Honolulu County, Hawaii Tax Sales

Counties / Hawaii counties / Honolulu County

Quick answerHonolulu County, Hawaii follows Hawaii tax sale law: the state sells redeemable tax deeds for delinquent property taxes. Rate / penalty: 12% per year — interest paid by the redeeming taxpayer to the purchaser on redemption (HRS §231-67). Redemption: 1 year after the sale to redeem from the purchaser (or 1 year from recording if the deed is not recorded within 60 days after sale), paying purchase p… LienToDeed is verifying this county's own sale-list source; the state rules below are the law that governs its sales.

How tax sales work in Honolulu County, Hawaii

Hawaii law controls every tax sale in Honolulu County — the county runs the sale, but what is sold, what it pays and how long the owner can redeem are all set by the state:

What Hawaii sells	Redeemable tax deeds
Interest / penalty	12% per year — interest paid by the redeeming taxpayer to the purchaser on redemption (HRS §231-67); this is redemption interest on a deed purchase, not a lien-certificate rate
Redemption period	1 year after the sale to redeem from the purchaser (or 1 year from recording if the deed is not recorded within 60 days after sale), paying purchase price plus costs and 12%/yr interest (HRS §231-67). Sale may occur once the tax lien has existed for 3 years (HRS §231-63).
When sales happen	Each of the four counties holds its own sale, typically annually in spring — e.g. Honolulu and Maui sales in May, Hawaii County sales in January and June in some years
Governing law	Hawaii Revised Statutes §§ 231-62 to 231-67 (sale §231-63; deed and redemption §231-67), implemented by county codes/ordinances (e.g. Maui County Code 3.48.250; Revised Ordinances of Honolulu §§ 8-5.1 to 8-5.9)
County (Census)	Honolulu County — county, Hawaii · FIPS 15003

The deed vests at sale but is defeasible for 1 year — do not improve the property during redemption, as improvement costs are not reimbursed on redemption. Counties sell only in person, the upset (minimum) price covers taxes, penalty, interest and costs, and each county's dates and parcel lists must be checked separately.

The process, step by step

1 · The list publishes. Hawaii sales run on this rhythm: Each of the four counties holds its own sale, typically annually in spring — e.g. Honolulu and Maui sales in May, Hawaii County sales in January and June in some years The county's sale list — the parcels actually being sold — is published ahead of the sale by the county office that runs it, and in many Hawaii counties also through the state's sale channels (Mostly in-person county auctions (e.g. Honolulu at Mission Memorial Auditorium, Maui at Kihei Community Center); County finance / real property tax division pages; no online bidding for county tax sales verified).

2 · Register and fund — before sale day. Registration and bidder deposits are handled by the county or its sale platform and close before the sale, in most counties the day before. The amount and ID requirements are set in the county's own sale notice, not in state law — confirm them on the current published notice before you rely on them.

3 · Research every parcel. Compare the taxes owed against assessed value and recorded sales, check property type and occupancy signals, and price in the state's redemption rule above: it decides whether your money comes back with the statutory return, or your path runs to the property itself.

4 · Bid the number you wrote down. Set your max bid (deeds) or floor rate (liens) from the research, before the sale opens. The state's return is paid on the tax obligation — not on whatever extra a bidding war adds on top of it.

5 · After the sale. Owners redeem inside the window above; lists change as they do. Track the parcels you care about, because a watched property redeeming or withdrawing is information you want before — not after — you wire a deposit for the next sale.

What Honolulu County publishes — and our verification status

Under Hawaii law, the county publishes its sale list as a public record ahead of each sale. What we have not done is guess at this county's exact channel: which office posts the list, in what format, and on what posting schedule are being verified county by county against the county's own publications. Until that check is complete, this page carries the verified state rules — not a live Honolulu County sale list — and says so plainly.

Coverage status: Honolulu County — verification in progress

Alerts activate county by county as each county's published list is verified. Join the Hawaii watchlist and you are first in line when Honolulu County alerts switch on — plus you get the free Hawaii sale calendar and law guide today.

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County facts (name, state, FIPS 15003) from the US Census Bureau county list; state rules verified 2026-10-30 — sources on the Hawaii law page. Educational only, not investment advice.