How to Read a Hawaii Condo's Documents

When you buy a condominium in Hawaii, you're buying into an Association of Apartment Owners (AOAO) — and the seller is required to provide a packet of association documents during your due diligence. Reviewing that packet carefully is one of the most important parts of the process. These documents tell you whether the building is financially stable, how well it's managed, and whether there are problems — deferred maintenance, pending litigation, or looming special assessments — that could become your problem the moment you take ownership.

The Documents You'll Receive — and What Each One Tells You

1. 1RR105c — Project Information Form — A Hawaii Association of REALTORS disclosure form completed by the building's managing agent. It's the single most revealing document in the packet: it reports how many units are delinquent on maintenance fees, how many are in foreclosure, whether the project carries adequate insurance, whether it sits in a flood or tsunami zone, and — critically — whether there is any pending litigation or planned special assessment. Check the date it was prepared.
2. 2Reserve study — A projection of major future expenditures — roof, elevators, plumbing, parking, painting — and whether the association is setting aside enough money to cover them. Look at the remaining useful life of big-ticket items and whether reserves are adequately funded. An underfunded reserve is a leading indicator of a future special assessment.
3. 3Budget & financial statements — The association's operating budget and most recent financials. These show whether the AOAO is living within its means or running a deficit, how much sits in reserves, and how high delinquency rates are. Healthy finances mean fewer surprises; strained finances mean higher risk of fee increases and assessments.
4. 4Board & meeting minutes — Minutes from the annual owners' meeting and the board of directors. These are where you find the real story: recurring maintenance complaints, projects under discussion, owner disputes, and assessments being debated before they're ever formally levied. Read them for what's coming, not just what's happened.
5. 5House rules — The day-to-day rules of living in the building: pets, noise, move-in and move-out procedures, parking, use of common areas and amenities, and any rental restrictions. These govern your daily experience as a resident or your options as an investor.
6. 6Declaration & bylaws — The governing legal framework of the condominium, recorded under Hawaii Revised Statutes Chapter 514B. The declaration defines what you own, what counts as common and limited common elements, and what the association must maintain versus what falls to you. The bylaws set out how the association is governed — voting rights, board elections, and decision-making.

Review all of this within your inspection period, while you still have the contractual room to ask questions or step back. Your Realtor will help you obtain and interpret the packet. Pay particular attention in older buildings: many Oahu properties built in the 1970s and 80s are now reaching the age where spalling, plumbing, and elevator work comes due — projects that can cost hundreds of thousands to several million dollars and land on owners as special assessments.