives no covenant that prior owners held clean title, no covenant against undisclosed easements, and no covenant of quiet enjoyment. If a contractor recorded a mechanic’s lien for $18,400 three owners back and it was never released, the bargain and sale deed offers no recourse against the seller. Recourse, if any, runs solely to the title insurer under the issued policy.
Limited warranty deed (special warranty deed)
The limited warranty deed, called a special warranty deed in many mainland jurisdictions, narrows the grantor’s covenants to defects that arose during the grantor’s own period of ownership. Defects that originated under a prior owner are excluded from the warranty. The deed is therefore appropriate when the grantor has held the property for only a short time or has no practical way to research the entire chain.
Three classes of sellers reach for the limited warranty deed most often in Hawaii:
- Banks selling real estate owned (REO) inventory after foreclosure, where the bank held title briefly.
- Developers and builders conveying newly constructed condominium units or single-family homes.
- Trustees and personal representatives administering an estate that wants modest assurance to facilitate sale.
For a relocating buyer, the limited warranty deed provides more protection than a bargain and sale but less than a general warranty. Recourse against the grantor exists only for liens, encumbrances, or claims traceable to the grantor’s tenure. The 2008 to 2012 foreclosure wave normalized the limited warranty deed on Oahu and Maui because lender-sellers refused to issue anything stronger.
How limited warranty deeds interact with title insurance
The Hawaii title underwriter still issues coverage against pre-grantor defects because its policy stands independent of the deed. Pricing reflects the underwriter’s own risk assessment from the title search rather than the deed’s warranties. A buyer paying $4,650 in title premium on a $680,000 condominium receives the same coverage whether the deed is bargain and sale or limited warranty, though endorsements and exceptions may differ.
Apartment deed: the condominium-specific instrument
The apartment deed is unique to Hawaii’s condominium property regime. Codified in Hawaii Revised Statutes Chapter 514B, the apartment deed conveys a fee or leasehold interest in a designated “apartment” along with an undivided percentage interest in the common elements of the condominium project. The deed must reference the declaration of condominium property regime, the bylaws, and the condominium map by their Bureau of Conveyances or Land Court document numbers.
Without those references the recording office will reject the deed. A correctly drafted apartment deed identifies:
- The apartment number and floor as designated on the condominium map.
- The undivided percentage interest in common elements (commonly 0.4825% on a 200-unit building).
- Any limited common elements appurtenant to the unit, such as a parking stall or storage locker.
- The recorded declaration, bylaws, and any amendments by document number and date.
Hawaii is one of the most condominium-heavy states in the country. The U.S. Census Bureau quickfacts for Hawaii show that multi-unit structures make up a disproportionate share of the housing stock, particularly on urban Oahu. Households weighing attached versus detached living should read the breakdown of buying a condo versus a house in Hawaii for the cost picture.
Leasehold versus fee simple apartment deeds
A significant minority of Hawaii condominiums sit on leased land owned by a separate fee owner, such as the Kamehameha Schools or Queen Emma Land Company. The apartment deed in those projects conveys only the leasehold estate, typically expiring between 2030 and 2090. Lease rent, lease extension terms, and the ground lease document numbers must all be recited. Mortgage lenders are far stricter on leasehold than fee simple condominiums.
Apartment deed and the master association
The apartment deed also obligates the buyer to the condominium association’s monthly maintenance fee, which on Oahu averages $612 per month according to recent Honolulu Board of Realtors aggregates. Reserves, special assessments for spalling repair, and elevator modernizations are all enforced through the apartment deed’s incorporation of the bylaws. Buyers should review the resale certificate and 12 months of board minutes before signing.
Land Court vs Regular System recording
Hawaii operates two parallel land records systems administered by the Bureau of Conveyances on Punchbowl Street in Honolulu. The Regular System, governed by HRS Chapter 502, is the older race-notice recording office where most documents are filed for constructive notice. The Land Court system, governed by HRS Chapter 501 and established in 1903, is a Torrens-style registry of title where the certificate itself is the legal evidence of ownership.
Whether a property sits in Land Court, the Regular System, or both is determined by historical decree, not by the current owner’s preference. Once a parcel is registered into Land Court it cannot easily exit. Modern Honolulu, Maui, and Kauai parcels are roughly split, and many subdivided lots straddle both systems with an Auditor’s Description recorded twice — once in each registry.
