South Carolina rental housing laws

What it would do: Requires eviction filings and records containing defendant personal information to be automatically removed from the public index and publicly accessible files five years after final disposition if no additional filings are recorded.

What it would do: Exempts transient lodging accommodations from tenant protections, allows campground owners to remove tenants violating quiet enjoyment rules, creates a procedure for property owners to request sheriff removal of unlawful occupants from residential dwellings, and establishes criminal penalties for unlawful occupancy with property damage, fraudulent property sales, and presenting false lease documents.

What it would do: Requires removal of eviction notices from public records if no Order of Eviction or Writ of Ejectment is filed within thirty days, and mandates removal of all eviction filings and records from public access six years after final disposition.

What it would do: Enacts the Family Protection Act, creating tax credits for working families, caregivers, veterans, and employers; establishing rental notice requirements and voluntary rent stability programs; creating an Office of Family Protection; and establishing caregiver support programs and prescription drug affordability initiatives.

What it would do: Allows a person to apply to magistrate court for expungement of their civil eviction file if they have had no additional evictions for at least five years within South Carolina since the last eviction. The court must grant expungement upon verification of this condition.

What it would do: Amends the grounds for residential eviction by extending the notice period for nonpayment of rent from five days to ten days after the date due, provided the written rental agreement specifies this in bold conspicuous type.

What it would do: Permits municipalities and counties to regulate or prohibit short-term rentals through ordinances; defines short-term rentals as residential dwellings rented for fewer than 29 consecutive days; expands sales tax on accommodations to include short-term rentals; changes vacation rental transfer timeline from 90 to 180 days.

What it would do: Requires landlords of multifamily dwellings with four or more units to install video monitoring, security, and fire alarm systems with professional monitoring service, and makes negligent landlords liable for tenant damages from third-party criminal activity.

What it would do: Prohibits municipalities, counties, and political subdivisions from enacting or enforcing ordinances that prohibit short-term residential rentals of fewer than 29 consecutive days. Violating subdivisions lose property assessment ratio collections and state aid distributions until repeal.

What it would do: Restricts residential rent increases: landlords cannot raise rent during the first year of tenancy, must provide 90 days' notice for other increases, and cannot increase rent more than 7 percent plus the consumer price index in any 12-month period, with exemptions for units with certificates of occupancy less than 15 years old or subsidized rentals.

What it would do: Prohibits landlords in South Carolina from requiring potential tenants to provide their credit score on a rental application or as a condition to a rental agreement.

What it would do: Requires landlords to disclose visible mold in rental units and maintain premises to prevent moisture and mold growth; allows tenants to terminate leases if mold is disclosed; requires landlords to remediate mold within five business days and provide temporary housing at no cost during remediation.

What it would do: Prohibits a landlord from taking photographs of a tenant's personal belongings while in the rental property without the tenant's express permission.

What it would do: Requires landlords of residential and multi-family properties to provide itemized invoices for application screening fees not exceeding seventy-five dollars, refund unused amounts, charge all prospective tenants the same fee, and provide written denial notices within twenty days stating reasons or providing screening reports.

What it would do: Amends Section 27-37-100 to allow judges to seal writs of ejectment so they do not become public records that negatively affect a tenant's credit worthiness.

What it would do: Exempts certain lodging accommodations from tenant protections, authorizes innkeepers and property owners to request law enforcement removal of unlawful occupants, and creates felonies for unlawful dwelling occupation with damage exceeding one thousand dollars, fraudulent property sales or rentals, and misdemeanor for presenting false lease documents.