Recording a Deed or Document in Honolulu County, HI

Honolulu County (population 1,016,508) records real-property documents through the Bureau of Conveyances (State of Hawaii, Dept. of Land and Natural Resources) — Hawaii has no county recorder; all real property (deeds/memoranda) for all islands is recorded at this single state office, serving Honolulu County (Oahu). Below is what it costs and how to submit. Filing a memorandum of contract? We record it with the county for $199, notary included — no trip to the courthouse.

Honolulu County recorder — contact

Recording office: Bureau of Conveyances (State of Hawaii, Dept. of Land and Natural Resources) — Hawaii has no county recorder; all real property (deeds/memoranda) for all islands is recorded at this single state office, serving Honolulu County (Oahu)
Mailing address: Bureau of Conveyances, P.O. Box 2867, Honolulu, HI 96803 (physical: Kalanimoku Building, 1151 Punchbowl St. #120, Honolulu, HI 96813)
Phone: (808) 587-0147
Website: dlnr.hawaii.gov/boc
Checks payable to: Bureau of Conveyances
Electronic recording: Available via Simplifile, CSC

Honolulu County recording fees

First page / base fee: Regular System: $41 (1-50 pages); Land Court: $36 (1-50 pages), plus $50 Certificate of Title issuance fee if applicable
Additional pages: Regular System: $106 flat if 51+ pages (not per-page); Land Court: $101 flat if 51+ pages; Land Court additional memorandum on Certificate of Title: $5 each
Other fees: Conveyance tax applies separately (starts $0.10/$100 of value, up to $1.00/$100 for sales over $10M); certified copies $1/page

Counties change fees without notice. Check with the Bureau of Conveyances (State of Hawaii, Dept. of Land and Natural Resources) — Hawaii has no county recorder; all real property (deeds/memoranda) for all islands is recorded at this single state office, serving Honolulu County (Oahu) before you mail a check.

What Honolulu County requires

Page formatting: Original signatures required; no mandated font size (10-12pt typical) but must be legible enough to reproduce photographically/electronically; registrar may reject illegible documents
Cover sheet: No separate cover sheet form is mandated by statute, but HRS §502-31 requires the first page top 3.5 inches reserved for registrar recording stamps (left half) and registrar-of-conveyances info (right half), plus the next 1 inch reserved for return-to information (starting 1.5in from left margin, lines not exceeding 3.5in); first page must identify all grantor/grantee names and addresses, document type, and Tax Map Key (TMK) number
Submission & return: Recorded document mailed back via USPS to the return address specified on document
Hours & turnaround: Certified copies generally take 7-10 business days to process before mailing via USPS; standard recording turnaround not separately quoted

Can you e-record in Honolulu County?

Yes. Honolulu County accepts electronic recording through Simplifile, CSC, so a properly formatted document can be recorded the same or next business day without mailing paper.

How to record a document in Honolulu County, Hawaii

Prepare the document so it meets Honolulu County's formatting rules (above): legal description, grantee address, signature block, and the blank space the recorder reserves for its stamp.
Notarize it if the instrument requires acknowledgment. Most deeds and affidavits do.
Submit electronically through Simplifile, CSC, or by mail to Bureau of Conveyances (State of Hawaii, Dept. of Land and Natural Resources) — Hawaii has no county recorder; all real property (deeds/memoranda) for all islands is recorded at this single state office, serving Honolulu County (Oahu).
Pay the recording fee, payable to Bureau of Conveyances.
Receive the recorded instrument back with its book/page or instrument number as proof of record.

Looking up a Honolulu County property

Owner names, parcel numbers and legal descriptions for Honolulu County property are searchable at City and County of Honolulu Real Property Assessment Division (RPAD). A deed or memorandum needs the exact legal description, so pull it from there or from the last recorded deed.

Filing with Jurably in Hawaii

Hawaii isn't available quite yet — it's coming soon. See the states we file in.