Guide to Property Assessors Offices - Hawaii

Use Hawaii property assessments to make strong real estate investments
By Michelle Cramer

Hawaii assessors offices maintain a lot of information regarding Hawaii land values and property information. Their records contain information about ownership changes for properties, keep up to date maps of property lines and maintain property descriptions. Hawaii assessors also analyze trends in property sales prices, the costs of constructing a new property and the average expense for renting property.

You can use the information obtained by property assessors in Hawaii to aid in your real estate investments. Consider the following when dealing with property assessors in Hawaii:

1. Hawaii property assessments show the market trends for properties in your area.

2. Research potential investment properties using databases provided by property assessors offices - Hawaii.

3. Determine that the assessment of Hawaii property values you invest in are accurate.

Action Steps

The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Access records from property assessors offices in Hawaii When you have interest in investing in a property, it's important that you research that property's history before making a purchase. You need to know how many times there were changes in ownership, any construction done on the property and changes in that Hawaii property value over the years.

I recommend: Visit the Hawaii property assessor's office website for the county your property of interest is found and use the search engine provided to find out the history of the property. All 4 of the property assessors offices -- Honolulu County, Hawaii County, Kauai County and Maui County -- provide a real property search on their website.

Verify that your Hawaii property assessments are accurate You may find occasion for concern that your local Hawaii property assessors calculated an inaccurate value for your investment property. Hire an appraiser to provide a second opinion on your Hawaii property value. This will help you to be certain in your belief that the assessor's office made an inaccurate assessment, and provide you with proof of a more accurate value for your property. If you discover an error in your Hawaii land value, file an appeal with your local property assessors offices in Hawaii.

I recommend: Visit AppraiserUSA.com to find appraisers in Hawaii by county or city. If you feel an appeal to your Hawaii property value is necessary, Kauai County's website provides information on the appeal process.

Be aware of the regulations regarding Hawaii property assessment Knowing the laws and regulations regarding property assessment in Hawaii can help you to understand what determines your property taxes each year and where the money you pay goes. There are a number of tax exemptions that can save you money on your property taxes as well.

I recommend: The County of Honolulu provides further information about property taxes on their website. Click on the Frequently Asked Questions or Real Property Tax Ordinance for a better understanding of the tax process. Visit the Tax Foundation of Hawaii's website for information on taxes from previous years.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

Always pay the property tax on your real estate investments determined by Hawaii property assessment by the deadline each year to avoid penalties. Doing so also helps the credit score for your business.