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A Hawaii quitclaim deed is a property transfer without title warranties. Except where another law differs, the deed needs an acknowledgment to be recorded, under Haw. Rev. Stat. § 502-41. The deed suits relatives, divorcing spouses and owners placing a home in a trust. This page covers what the deed's first page shows, how it is signed and how it differs from a warranty deed.
Key facts
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A Hawaii quitclaim deed passes whatever interest the grantor holds in a property to the grantee, with no promise that the title is clear or complete. The grantor is the owner who gives up the interest, and the grantee is the person who receives it. A grantor who holds no interest passes nothing through the deed.
The deed describes the land by its legal description, the wording copied from the deed that gave the grantor title. The form also names the consideration, the amount paid for the transfer, or says that no money changed hands. A quitclaim deed is one of several deed forms, and it carries the fewest promises of them all.
A quitclaim deed fits transfers between people who trust each other and already know the title's history, so no warranty from the grantor is needed. Common uses include:
A quitclaim deed carries no title warranty, while a general warranty deed promises the grantee good title and a defense against earlier owners' claims. The table compares the two documents point by point.
| Point | Quitclaim deed | General warranty deed |
|---|---|---|
| Promise about the title | None | The grantor promises good title and defends it |
| What the grantee receives | Whatever interest the grantor holds | The described interest, backed by the grantor's promises |
| Who bears a hidden title defect | The grantee | The grantor, under the promises |
| Typical use | Family, divorce and trust transfers | Sales to a buyer paying full price |
A special warranty deed sits between the two: its promise covers only the years the grantor owned the property. A buyer paying a market price usually asks for a warranty deed, because a quitclaim deed leaves any title defect with the buyer.
A Hawaii quitclaim deed meets two recording sections of the Hawaii Revised Statutes: Haw. Rev. Stat. § 502-31 for the first page and the signatures, and Haw. Rev. Stat. § 502-41 for the acknowledgment. Haw. Rev. Stat. § 502-41 applies to any conveyance or other instrument offered for recording, so it covers a quitclaim deed like any other deed.
The first page of the deed identifies every grantor, every grantee with an address, the type of document and the tax map key number, if possible, under Haw. Rev. Stat. § 502-31. The page carries four items:
Haw. Rev. Stat. § 502-31 asks for these items "if possible", so the condition applies only where an item truly cannot be found. A deed that lacks one item never fills the gap with a guess.
The first page of the deed keeps its top three and one-half inches blank for recording information, under Haw. Rev. Stat. § 502-31. The left half of that space is for the assistant registrar and the right half is for the registrar of conveyances, under Haw. Rev. Stat. § 502-31. The deed's title and its first line of text start below that margin.
A deed offered for recording includes the original signature of each signer, under Haw. Rev. Stat. § 502-31. For every natural person signing in an individual capacity, the name is typewritten, stamped, legibly printed by hand or machine printed beneath the signature, under Haw. Rev. Stat. § 502-31(b).
A Hawaii quitclaim deed needs an acknowledgment endorsed on it, subjoined to it or attached to it before it can be recorded, except where another law provides otherwise, under Haw. Rev. Stat. § 502-41. Except where another law provides otherwise, the acknowledgment takes a form provided or authorized in section 502-42, 502-43 or 502-45, under Haw. Rev. Stat. § 502-41. Those three sections, or the Bureau of Conveyances, say who may take the acknowledgment.
This page cites only Haw. Rev. Stat. § 502-31 and Haw. Rev. Stat. § 502-41, and it gives no recording fee, conveyance tax form or witness count. The Bureau of Conveyances posts its current fees and lists the tax forms it expects with a deed. A call to the bureau before the signing appointment settles both questions.
A Hawaii quitclaim deed is signed and acknowledged before it is submitted, since Haw. Rev. Stat. § 502-41 requires the acknowledgment for recording, except where another law provides otherwise. The steps below run in that order.
The screenshots under each step show sample entries in blue, so each answer's place on the page is clear. The names, addresses, dates and other entries are examples only.
A quitclaim deed stands or falls on its details, so a last read against the current deed catches most errors before the signing appointment. Run through these points:
The tax map key number is the number that identifies the parcel, and the deed's first page shows it, if possible, under Haw. Rev. Stat. § 502-31. Copy it from the latest property tax bill or the current deed.
Haw. Rev. Stat. § 502-31 asks for the names, the grantees' addresses, the type of document and the tax map key number "if possible", so the condition covers only an item that cannot be found. Ask the Bureau of Conveyances before leaving any item blank.
The registrar makes an entire literal copy of the deed with its original signatures, under Haw. Rev. Stat. § 502-31. Ask the Bureau of Conveyances how it returns the signed original.
Yes: a quitclaim deed can name the owner and the spouse together as grantees, so both hold the interest the owner held. The deed then says how the two hold title together.
No: a quitclaim deed makes no promise about the title, so a lien or a competing claim stays with the grantee. A title search before signing shows what the grantor actually holds.
General information, not legal or tax advice.
