Waikiki
condos

From Locations Hawaii’s analysis of Oahu MLS sales for the 12 months through September 2026. With almost a year of inventory, Waikiki is a buyer’s market right now.

Waikiki condos at a glance

Nearly every home sold in Waikiki is a condo. The median sits below the Oahu condo median because Waikiki has so many small hotel studios and leasehold units, but the range is wide:

Within that, tenure and rental rights move the price more than square footage. A leasehold unit can sell for half of what the same floor plan sells for in fee simple, sometimes in the same building.

Fee simple or leasehold

With fee simple, you own the unit and your share of the land. With leasehold, you own the unit until the land lease runs out, then it typically goes back to the landowner, and you pay monthly lease rent on top of HOA dues.

Waikiki still has a lot of leasehold, much of it expiring in the 2030s. At Waikiki Sunset, leases run to about 2036 and the fee isn’t available. At Waikiki Beach Tower, leasehold units expire in 2039 and sell for around $500,000–$600,000, while fee simple units in the same building sell for over $1 million. Leasehold can work as a cash-flow play, but it gets harder to finance and resell as the expiration date gets closer.

On any leasehold unit, get the lease expiration date, the current lease rent, any scheduled renegotiation, and whether the fee interest can be bought.

Can you rent to visitors?

On Oahu, renting for less than 30 days is illegal outside the resort districts unless the property holds a nonconforming use certificate (NUC). Waikiki is the biggest resort district, but only part of it. Waikiki is split into two zoning precincts:

• Resort mixed-use precinct. Nightly rentals are allowed if the building’s house rules allow them. This covers most of Waikiki on the ocean side of Kuhio Avenue.
• Apartment precinct. Generally 90 days or more, unless the building operated as a hotel before the rules changed or the unit has its own NUC. Waikiki Banyan, Waikiki Sunset, Island Colony, Palms at Waikiki and Royal Garden are apartment-zoned buildings where visitor rentals are reported allowed.

House rules can be stricter than zoning. Some resort-zoned buildings set 30-day minimums, and hotel-branded buildings like Ka Lai and the Ritz-Carlton generally run rentals through the on-site operator. The city’s 2022 ordinance raised the residential minimum to 90 days, and a federal court blocked that change only for 30-to-89-day rentals that were already operating. If you’re buying for rental income, confirm the rules with the association and the Department of Planning and Permitting before you close.

Waikiki condo buildings

Every Waikiki building in our directory, grouped by whether visitors can rent there. Each name links to that building’s page.

Luxury and hotel-branded

Visitor rentals reported allowed

Long-term only (90+ days)

Not yet confirmed: Imperial Hawaii Resort and Royal Kuhio. “Reported allowed” means listings say visitor rentals are allowed; we confirm zoning and house rules before any purchase.

Browse the Oahu condo directory →Waikiki neighborhood guide →

The buildings buyers ask about most

Ilikai

The three-winged 1960s landmark at the Ala Moana end of Waikiki, across from the Ala Wai Yacht Harbor. It’s fee simple and resort-zoned, and one of the few truly oceanfront condos on Oahu’s south shore. Many units are in the hotel rental program; others have long-term residents. No deeded parking and no pets. HOA dues run roughly $700 to $1,800 a month by size. One-bedrooms have recently sold in the $650,000–$900,000 range; a 1,000 sq ft oceanfront two-bedroom closed at $1.6 million in December 2025.

Ka Lai Waikiki Beach (formerly Trump Tower)

A 38-story fee simple condo hotel on Saratoga Road facing Fort DeRussy Park, rebranded from Trump to Ka Lai in February 2024. Units run from studios to three-bedrooms. Owners can’t manage their own rentals; most units rent through the hotel operator. It suits buyers who want a hands-off luxury rental a block from the beach.

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Waikiki Beach

Two towers on Kalaimoku Street and Kuhio Avenue, finished in 2016 and 2018: Waikiki’s newest luxury condo hotel. One- to three-bedroom units, many with ocean views over Fort DeRussy. Expect roughly $1 million for smaller units and up to $4 million and more for high-floor three-bedrooms.

Allure Waikiki

A 35-story residential tower on Kalakaua Avenue near the Convention Center. Fee simple, with one- to three-bedroom units from just under 900 to over 1,400 square feet. No vacation rentals, so it suits buyers who want to live in Waikiki. Maintenance fees run about $1,000–$1,850 a month, and recent sales have been in the $890,000–$1.4 million range.

Waikiki Banyan and Waikiki Sunset

Big Diamond Head-end towers a couple of blocks from the beach, popular with investors because every unit can rent to visitors once it’s registered with the city. Both have a lot of leasehold, which keeps prices low: often $200,000–$600,000 for a one-bedroom. Check the lease expiration on any unit before you compare prices.

Monthly costs beyond the mortgage

• HOA fees. From about $300 a month for small Banyan units to $1,800 and more for large Ilikai and luxury units. Many Waikiki HOA fees include electricity, water and cable, so compare what’s covered, not just the number.
• Lease rent. Leasehold units only. It can be a few dollars a month or several hundred.
• Property tax. Honolulu taxes vacation-rental units at a higher rate class than owner-occupied homes.
• Rental taxes. If you rent short-term, you collect and pay Hawaii’s general excise tax, the state transient accommodations tax and Oahu’s own transient accommodations tax.
• Rental management. On-site hotel programs take a significant share of gross rental revenue.

What to check before you make an offer

1. Fee simple or leasehold, and if leasehold, the expiration date, lease rent and whether the fee is available.
2. The building’s zoning precinct, and whether visitor rentals are allowed under both zoning and house rules.
3. Whether the unit is in a hotel rental program, and that program’s terms.
4. The reserve study, recent fee increases and any special assessments. Many older Waikiki towers are paying for fire sprinkler retrofits and concrete repairs.
5. Whether the building is FHA or VA approved, if you’re financing.
6. Flood zone and tsunami evacuation zone. Most of Waikiki is low-lying. Check any address with our Hawaii flood zone lookup.
7. Parking. Many Waikiki units don’t come with a stall.

Questions buyers ask

What’s the cheapest way to own a condo in Waikiki?

A leasehold studio in an older condotel. Some have sold under $100,000. The catch is the lease: when it expires, the unit typically goes back to the landowner.

Can I Airbnb my Waikiki condo?

Only if it’s in the resort precinct, in a grandfathered condotel, or has its own NUC, and the building’s rules allow it. About half of Waikiki’s condo buildings don’t qualify. The tables above show which do.

Which Waikiki condos are oceanfront?

Very few. The Ilikai, on the yacht harbor and lagoon, and Waikiki Shore, on the beach at Fort DeRussy, are the best known. Most “ocean view” condos are across the street from the beach or a block or more back.

Are Waikiki condos a good investment?

It depends on the building more than the neighborhood. Resort-zoned fee simple units tend to hold value best. Leasehold units can cash-flow but lose value as the lease runs down. Long-term-only buildings trade like any other Honolulu condo. Run the numbers on the specific building, including HOA fees, assessments and rental taxes.

Sources: Locations Hawaii analysis of Oahu MLS sales, 12 months through September 2026; HiCentral MLS public listing and sales records; City and County of Honolulu Land Use Ordinance, Waikiki Special District, and Ordinance 22-7; our Oahu condo directory. Figures are approximate and change often. General information, not legal or tax advice.