Honolulu County Hawaii Property Tax Information
DONT BE A FOOL AND GIVE AWAY MONEY! FILE FOR YOUR HAWAII HOMEOWNERS TAX EXEMPTION NOW! DEADLINE TO FILE IS SEP 30, 2007.
By: David Kucic, 1SG, USA (Ret)
Hawaii Home Buying and Selling Team
I am going to skip all of the fluff and get straight down to the points I want to make about Honolulu County Hawaii property taxes.
As I give these figures and examples I want to make two points clear. First of all, I am in the real estate business and am not an accountant. This information that I am sharing is what I have gathered via telephone calls, emails, classes and web searching in order to seek out answers and better educate myself and my clients.
Secondly, if you have more specific questions, call your tax advisor or accountant!
There are Hawaii homeowners tax exemptions available to some homeowners in Hawaii as long as you meet certain criteria (see below). The basic home exemption for homeowners under the age of 65 is $80,000 for tax year 2007-2008. For homeowners 65 years and older, the exemption is $120,000.
The next 3 paragraphs are copied directly from the Honolulu County Government Website:
1) You own and occupy the property as your principal home ("real property owned and
occupied as the owner's principal home" means occupancy of a home in the city with the intent to reside in the city. Intent to reside in the city may be evidenced by, but not limited to, the following indicia: occupancy of a home in the city for more than 270 calendar days of a calendar year; registering to vote in the city; being stationed in the city under military orders of the United States; and filing of an income tax return as a resident of the State of Hawaii, with a reported address in the city).
2) Your ownership is recorded at the Bureau of Conveyances, State Department of Land
and Natural Resources, in Honolulu on or before September 30 preceding the tax year for which you claim the exemption. In the case of a lease, the document must indicate that the lessee has a lease for residential purposes for a term of five years or more and will pay all property taxes.
3) You file a claim for home exemption (Form BFS-RP-P3)
www.honolulu.gov/rpa/forms.htm with the Real Property Assessment Division on or before September 30 preceding the tax year for which you claim the exemption.
When are taxes due? Payment dates are August 20th for the first installment and February 20th for the second installment. In most cases, you will not have to make the payment yourself. Each month when you make your mortgage payment, part of the payment goes into your "escrow account". The money remains in the escrow account until the property taxes are due and then the money is sent on your behalf to pay the tax bill. The same is normally done with your property insurance. BE SURE TO CHECK WITH YOUR MORTGAGE COMPANY TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU ARE SET UP TO HAVE YOUR TAXES AND INSURANCE PAID!
How much are the Real Property Tax Rates in Honolulu County, Oahu, Hawaii?
For fiscal year July 1, 2007 to June 30, 2008 the tax rate in Honolulu County are listed as follows:
County Class Per $1,000 Net
Taxable Property
HONOLULU
A 1 Improved Residential $ 3.29
B 8 Unimproved Residential 5.70
C 2 Apartment 3.29
D 7 Hotel and Resort 12.40
E 3 Commercial 12.40
F 4 Industrial 12.40
G 5 Agricultural 5.70
H 6 Preservation 5.70
I 9 Public Service 0.00
J 0 Vacant Agricultural 8.50
Okay, here is the math for you now. I will only deal with the categories A 1 and C 2. You see that the tax rate per $1,000 for each of those properties is based on $3.29.
So first, if you don't know the assessed property value for your home (or the home you are going to buy through Team Kucic Real Estate), visit this website to find out the tax information for the property: Honolulu County Tax Assessor. Make sure you get the TOTAL assessed value for the land and the improvement on the land.
Take the total assessed value and subtract the exemption if one has been claimed (see above paragraph dealing with homeowners tax exemptions).
For example, lets say the total assessed value for the land and the improvement was $700,000. Lets also say that the homeowners qualified for an $80,000 exemption. The adjusted taxable value is $620,000 which is equal to 620 at a rate of "per $1,000". Multiply the 620 by the tax rate from the chart above ($3.29) in order to get the tax. In this case it would equal $2,039.80 for the year or approximately $1,019.90 due on August 20th and $1,019.90 due on February 20th.
Does it pay to file for the home exemption? Let see. Take the exact same example above except we will not subtract the $80,000 exemption. This would make the taxes $2,303. So by filing the exemption, you save yourself $263.20 for fiscal year 2007-2008.
If it seems overwhelming don't worry about it. Team Kucic has ALWAYS assisted clients in filing their Homeowners Tax Exemption Paperwork immediately after closing on their homes to lessen the burden on you as you move into your new home.
Learn more about Hawaii real estate on the most comprehensive real estate website on Oahu at www.davidkucic.com
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