The Hawaii Bureau of Conveyances recording fee guide goes deeper into the document-number conventions, but a quick comparison is useful here.
| Feature | Regular System (HRS 502) | Land Court (HRS 501) |
|---|---|---|
| Year established | Territorial era pre-1900 | 1903 |
| Document number prefix | A- followed by 8 digits | T- followed by 7 digits |
| Legal title evidence | Recorded chain of deeds | Transfer Certificate of Title (TCT) |
| Recording fee, first 20 pages | $36 | $41 |
| Each additional page | $1 | $1 |
| Title search method | Trace back 40+ years | Read current TCT |
| Typical recording turnaround | 3 to 5 business days | 5 to 10 business days |
Dual recording for properties in both systems
A surprising number of Hawaii parcels carry both a Land Court Transfer Certificate of Title and a Regular System recording. This happens when an originally registered Land Court parcel was subdivided and one or more daughter lots were sold out of the system. The deed must be recorded in both registries, doubling the filing fee and the processing time. Closers in Honolulu routinely budget for dual recording in older urban neighborhoods like Kaimuki and Manoa.
The conveyance tax certificate requirement
Every deed presented for recording in Hawaii must be accompanied by a conveyance tax certificate. The certificate is either Form P-64A, which calculates and remits the tax owed, or Form P-64B, which claims an exemption. The Hawaii Department of Taxation administers the forms through the tax.hawaii.gov portal, and the Bureau of Conveyances will refuse to record any deed presented without one.
The conveyance tax rate depends on the purchase price and whether the buyer will use the property as a principal residence. The current 2026 schedule, unchanged since the 2009 reform that introduced the high-end brackets, is shown below.
| Sale price | Owner-occupied rate | Non-owner-occupied rate |
|---|---|---|
| Under $600,000 | $0.10 per $100 | $0.15 per $100 |
| $600,000 to $999,999 | $0.20 per $100 | $0.25 per $100 |
| $1,000,000 to $1,999,999 | $0.30 per $100 | $0.40 per $100 |
| $2,000,000 to $3,999,999 | $0.50 per $100 | $0.60 per $100 |
| $4,000,000 to $5,999,999 | $0.70 per $100 | $0.85 per $100 |
| $6,000,000 to $9,999,999 | $0.90 per $100 | $1.10 per $100 |
| $10,000,000 and above | $1.00 per $100 | $1.25 per $100 |
On a $1,250,000 Kailua single-family home purchased as a primary residence, the conveyance tax is $3,750. The same price paid by an investor for a Waikiki rental condo triggers $5,000. The buyer typically pays the tax at closing, though the parties can negotiate, and 10% of receipts fund the state Land Conservation Fund and the Rental Housing Revolving Fund.
Form P-64B exemptions
Several common transfers qualify for the exemption form. Gifts between spouses, transfers into a wholly owned revocable trust, deeds confirming a court decree, and conveyances of leasehold interests with less than five years remaining all use Form P-64B. Estate planning attorneys filing transfer-on-death deeds or trustee deeds rely on the exemption. The guide to revocable trusts and TODD deeds covers the most common exempt transfers in depth.
The 90-day recording window
The conveyance tax statute requires the certificate and accompanying deed to be filed within 90 days of execution. A deed signed on March 14 must reach the Bureau of Conveyances by June 12. Late filing triggers a 25% penalty plus interest at 0.667% per month. Honolulu closing offices generally record within five business days, but estate transfers handled by out-of-state heirs can miss the deadline if they delay shipping originals back.
Recording fees, timing, and the Bureau of Conveyances
All deed recordings funnel through the single statewide Bureau of Conveyances at 1151 Punchbowl Street in Honolulu. There are no county recording offices in Hawaii; a deed for a Hilo property is filed in Honolulu, not at the Hawaii County seat. Documents may be presented in person at the counter, by mail, or through an authorized electronic submitter such as Simplifile, which most title companies now use.
The current fee schedule is straightforward and worth memorizing for anyone running their own family transfers.
| Document | Regular System | Land Court |
|---|---|---|
| Deed, first 20 pages | $36 | $41 |
| Each additional page | $1 | $1 |
| Mortgage, first 20 pages | $36 | $41 |
| UCC fixture filing | $25 | $25 |
| Condominium declaration amendment | $36 | $41 |
| Conveyance tax certificate (with deed) | No additional fee | No additional fee |
| Certified copy of recorded deed | $10 | $10 |
Pages are measured at 8.5 by 11 inches with a minimum 1-inch top margin reserved for the recording stamp. Documents printed on legal-size paper or with insufficient margins are rejected and returned. The Bureau’s counter typically closes at 3:30 p.m. local time, and same-day recording requires presentation before noon.
Electronic recording and turnaround
Since 2021 the Bureau has accepted e-recorded documents through Simplifile and ePN. Title companies routinely receive document numbers within four to six hours during business days. Mailed packages average seven to ten business days from postmark to return. Anyone recording from the mainland should send via FedEx with a prepaid return label and include a $5 self-addressed conformed copy request if a stamped photocopy is needed for the lender.
