Liens & ForeclosureHI
Can a Hawaii HOA Foreclose Over Dues?
By The HOARebel Team · June 2, 2026 · 2 min read
Unpaid assessments in Hawaii are not just a private debt — for condominiums, the Condominium Property Act gives the association a lien with a slice that can rank ahead of a first mortgage. For planned communities, the recorded declaration usually controls. For your specific situation, a licensed Hawaii attorney is the right resource. This is general information, not legal advice.
Condominiums: the lien and its priority — HRS § 514B-146
For condominiums, § 514B-146 makes unpaid common-expense assessments "a lien on the unit with priority over all other liens," except liens for real property taxes and government assessments. On top of that general priority, Hawaii adds a six-month super-priority over a first mortgage: the association's lien is prior to the first mortgage for up to six months of unpaid regular common assessments — "not interest, late fees, attorney's fees, or fines" — and that priority applies "regardless of when that mortgage was recorded."
The limit matters: only the regular assessments get the six-month priority. Fines and fees, even if unpaid, do not ride along in that priority slice.
How a condo lien is foreclosed
The association may foreclose "judicially or nonjudicially … whether or not the association's governing documents contain power of sale language." There is an important exception, though: under § 514B-146, an association may not use the nonjudicial / power-of-sale route to foreclose a lien that "arises solely from fines, penalties, legal fees, or late fees" — the foreclosure of such a lien "shall be filed in court pursuant to part IA of chapter 667." So the faster nonjudicial process is available for unpaid regular assessments, but a fines-only lien has to go through a court. After a foreclosure, the law also caps a related special assessment at "the total amount of unpaid regular monthly common assessments that were assessed during the six months immediately preceding" the completed sale. Because the process can move nonjudicially and on fixed timelines, the steps and dates matter. A licensed Hawaii attorney can explain the timeline in a specific case.
Planned communities: the declaration controls
For a planned community under Chapter 421J, there is no statutory six-month super-priority lien like the condominium one. Whether — and how — the association can lien and foreclose depends largely on the recorded declaration. Reading the declaration is the only way to know what applies, and a licensed Hawaii attorney can do that with you.
What people generally do
In a Hawaii assessment-debt situation, a few points commonly matter:
- The association's records and a payoff figure show what is owed — and how much is regular assessments versus fines and fees.
- Disputed fines and regular assessments are treated separately, since only the assessments get the six-month priority.
- The foreclosure notices and their deadlines matter, since Hawaii allows a nonjudicial sale for unpaid assessments (a fines-only lien, by contrast, must go through court).
- Mediation and the state's other dispute-resolution options exist before a sale.
- A licensed Hawaii attorney is the resource early, while options remain open.