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Kau · Big Island

Kau

Kau is the island’s southern district, from Volcano’s edge through Pahala and Naalehu to the large Ocean View subdivision.

Mostly houses1 condo complex

About Kau

About 96 single-family homes sold here in the first nine months of 2026, with monthly medians between about $215,000 and $428,000, the lowest of any district on the island. Many sales are in Hawaiian Ocean View Estates.

What homes sell for

Property typeSales, Jan–Sep 2026Median or range
Single-family homesAbout 95$215K–$428K
Condos2About $248KFew sales, so treat this as a rough guide

Source: Title Guaranty monthly Hawaii Island residential sales reports, January–September 2026.

Can you rent to visitors?

HousesResort and commercial zones onlyHawaii County’s 2018 short-term vacation rental law (Ordinance 18-114, from Bill 108) allows unhosted rentals of 30 days or less in resort, hotel and commercial zones. In residential and agricultural zones, a home can be rented that way only if it holds a nonconforming use certificate from the county’s 2019 registration. In 2024 the Hawaii Supreme Court held that farm dwellings in the state agricultural district can’t be used as short-term vacation rentals, and upheld the county’s rule limiting certificates on agricultural land to single-family homes on lots that existed before June 4, 1976. Rentals where the owner lives on site fall under separate rules.
CondosVaries by buildingIn our directory: 1 reported allowed. Most condo complexes in our directory are in resort-zoned areas where visitor rentals are reported allowed; the rest are long-term only. Confirm the building’s zoning and house rules before you buy. See the Big Island condo directory.

Land, title and what to check

Large Kau subdivisions such as Ocean View often rely on catchment water and owner-maintained roads. Confirm water, road maintenance and utility access before you buy.

Hazards, water and access

Ocean View sits downslope of Mauna Loa’s southwest rift zone. Check an address’s lava-flow hazard zone, which drives insurance cost and availability.

Check any address for its FEMA flood zone, tsunami evacuation zone, sea level rise exposure, lava zone and wildfire risk with our Hawaii flood zone lookup.

Public schools

The public high school for most addresses here is Kau High and Pahala Elementary School. Assignments go by address, so confirm with the Hawaii State Department of Education.

Condo complexes in Kau

Units, year built and visitor rental status from our Big Island condo directory.

Colony One at Sea MountainKau · Punaluu76 · 1976Reported allowed

Sources: Title Guaranty Hawaii Island sales reports; Hawaii Supreme Court, SCAP-22-0000371 (2024); USGS lava-flow hazard zones; Civil Beat: lava zone insurance (Oct 2024); DHHL awards 200 Panaewa lots (July 2026). Checked October 2026. This guide sticks to public facts about prices, rules, land and hazards. It doesn’t rate neighborhoods or describe who lives in them.