When each deed type is the right choice
Choosing among the deed types is a function of the seller’s tolerance for post-closing liability, the buyer’s reliance on title insurance, and the specific transaction type. The following decision matrix maps the most common Hawaii scenarios to the typical instrument used at closing.
| Scenario | Typical deed | Conveyance tax form |
|---|---|---|
| Arm’s-length resale of Kailua single-family home | Bargain and sale | P-64A |
| Bank REO sale of foreclosed Mililani condo | Limited warranty | P-64A |
| Developer sale of new Kaka’ako tower unit | Apartment (limited warranty) | P-64A |
| Estate sale by personal representative | Bargain and sale or limited warranty | P-64A |
| Spouse-to-spouse gift | Quitclaim | P-64B |
| Transfer into revocable living trust | Quitclaim or apartment | P-64B |
| Divorce settlement transfer | Quitclaim | P-64B |
| Cure of boundary or chain defect | Quitclaim from cloud holder | P-64B |
| Leasehold condo on Kamehameha Schools land | Apartment deed (leasehold) | P-64A |
For resale transactions the working assumption on Oahu is bargain and sale paired with full ALTA homeowner’s coverage. Maui and Big Island brokers tilt slightly more toward limited warranty when the seller is an out-of-state owner who held the property briefly as a vacation rental. Kauai’s smaller transaction volume produces a more mixed practice.
Newly built condominium units
Developer-issued apartment deeds in projects like Ko’olani, Park Lane, or the Victoria Place tower combine the limited warranty form with the condominium-specific recitals required by Chapter 514B. The developer warrants only its own ownership period, which on a presale unit may be just weeks. Buyers should rely on the new-construction title insurance endorsement and the developer’s express written warranties of construction, which run separately from the deed.
Estate and trust transfers
Personal representatives administering a Hawaii probate typically use either a bargain and sale or a limited warranty deed, depending on county practice and the buyer’s lender. A pure quitclaim is unusual in an arm’s-length estate sale because most lenders require some implied covenant of ownership. By contrast, a transfer into a revocable trust during the owner’s lifetime uses a quitclaim with Form P-64B, and the conveyance tax is zero.
Common closing scenarios with the right deed type
Three closing scenarios illustrate how the deed selection interacts with recording and conveyance tax in practice. Each example uses round figures drawn from typical 2026 Honolulu market activity reported by the Honolulu Star-Advertiser real estate desk.
Scenario one: $885,000 Hawaii Kai single-family home
A relocating family from Seattle is buying a 1979-built Hawaii Kai house from the original owners. The sellers use a bargain and sale deed. The lot is Land Court registered, so recording costs $41 plus $5 for extra pages. The conveyance tax at the owner-occupied rate of $0.20 per $100 totals $1,770 on Form P-64A. The full title package — premium, search, and recording — runs roughly $5,950.
Scenario two: $625,000 Kapolei REO condominium
A bank is conveying a foreclosed condominium unit using a limited warranty apartment deed. The property is in the Regular System. Recording costs $36 plus the apartment deed’s accompanying assignment of parking stall rights at another $36. The conveyance tax at $0.20 per $100 owner-occupied totals $1,250. The buyer adds an extended-coverage ALTA owner’s policy at $4,375 to compensate for the narrowed deed warranties.
Scenario three: $4,800,000 Diamond Head investment property
An investor purchases a non-owner-occupied luxury home for $4,800,000. The conveyance tax at the non-owner $0.85 per $100 bracket reaches $40,800, paid via Form P-64A. The sellers, an LLC formed in Nevada, deliver a bargain and sale deed because they are unwilling to warrant pre-ownership defects. The deed is recorded in both Land Court and the Regular System due to a historic subdivision, doubling the recording fee.
Mistakes to avoid in Hawaii deed preparation
Deed rejections at the Bureau of Conveyances are common and almost always preventable. The most frequent fixable errors involve formatting, signatures, and missing recitals. Title companies catch most of these before submission, but for-sale-by-owner transactions and self-prepared family transfers often trip the wires.
- Inadequate top margin for the recording stamp causes immediate rejection.
- Notary acknowledgment missing the date, commission expiration, or county of notarization.
- Failure to reference the prior deed’s document number in the chain.
- Omission of the tax map key (TMK) in the format 1-2-3-456:789.
- Apartment deed missing the condominium map or declaration document numbers.
- Conveyance tax certificate left unsigned by the buyer or seller.
- Wrong recording office indicated on a parcel registered in both systems.
