Short-term rentals in North Charleston, explained properly.

Sec. 4-21(b)(1) limits overnight guests in the STR unit to two persons per bedroom, up to eight persons (including children) maximum, and requires the maximum to be posted in the STR and included in advertising. The City's permit page says the occupancy shown on the issued permit should be added to all listings.

Sec. 4-21(b)(2) requires a minimum of one off-street or allocated parking space for each two bedrooms rented within the STR unit(s), and parking in the quantities required for all other uses on the property (Sec. 4-10(a)) must be documented before an STR permit is issued. Sec. 4-21(b)(3) says no vehicle associated with the property (whether owned by a guest, the owner or another tenant) is to be street parked during an STR stay, other than on-street parking units formally allocated to the property or associated with an STR in the street parking area shown in Sec. 4-11.1(b). The City's permit page also mentions a maximum of four spaces allocated for the STR unit; that figure is not in Sec. 4-21 and the code is followed here.

Sec. 4-21(b)(6) says the hosting of events, such as weddings, parties or similar gatherings, is prohibited. The City's permit page asks applicants to agree not to host such events.

Sec. 4-21(b)(9) requires the STR's registration number to be posted in the STR and included in advertising. Sec. 4-21(b)(4) allows, other than wall or window signage not to exceed one square foot, no exterior signs advertising the STR use. The City's page says the permit should be posted in the unit, the City-issued STR decal posted on or near the door guests use, and the permit number and maximum occupancy added to all listings.

Sec. 4-21(b)(12) requires the property owner to identify a contact, with twenty-four-hour cellphone availability, who is available to be on site within thirty minutes of notice. Failure of the point of contact to arrive within thirty minutes of a city call for assistance constitutes a violation of the ordinance.

The City's permit page lists the steps. Applicants create an account on the portal and upload proof of ownership, HOA/POA approval if applicable, the local contact, a site plan showing parking, and photos of the parking spaces, building exterior, guest entrance and interior. Building and fire inspections are required before approval and look at fire protection, egress, electric and heating components. The business license is issued only after preliminary approval by the Planning and Zoning Department, and applicants should wait for that email before applying. The page says application fees are non-refundable. The portal itself was not read.

Sec. 4-21(b)(11) says the registration is renewed annually by February 28. The City's permit page says a Short Term Rental Permit must be renewed annually by February 28 and the associated business license by April 30. A renewal application submitted by February 28 keeps a permitted unit in good standing eligible for renewal even where the district cap is exceeded (Sec. 4-21(f)(3)).

Sec. 4-21(i) lists the permit fees as $350.00 for an initial permit and $250.00 for a renewal permit, in addition to required business license fees and accommodations taxes. The City's permit page repeats $350 for the application fee and $250 for renewals. The fees appear in the code section as amended through Ord. No. 2025-010 (2-27-2025), but the fetched text does not show which ordinance set them or when they took effect, and no separate fee schedule was read, so the fees are marked for review. Business license fees were not read.

Sec. 4-21(b)(10) requires that all required taxes are paid, and Sec. 4-21(i) says the permit fees are in addition to accommodations taxes. The City's Accommodations Tax Grants page says grants are provided through revenue the City receives for its share of the 2% lodging tax levied by the State, and are awarded to non-profit organizations. That page is about how grant revenue is used; it is not a tax-rate or collection page. The City's municipal accommodations fee provisions (Chapter 10.5, Article IV) and any county local accommodations tax were not read. The state tax rules are on the South Carolina page; this page adds no combined total.

Sec. 4-21(b)(8) allows three notices of violation of the city's zoning, noise or refuse ordinance, issued by the zoning department, in the previous one-year period. Issuance of the fourth such notice renders all previously issued STR permitting and licensing null and void. Review of such determinations, if sought, is performed by the board of zoning appeals under Sec. 7-6 of the Zoning Ordinance. The City's permit page repeats the three-notice rule.

Sec. 4-21(g) makes the property owner(s), as permit holder(s), responsible for compliance and says citations for noncompliance may be written to the owner(s), property manager(s), emergency contact(s), STR guest(s) and other persons occupying an STR unit, whether permitted or not permitted. Penalty amounts were not in the sections read; enforcement inquiries go to the City's Planning and Zoning contact on the permit page.

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.