Short-term rentals in Columbia, explained properly.

Fees are paid when the application is submitted and are non-refundable: a $50 application fee, plus a permit registration fee of $100 for an owner-occupied short-term rental or $250 per dwelling unit for one that is not owner-occupied. Renewal applications and fees submitted after July 1 incur a $100 late fee. The City's permit page describes these as yearly fees and also lists an annual zoning fee of $10.

The owner or local representative offering a short-term rental must hold a City business license and follow the business license and revenue collection laws of the City, Richland County and the State. The City says the business license must be obtained before the STR permit, and that a business license alone is not enough. The license amount for a short-term rental is not stated here; ask the City's Business License Division.

Before receiving a permit, applicants must get zoning approval from Planning & Development and a valid City business license, and only then submit the final application through the City's online application platform. The application lists the address, number of bedrooms and the owner and any local representative. The owner certifies that the home meets fire and building codes; the City may require a safety inspection. The City issues the permit within 30 days of a complete application if all requirements are met.

Permits are issued or renewed only to an owner or responsible local representative whose home or business office is within 45 miles of the rental. An owner living farther away must name a responsible local representative who is authorized to accept legal papers for the owner. The owner, or the representative, must be willing to take phone calls about the rental at all times.

For the permit fee, a home is owner-occupied when it is lawfully classified as owner-occupied by Richland County and receives the 4% special assessment ratio; any other home used or advertised for transient guests is non-owner-occupied. The zoning exemption uses the same test, worded as classification by the County Assessor. Chapter 5 names Richland County only, so owners in the Lexington County part of the city should ask the City how their home is classified.

Permits run from July 1 to June 30. Renewal applications are due by July 1 each year, with a $100 late fee after that date, and a permit is lost if the renewal is not submitted by July 31.

Permits are non-transferable. If ownership changes, the new owner must apply for and obtain a new permit before operating any part of the home as a short-term rental. A new responsible local representative also needs a new permit application.

Occupancy may not exceed two persons per bedroom plus two more per dwelling unit, excluding minor children. The limit applies 24 hours a day and counts everyone in the home at any given time, not only overnight guests.

The guest who makes the booking must be at least 21 years old. The online City Code (Supplement 35) still shows 18; Ordinance 2025-064, adopted September 16, 2025 and not yet added to the online code, raised it to 21.

A short-term rental may not be made available for less than one night.

In residential districts, two parking spaces per dwelling unit must be made available and designated on the property, and all short-term rental parking must be off-street or on-site. Guests must be told the parking plan and the maximum number of vehicles. The police chief may adjust the requirement when lot conditions make it impossible.

Every online advertisement must include the current City STR permit number in the description.

The owner or local representative must notify each household immediately next to the rental, and any neighborhood association, that the home is a short-term rental, giving the address and a phone number for someone able to answer calls and deal with issues directly. This information is provided with the permit application and kept up to date.

The owner or representative must make sure every guest in the rental is listed on the booking. Hosts must screen bookings from guests who live within 30 miles; such a booking may be cancelled, or the host must verify that the stay is a genuine overnight stay and not a party or event.

Owners and their representatives are responsible for guests' conduct. Violations include renting without a permit, breaking any rule of the article, and repeated parties or neighborhood disturbances. Points are assessed on the permit: 1 for a first offense, 5 for each further offense within 12 months, and 10 for a serious offense. Each point carries a $100 fee. Fifteen or more points within 12 months starts revocation proceedings, and the police chief may revoke a permit immediately for extreme infractions or major events. After a revocation the home cannot get a new permit for six months, and a home whose permit has been revoked more than once cannot get one again.

An owner who does not obtain a permit or follow the rules within 15 days after a notice of noncompliance faces an administrative penalty of $500 per offense, and each day of violation is a separate offense. The online City Code still shows the earlier wording ($500, without the per-day language).

The South Carolina Department of Revenue's ST-575 chart lists two accommodations rates for Columbia because the city is in two counties: 9% in Richland County (the 7% state rate plus the Transportation Tax and Local Option tax collected for Richland County) and 8% in Lexington County (the 7% state rate plus the School District tax). The chart does not include local taxes collected directly by counties or cities.

The City charges a 3% tourism development fee on rent for sleeping accommodations furnished to transients, including residences. Stays supplied to the same person for 30 continuous days are not counted. The fee is collected from guests and paid to the City (not to the state) by the 20th of each month with the City's return; a return is still due in months with no rentals. Late payment carries a 5% penalty per month, up to 100%.

South Carolina charges a 7% tax on rent for rooms, lodgings or sleeping accommodations furnished to transients, including rentals of a residence (S.C. Code § 12-36-920(A)). The South Carolina Department of Revenue (SCDOR) describes this as 5% sales tax plus 2% accommodations tax, together with any local sales and use taxes that SCDOR collects for counties. SCDOR's ST-575 chart lists the total accommodations rate for each county and city.

SCDOR applies accommodations tax to sleeping accommodations of any kind rented to guests for less than 90 consecutive days, including rooms or spaces in your own home and condos. Rentals to the same person for 90 continuous days are not taxed. A home with six or fewer bedrooms is exempt only when the owner or operator lives on the same premises at the time and does not use a rental agency or online travel company to rent the rooms.

SCDOR says owners who book short-term rentals directly must hold a Retail License to file and pay accommodations tax, with one license for each rental location. If you rent only through a property management or online travel company that takes the reservation and the payment, that company remits the tax for the full booking and you do not need a Retail License. A license is also not required if you rent a room or space for no more than one week each calendar quarter, but the tax must still be filed and paid once a year.

Accommodations tax returns and payments must be filed electronically (SCDOR's MyDORWAY or approved software), by the 20th of the month following the end of the filing period.

Under the Local Accommodations Tax Act, a city or county may add a local accommodations tax of up to 3% on stays taxed under S.C. Code § 12-36-920(A). A county may not charge more than 1.5% inside a city or town without that municipality's consent. SCDOR notes that many local accommodations taxes are not administered by SCDOR, so owners must contact the city or county where the rental is located to report them.