Hawaii Revised Statutes

Haw. Rev. Stat. § 651-92 (2026)

  Real property exempt

✓ current as of July 2026
Find cases: SyfertCases citing this section HI-LEGcapitol.hawaii.gov JustiaTitle on Justia CornellLII Search CasesGoogle Scholar

     §651-92  Real property exempt.  (a)  Real property shall be exempt from attachment or execution as follows:

     (1)  An interest in one parcel of real property in the State of Hawaii, of a fair market value not exceeding $30,000, owned by the defendant who is either the head of a family or an individual sixty-five years of age or older.

     (2)  An interest in one parcel of real property in the State of Hawaii, of a fair market value not exceeding $20,000, owned by the defendant who is a person.

The fair market value of the interest exempted in paragraph (1) or (2) shall be determined by appraisal and shall be an interest which is over and above all liens and encumbrances on the real property recorded prior to the lien under which attachment or execution is to be made.  Not more than one exemption shall be claimed on any one parcel of real property even though more than one person residing on such real property may otherwise be entitled to an exemption.

     Any claim of exemption under this section made before May 27, 1976, shall be deemed to be amended on May 27, 1976, by increasing the exemption to the amount permitted by this section on May 27, 1976, to the extent that such increase does not impair or defeat the right of any creditor who has executed upon the real property prior to May 27, 1976.

     (b)  No exemption authorized under this section shall apply to process arising from:

     (1)  A lien as provided by section 507-42;

     (2)  A lien or security interest created by a mortgage, security agreement, or other security instrument;

     (3)  A tax lien in the name of the federal or state government;

     (4)  An improvement district lien of any county of the State; or

     (5)  A lien or encumbrance recorded against the real property prior to the acquisition of interest in and commencement of residence on such real property. [L 1976, c 136, pt of §1; am L 1978, c 46, §7]

 

Revision Note

 

  Pursuant to §23G-15, in:

  (1) Subsection (a)(1), commas added after "Hawaii" and "$30,000";

  (2) Subsection (a)(2), commas added after "Hawaii" and "$20,000"; and

  (3) Subsection (a), "paragraphs (1)" changed to "paragraph (1)".

 

Case Notes

 

  Compared to prior law.  61 H. 590, 607 P.2d 411 (1980).

 

 

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 8 cases (1 in the last 5 years), 1980–2023 · leading case: In Re Rasmussen, 349 B.R. 747 (Bankr. M.D. Fla. 2006).
In Re Rasmussen, 349 B.R. 747 (Bankr. M.D. Fla. 2006). “gregate $125,000 in value in— (A) real or personal property that the debtor or a dependent of the debtor uses as a residence; (2) (B) For purposes of paragraph (1), any amount of such interest does not include any interest transferred from a debtor's previous principal residence…”
State v. Nelson, 398 P.3d 712 (Haw. 2017). “bail bond by a deposit, with the clerk of the appropriate court, of: (1) Cash or credit or debit card authorization equal to the amount of the bail; (2) The unencumbered interest in personal property which as a marked value of not less than the amount of the bail bond; or (3)…”
In re Pace, 521 B.R. 124 (Bankr. N.D. Miss. 2014). “All statutory references are to Title 11, United States Code (the "Code” or the "Bankruptcy Code”), unless otherwise noted.”
Schuler v. Wallace, 607 P.2d 411 (Haw. 1980). · cites it 3× “is HRS § 651-92 (1979 Supp.). 2 It is to be noted that under present § 651-92 (1979 Supp.”
Castro v. Melchor, 366 P.3d 1058 (Haw. App. 2016). · cites it 2× “2015) (a person as defined in the Permitted Transfers in Trust Act includes only natural persons), HRS § 651-91(1)(4) (1993) (as used in HRS §§ 651-92 to 651-96 (1993), a person means any individual under sixty-five years of age other than the head of a family).”
State v. Nelson. Consol. with Nos. CAAP-12-0001041, CAAP-12-0001042, CAAP-12-0001043, CAAP-12-0001044, CAAP-12-0001045, CAAP-12-0001046, & CAAP-12-0001047. (Haw. 2017). · cites it 2× “bail bond by a deposit, with the clerk of the appropriate court, of: (1) Cash or credit or debit card authorization equal to the amount of the bail; (2) The unencumbered interest in personal property which as a marked value of not less than the amount of the bail bond; or (3)…”
Cecil Daniel Davis (Bankr. D. Haw. 2023). · cites it 2× “Davis could exempt only $30,000, Haw. Rev. Stat. § 651-92 (a)(1). A debtor can claim the California homestead exemption in property located in another state.”
In re Tevaga, 35 B.R. 157 (Bankr. D. Haw. 1983). · cites it 5× “The real property exemption statute in Hawaii provides as follows: § 651-92 Real property exempt, (a) Real property shall be exempt from attachment or execution as follows: (1) An interest in one parcel of real property in the State of Hawaii of a fair market value not exceeding…”
— Haw. Rev. Stat. § 651-92(a)(2) — 2 cases
In Re Rasmussen, 349 B.R. 747 (Bankr. M.D. Fla. 2006). “gregate $125,000 in value in— (A) real or personal property that the debtor or a dependent of the debtor uses as a residence; (2) (B) For purposes of paragraph (1), any amount of such interest does not include any interest transferred from a debtor's previous principal residence…”
In re Pace, 521 B.R. 124 (Bankr. N.D. Miss. 2014). “All statutory references are to Title 11, United States Code (the "Code” or the "Bankruptcy Code”), unless otherwise noted.”
— Haw. Rev. Stat. § 651-92(a)(l) — 1 case
In re Tevaga, 35 B.R. 157 (Bankr. D. Haw. 1983). “The real property exemption statute in Hawaii provides as follows: § 651-92 Real property exempt, (a) Real property shall be exempt from attachment or execution as follows: (1) An interest in one parcel of real property in the State of Hawaii of a fair market value not exceeding…”
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.