Average Closing Costs in Hawaii in 2026: What Buyers and Sellers Actually Pay

What Closing Costs Look Like Across Hawaii

The UHERO Hawaii Housing Factbook puts the statewide single-family median at $950,000 for the most recently reported period. County medians tell a starker story: Maui came in at $1,175,000; Honolulu at $1,110,000; Kauai at $1,100,000; and Hawaii County at $465,000. The most recent mid-year read from Hawaii Life put the Honolulu single-family median at $1,162,000 and Maui at $1,300,000, down 7% year over year, while the Big Island tracked around $590,000.

Those prices set the context for closing costs. On a typical purchase, buyers in the islands pay somewhere between 2 and 3% of the purchase price in closing costs, not counting the down payment. Sellers carry a lighter absolute load (primarily the conveyance tax, recording, and title), but the state transfer tax can add up at higher price points, particularly for non-owner-occupant sales.

There is no single Hawaii closing cost figure that holds across all four major counties. What you pay depends on the purchase price, the loan type you choose, which county the property sits in, and whether you qualify as an owner-occupant for conveyance tax purposes. Every one of those variables moves the number.

Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey is the standard reference for current rate context. The worked examples below use illustrative round figures, not live quoted rates; the actual per-diem interest at your closing depends on the rate your lender locks for you.

Buyer Closing Costs Broken Down

Buyer costs at a Hawaii closing generally fall into three categories: lender-side charges, third-party and government fees, and prepaids.

Lender-side charges include the origination fee (commonly 0.5 to 1% of the loan amount), underwriting fees, and any discount points the buyer elects to pay. These are negotiable and vary by lender.

Third-party and government fees are largely fixed. The Hawaii DLNR Bureau of Conveyances charges $41 per document for the Regular System (up to 50 pages), $106 for documents over 50 pages, and slightly less under the Land Court system ($36 and $101 respectively). A standard closing (one deed and one mortgage) runs $82 in Regular System recording fees. Title insurance is not state-rate-regulated in Hawaii, so premiums vary by underwriter, but the lender's policy is conventionally paid by the buyer. Escrow fees are typically split between buyer and seller, with each side paying around half of the total escrow charge.

Prepaids include homeowners insurance, prepaid interest for the days between closing and the end of the month, and the initial property tax reserve deposit. The size of that reserve depends on which county the property is in, as covered in detail in the section below on property tax prepaids.

One distinction that matters on Oahu is whether the property is fee-simple or leasehold. Leasehold condominiums are common in certain Honolulu neighborhoods, and while title insurance mechanics are the same, the buyer's lender will require a lender's policy covering the leasehold interest specifically. Some underwriters price that differently than fee-simple title.

Worked Example A: Honolulu Condo Buyer

To make the math concrete, consider an illustrative Honolulu condo purchase at $900,000 with 10% down and an FHA loan.

• Loan amount: $810,000

• FHA upfront MIP (1.75%): $810,000 x 0.0175 = $14,175, typically financed into the loan balance

• FHA annual MIP prepaid (2 months at 0.55%): $810,000 x 0.0055 / 12 x 2 = approximately $742

• Origination fee (illustrative 1%): $8,100

• Regular System recording (deed + mortgage): $82

• Per-diem interest (illustrative 7% on $810,000 / 365 x 15 days): approximately $2,332

• Property tax 3-month reserve (Honolulu owner-occupied $3.50/$1,000 on $780,000 net taxable value after $120,000 exemption): $780,000 x $3.50 / $1,000 / 4 = $683

Excluding the financed MIP, the illustrative buyer cash-at-closing adds up to roughly $14,000 to $18,000, approximately 1.6 to 2.0% of the purchase price before the down payment. That range shifts depending on lender fees, the exact escrow split, and insurance amounts.

The Hawaii Conveyance Tax: What Sellers Pay

Hawaii's conveyance tax, governed by HRS §247-2, is the state's signature closing-cost line item. It's a seller-paid transfer tax on the sale price, calculated through seven graduated brackets with two separate rate schedules depending on the buyer's occupancy status.

Owner-occupant rates (requires Form P-64A declaration):

Non-owner-occupant rates:

The tax applies to each bracket separately, using the same marginal-bracket logic as federal income tax. A property that closes at exactly $1,000,000 under the owner-occupant schedule is taxed at 0.10% on the first $600,000 and 0.20% on the remaining $400,000, for a total of $1,400.

The minimum tax is $1.00 per transaction regardless of price. The seller files Form P-64B for non-owner-occupant sales; owner-occupants use Form P-64A to declare their intended occupancy and access the lower rate schedule. Investors and vacation-property sellers pay the higher non-owner schedule, which at the upper brackets reaches 1.25%.

