SC · Researched October 7, 2026
South Carolina sets no deposit cap but requires an itemized refund within 30 days, with triple damages for wrongful withholding. Nonpayment evictions can start 5 days after rent is due if the lease contains the statutory notice language, and cities cannot adopt rent control. Managing rentals for others requires a South Carolina property manager or broker license, and trust funds from rentals must be deposited within 48 hours.
Anyone who, for compensation, negotiates rentals or leases, lists rentals, or advertises those services for others must be licensed. South Carolina has a separate property manager license, and each firm office is run by a broker-in-charge or property manager-in-charge who controls the trust account.
Unlicensed owners renting their own property; attorneys acting for a client-owner; government agencies and employees; court-appointed receivers and trustees.
Trust funds go in a demand deposit account titled with the word "trust" or "escrow" at an insured institution authorized in South Carolina. Rental trust funds must be deposited within 48 hours (cash on receipt, checks after the lease is signed), excluding weekends and bank holidays, and may not be commingled beyond a small amount to cover bank charges.
If you rent more than four adjoining units and use different deposit standards for different tenants, post the standards or give them to each applicant before signing. Otherwise the extra deposit cannot be used for damage deductions.
Send an itemized written notice of deductions with any refund. The tenant must give a forwarding address in writing. Wrongful withholding exposes you to three times the amount withheld plus attorney fees.
The landlord-tenant act does not require interest or a separate account. When the property is sold, the seller stays liable unless the deposit is transferred to the buyer and the tenant is notified in writing. Licensed managers must hold deposits in a trust account (see licensing).
The Residential Landlord and Tenant Act does not regulate late fees. State them clearly in the lease and keep them reasonable.
No South Carolina statute regulates rental application fees.
There is no rent increase notice statute. Month-to-month terms practically change with the 30-day notice used to end the tenancy. Increases above fair market value after a tenant complaint can be retaliation.
Local governments may not enact or enforce ordinances regulating rent on private residential or commercial rentals.
If the lease contains the statutory "IF YOU DO NOT PAY YOUR RENT ON TIME" paragraph (or substantially equivalent language), no separate notice is needed before filing, even after the lease converts to month-to-month. Otherwise one written notice per lease term satisfies the rule.
The notice must describe the breach and state the lease will end at least 14 days after receipt if not fixed. If the fix takes longer, a tenant who starts within 14 days and keeps working in good faith keeps the lease.
Either side may end the tenancy with written notice before the termination date. A willful holdover can cost the tenant up to three months' rent or twice actual damages, plus attorney fees.
File in magistrate court. If the tenant does not respond in 10 days, the magistrate issues a writ of ejectment. After a verdict for the landlord, the writ issues within 5 days. The officer gives occupants 24 hours to leave before removal. A licensed broker-in-charge or property manager may complete the eviction forms for the owner.
If the tenant shut off utilities and is absent after a rent default, abandonment is immediate. Property worth more than $500 must go through the ejectment process. After an eviction, belongings placed on the street may be removed by local officials after 48 hours, and the eviction notice must say so.
Exceptions: emergencies; regularly scheduled services between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m. if the lease says so conspicuously and you announce yourself; and tenant-requested services between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. after announcing. Tenants may not change locks without permission.
Maintain supplied electrical, gas, plumbing, heating and cooling systems and appliances, provide running and hot water and reasonable heat, and keep common areas safe. Appliances in the unit are presumed landlord-supplied unless the lease excludes them. Single-family landlords may shift some duties to the tenant in writing, in good faith.
Give this in writing at or before move-in and keep it current. A manager who fails to disclose becomes the landlord's agent for notices and duties. Post deposit standards if required (see deposit limit). Federal lead paint disclosure applies to pre-1978 housing.
South Carolina's fair housing law covers race, color, religion, sex, familial status, national origin and disability (handicap).
Renamed salespersons as associates, rewrote the duties of brokers-in-charge and property managers-in-charge, and made licensees responsible for work produced with AI tools. Most of the act took effect on signing; the new team rules start 36 months after ratification.
Walk through how these rules fit your renewal, collections and maintenance process with Julian. 20 minutes.
With Julian Calvo, who works with property management companies at LeadSimple.
Compare with other states: security deposit limit, deposit return deadline, deposit interest and holding rules, late fees, application and screening fees, rent increase notice, rent control, notice for unpaid rent, notice for lease violations, ending a month-to-month, eviction timeline, abandoned property, landlord entry, repairs and habitability, required disclosures, state fair housing protections.