Hawaii also requires the preparer’s name and address be printed on the deed face, along with a Return to recipient. Coverage of statewide property carrying costs in the county-by-county property tax rate guide helps buyers anticipate the recurring obligations the deed sets in motion.
Tax map key conventions
The TMK is the parcel’s unique identifier and must appear on every recorded document. The format encodes island, zone, section, plat, and parcel: a Kailua residential lot might be 1-4-3-067:042. CPR (condominium property regime) units add a unit identifier after a hyphen: 1-2-1-021:001-0156. Errors in the TMK can scramble property tax billing from the City and County of Honolulu or the relevant county.
Cesspool disclosure at conveyance
Hawaii law requires sellers to disclose whether the property is served by a cesspool, septic, or municipal sewer system. The state Department of Health tracks roughly 83,000 active cesspools statewide, most of which must be converted by 2050. The Act 326 cesspool tax credit guide describes how a deed transfer can trigger conversion obligations and how qualifying buyers can claim the $10,000 credit.
How the deed choice affects relocating buyers
Mainland buyers relocating to Hawaii often assume that the deed type matters less than the title insurance policy. That assumption is partially correct but understates how deed form influences lender willingness, escrow timelines, and the cost of later refinancing. A bargain and sale deed from an arm’s-length seller is rarely an obstacle. A leasehold apartment deed with a lease expiring before the 30-year mortgage term, however, can disqualify a loan entirely.
Lenders evaluating Hawaii condominium files apply Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac project review standards, which scrutinize the master deed, the percentage of owner-occupied units, the budget reserves, and any litigation. The apartment deed surfaces all of these issues by reference. An incomplete or non-warrantable project can push the buyer into portfolio lending at rates 0.75% to 1.25% above conventional. Buyers should ask for the project’s most recent lender questionnaire before going under contract.
For households moving family members and pets at the same time, deed timing also matters because closing dates often anchor flight and shipping bookings. The pet health certificate guide for bringing animals to Hawaii lays out the parallel deadlines that should be coordinated with the closing date.
Frequently asked questions
Is a bargain and sale deed the same as a quitclaim deed in Hawaii?
No. A bargain and sale deed implies that the grantor actually holds title and uses the words “grant, bargain, sell, and convey,” whereas a quitclaim transfers only whatever interest the grantor happens to hold without any implication of ownership. Bargain and sale is generally acceptable to lenders for arm’s-length transactions; pure quitclaims are typically restricted to family transfers, divorces, and trust funding.
How much is the Hawaii conveyance tax on a $750,000 home?
At the owner-occupied rate of $0.20 per $100 of consideration in the $600,000 to $999,999 bracket, the conveyance tax on a $750,000 primary-residence purchase is $1,500. A non-owner-occupied buyer in the same bracket pays $0.25 per $100, which works out to $1,875. The tax is filed on Form P-64A with the deed at the Bureau of Conveyances within 90 days of execution.
Can a Hawaii property be in both Land Court and the Regular System?
Yes. Subdivision of a Land Court parcel sometimes leaves the parent and daughter lots in different systems, and historic boundary adjustments can create dual-registered parcels. The deed must be recorded twice, once in each registry, and the recording fee is paid twice. Title insurance commitments will identify the dual status and the closing office will prepare two separately stamped originals for the file.
Who pays the conveyance tax at a Hawaii closing?
By default the seller pays the conveyance tax on a residential resale, but the parties can negotiate this in the purchase contract. For new construction sales the buyer often pays. The settlement statement breaks out the tax under the conveyance fee line. The Bureau will refuse to record the deed without a fully executed and paid P-64A or properly claimed P-64B exemption.
What is the recording fee for a single-page deed in Land Court?
The flat fee for a Land Court document of up to 20 pages is $41 in 2026. Even a one-page deed pays the full $41. Each additional page beyond 20 costs $1. Regular System recording is $36 for the same 20 pages. Both fees are payable to the Bureau of Conveyances via check, money order, or escrow company wire transfer.
Do apartment deeds require a separate document for each parking stall?
Usually not. The apartment deed itself conveys the unit together with any limited common elements, including assigned parking stalls and storage lockers, as long as the deed lists them in the recitals. A separate assignment is required only when a parking stall is being conveyed independently of a unit, which the condominium declaration must specifically authorize. Buyers should verify the parking allocation in the resale certificate.
How long does the Bureau of Conveyances take to record a deed?
Electronically submitted Regular System documents typically return within four to six business hours during the workday. Land Court documents take five to ten business days because each transaction updates the certificate of title. Mailed documents add three to seven days for shipping plus return mail. Same-day counter recording requires arrival before noon at the Punchbowl Street office in Honolulu.