Worked Example B: Maui Seller, Investment Property

For a Maui investment-property sale at $1,300,000, the non-owner-occupant brackets stack as follows:

• $600,000 x 0.0015 = $900 (first bracket)

• $400,000 x 0.0025 = $1,000 (second bracket: $600,001 to $1,000,000)

• $300,000 x 0.0040 = $1,200 (third bracket: $1,000,001 to $1,300,000)

• Conveyance tax total: $3,100

Add in Regular System recording (deed only): $41. The seller conventionally pays the owner's title insurance policy; premiums aren't state-regulated in Hawaii, but market estimates typically fall in the range of 0.1 to 0.2% of the sale price; on a $1,300,000 transaction, that runs roughly $1,300 to $2,600. Half the escrow fee adds an estimated $750. Seller closing costs before commission: approximately $5,000 to $6,400, depending on the title premium and escrow terms. Real estate commission, typically 4 to 5% on Maui luxury transactions, is separate and adds significantly more.

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County Loan Limits and Their Closing-Cost Impact

FHFA's current conforming loan limit announcement classifies all five Hawaii counties as high-cost areas. The single-family conforming limits:

• Honolulu, Kauai, Hawaii County, and Kalawao: $1,249,125

• Maui: $1,299,500

• National baseline: $832,750

HUD's FHA loan limit announcement (HUD-NO-25-145) sets Hawaii's single-family ceiling at the statutory special-exception maximum of $1,873,675. Hawaii County (Hilo) is the exception: its 1-unit FHA limit sits at $517,500, reflecting lower Big Island home values. Honolulu and Maui FHA limits track higher.

What this means for closing costs: buyers who stay within the conforming limit avoid jumbo loan surcharges. Jumbo pricing typically adds 0.125 to 0.25% to the rate and may require additional reserves or documentation that add cost. With a statewide median of around $950,000, a substantial share of Hawaii purchases land within conforming range on Honolulu, Kauai, and Maui, meaning buyers there aren't automatically paying a jumbo premium on their lender fees.

On the FHA side, the Honolulu and Maui limits are high enough to accommodate most local purchase prices within the FHA program, which lets buyers bring as little as 3.5% down. The Big Island's lower FHA limit of $517,500 matters in practice: a buyer purchasing a Big Island home above that limit cannot use FHA and would need to qualify for a conventional or USDA loan instead.

Property Tax Prepaids: Four Islands, Four Rate Schedules

Hawaii property taxes are set at the county level, and the four major counties run meaningfully different rates. Buyers need to fund a tax reserve at closing (typically three months of taxes) based on the rate applicable to their property. The rate also differs based on whether the buyer will be owner-occupying the home.

Honolulu County (Oahu): The current owner-occupied residential rate is $3.50 per $1,000 of net taxable value. The homeowner exemption is $120,000 for buyers under age 65; $160,000 for buyers 65 and older. Filing deadline is September 30. Buyers who close before filing the exemption may initially be assessed at a higher non-homeowner rate; the exemption applies prospectively and doesn't go into effect until the filing is processed.

Kauai County: The current owner-occupied rate is $2.59 per $1,000, the lowest in the state. A $1,100,000 home assessed at roughly full value, with no homeowner exemption yet in place, would carry an annual tax of about $2,849.

Hawaii County (Big Island): The homeowner class rate is $5.95 per $1,000, notably higher than any other county. A buyer closing on a $500,000 Big Island home without the exemption yet in place should expect a 3-month tax reserve of approximately $744.

Maui County: Maui uses a tiered system with separate rates for owner-occupied versus non-owner-occupied properties, and higher rates at upper assessed-value thresholds for non-residents. Buyers should confirm which classification will apply at the time of closing.

The practical implication: for a 3-month tax reserve at closing, buyers in Hawaii County pay roughly 70% more per dollar of assessed value than buyers in Kauai. That difference shows up on the Loan Estimate and should be factored into total cash-to-close planning.

Loan-Type Variations: FHA, VA, USDA, and Conventional

The loan type a buyer selects shapes the structure of closing costs, not just the rate.

FHA loans require an upfront mortgage insurance premium of 1.75% of the loan amount. This is typically financed into the loan rather than paid in cash, but it does increase the total loan balance. Annual MIP continues for the life of the loan on loans with less than 10% down, at 0.55% of the balance for most borrowers at standard loan sizes. Hawaii's high-cost FHA limits (up to $1,873,675 for the special-exception ceiling) make FHA a viable option on Honolulu and Maui purchases in the $800,000 to $1,100,000 range, which is unusual relative to most of the country.

VA loans carry a funding fee in place of mortgage insurance. The fee structure is:

• Down payment under 5%: first use 2.15%, subsequent use 3.30%

• Down payment 5% to 9.99%: 1.50% for all

• Down payment 10% or more: 1.25% for all

Veterans receiving VA disability compensation, DIC surviving spouses, and qualifying Purple Heart recipients are exempt from the funding fee. Oahu has a large active-duty and veteran population, and the conforming limit of $1,249,125 means most Honolulu purchases fall within the VA program's no-down-payment range. A VA buyer at $1,000,000 with no down payment, first-time use, pays a funding fee of $21,500, which is significant but financeable into the loan.

