Condominiums are a different type of ownership created in the 1960s of real property unlike subdivisions, which have been in existence for centuries. Hawaii is a leader in the development of condominium laws and has been used as a model by other states. The Condominium Property Regime (CPR) was known as the Horizontal Property Regime (HPR) in the early 1960s. Condominiums projects were high-rise buildings or town houses or apartment buildings that were converted to condos and sold to individual buyers. Within the last 15 years, single-family homes on one lot were condominiumized because the property could not be subdivided or the owner chose to do a condo project rather than subdivide.

What makes a condominium form of ownership different from all others forms of ownership in real property? A condo project is a special form of ownership of real property. To create a condo project in Hawaii, the requirements of the Condominium Property Act, Chapter 514A, Hawaii Revised Statutes (HRS) must be complied with. The condo project must also comply with all of the county requirements for zoning and building code.