USDA Section 502 loans are available in rural-eligible areas of the Big Island, Maui, and Kauai. Oahu's urban areas don't qualify. USDA Rural Development publishes current income limits by county; the most recent figures set the threshold at $119,850 for one-to-four person households and $158,250 for five-to-eight person households. The USDA upfront guarantee fee is 1% of the loan amount and may be financed; the annual fee is 0.35%. USDA offers zero-down financing, which means closing costs are the entire cash requirement at closing for eligible buyers.

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Conventional loans avoid FHA MIP entirely if the buyer puts 20% down. For buyers below 20%, private mortgage insurance (PMI) costs vary by lender and borrower profile but typically run 0.5 to 1.5% of the loan amount annually. PMI cancels automatically when equity reaches 78% of the original purchase price.

State Programs That Reduce Buyer Costs

The Hawaii Housing Finance and Development Corporation runs the Hale Kamaaina Mortgage Program, which offers below-market rates and an optional down payment assistance structure for qualifying first-time buyers.

Program terms, per HHFDC's program page: government loans (FHA, VA, USDA) carry a rate of 4.65%; conventional loans are offered at 4.95%. Compared to recent Freddie Mac PMMS survey readings, those program rates run at least 150 basis points below market on the government side, a meaningful monthly payment reduction. The optional DPA component is a 4% second mortgage at 1% simple annual interest, with no periodic payments required until the property is sold or refinanced. Borrowers must contribute a minimum of 5% from their own funds.

To qualify, borrowers must meet these conditions:

• First-time buyer (no ownership in the past three years)

• Hawaii resident with completed HUD-approved housing counseling

• Income within county and household-size limits

• Purchase price within program limits, which approach $1,000,000 in some Oahu areas

The program doesn't eliminate closing costs. What it does is reduce the monthly cost of ownership significantly, freeing up cash reserves that might otherwise go toward buying down the rate. To put it in perspective: at an illustrative market rate of 7% versus a program rate of 5% on an $800,000 loan, the monthly payment difference in principal and interest alone exceeds $900, cash that stays in the household each month rather than going to the lender.

The Seller's Full Cost Picture

Sellers in Hawaii often focus on real estate commission as their largest closing expense, and rightly so. But the costs outside of commission deserve their own review.

For an owner-occupant Honolulu seller closing at $1,000,000, conveyance tax under the lower schedule is $1,400. Recording the deed runs $41. The owner's title insurance policy, conventionally seller-paid in Hawaii, varies by underwriter, but market estimates suggest roughly $1,000 to $2,000 on a $1,000,000 transaction given unregulated premium variation. Half the escrow fee adds roughly $700. That brings the seller's non-commission closing cost total to approximately $3,100 to $4,100, or about 0.3 to 0.4% of the sale price. Commission on top of that, at a typical 5%, adds $50,000.

The story changes for investment properties. The non-owner-occupant conveyance tax schedule is meaningfully higher, and at sale prices in the $2,000,000 to $4,000,000 range (where Maui and Kauai have substantial inventory) the marginal rate hits 0.60% on the upper portion of the price. A $3,000,000 non-owner-occupant Maui sale carries a conveyance tax of approximately $15,900 versus $9,200 under the owner-occupant schedule, a $6,700 difference on the same transaction, depending solely on the buyer's Form P-64A declaration.

Sellers who purchased at values significantly below current market prices should also run a capital gains calculation before closing. Hawaii income tax applies to real property gains, and the combination of state and federal taxes can take a meaningful portion of the appreciation on investment property. That planning belongs with a tax professional, not a closing statement, but it belongs in the conversation before the seller signs a listing agreement.

The Bottom Line

Hawaii closing costs have more moving parts than almost any other state: a graduated conveyance tax with two occupancy-based rate schedules, county loan limits that protect most buyers from jumbo surcharges, four separate county property tax rate schedules, and a state DPA program that can meaningfully reduce the monthly cost of ownership for qualifying first-time buyers.

For buyers, the most important planning steps are knowing which county's property tax rate applies (it affects the prepaid reserve at closing), checking whether the loan amount falls within the conforming limit for that county (it determines whether jumbo pricing applies), and if eligible, confirming Hale Kamaaina program income and purchase-price limits before applying.

For sellers, the conveyance tax calculation is worth running early, particularly for investment properties, where the non-owner schedule can add several thousand dollars over the owner-occupant rate on the same sale price.

AmeriSave's programs, customer service, and speed are built around precisely this level of complexity. Borrowers who understand their numbers before they get to the table close more smoothly. AmeriSave loan officers work with Hawaii buyers on all four major islands and across every loan type: FHA, VA, USDA, and conventional. If you're planning a Hawaii purchase, working through estimated closing costs with AmeriSave before you get to the table is the step that prevents surprises on the Loan Estimate.