Does South Carolina have a real estate transfer tax?
Yes, though the statute calls it a fee. Title 12, Chapter 24 of the South Carolina Code imposes a deed recording fee on every deed that conveys realty, figured on the realty’s value. Section 12-24-10 sets the state fee at $1.30 for each $500 of value or fraction of $500, and §12-24-90 adds a county fee of $0.55 for each $500.
Together that is $1.85 per $500, or 0.37% of value. The county fee is set by state law at the same rate in all 46 counties, so the total is the same in Charleston, Greenville, Columbia or Myrtle Beach. There is no city transfer tax on top.
Deeds where the value is $100 or less are exempt. Everything else is figured in $500 steps, rounded up, so a $2,000,100 sale is 4,001 steps rather than 4,000.
Who pays the deed recording fee in South Carolina?
The seller. Section 12-24-20 says the fee is the liability of the grantor, jointly and severally if there are several, and the grantee is secondarily liable. If the seller doesn’t pay, the state can look to the buyer, which is why closing attorneys collect it from the seller’s proceeds before the deed goes to the register of deeds.
A few deeds flip that rule. For a master-in-equity deed, a deed from the federal government, the State or a political subdivision, and certain deeds from tax-exempt retirement plans, the grantee is liable and the grantor isn’t. A buyer at a foreclosure sale conducted by a master-in-equity therefore pays the fee.
The contract can shift the cost. A buyer who agrees to pay it is simply reimbursing the seller’s statutory liability.
How South Carolina defines value
This is where South Carolina differs from most states. Under §12-24-30, value is the consideration paid or to be paid in money or money’s worth. That includes other realty, personal property, stocks, bonds, partnership interests and other intangibles, the forgiveness or cancellation of a debt, the assumption of a debt and the surrender of any right. Non-cash consideration is valued at fair market value.
Transfers between an entity and its stockholder, partner or owner, and transfers to a trust or to a trust beneficiary, are valued at the realty’s fair market value no matter what the deed recites. Taxpayers may also elect to use fair market value, including the value set for property tax purposes.
The statute allows a deduction for a lien or encumbrance that existed on the land before the transfer and stays on it afterward. It also lists the assumption of a debt as part of value. On an ordinary sale where your loan is paid off at closing, neither matters and the fee runs on the full price. On a loan assumption, have your closing attorney confirm which rule controls before the affidavit is signed.
Swaps and partial-cash deals are where the definition bites. If you trade a building for another property, or take back stock or a partnership interest as part of the price, the fair market value of what you receive counts toward value. A seller who carries back a note is also covered, because value includes consideration still to be paid, so the note is part of the price the fee is figured on.
When and where the fee is paid
The fee is paid to the county clerk of court or register of deeds when the deed is recorded. Under §12-24-70, the clerk requires a signed affidavit showing the value, unless the clerk waives it. For an exempt deed, the affidavit states the reason for the exemption instead of the value.
Willfully filing a false affidavit is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of up to $1,000, up to a year in prison, or both. The state keeps $1.00 of each $1.30 for the general fund and sends 10 cents to the Heritage Land Trust Fund and 20 cents to the South Carolina Housing Trust Fund. The county’s $0.55 goes to its general fund.
Exemptions apartment owners should know
Section 12-24-40 lists 15 exemptions. These are the ones investors use most.
- Into an entity: a transfer to a corporation, partnership or trust in exchange for stock, a partnership interest or a beneficial interest, with no other consideration. The statute names those three entity types, so ask your closing attorney how your LLC is classified.
- Out of an entity: a transfer from the entity back to an owner is taxed, even if it goes to another corporation, except for certain family partnership and family trust distributions.
- Mergers: transfers in a statutory corporate merger or consolidation, or a partnership merger or consolidation.
- Foreclosure: a transfer of mortgaged realty to the mortgagee, by deed in lieu of foreclosure or by a deed in foreclosure proceedings.
- Corrective deeds: corrective or quitclaim deeds confirming title already held, with no consideration.
- Divorce: transfers where no gain or loss is recognized under IRC §1041.
- Agents: a transfer from an agent to a principal whose funds bought the property, with a notarized document filed.
Selling the LLC instead of the deed
South Carolina’s fee applies to deeds. Chapter 24 has no controlling-interest rule like Pennsylvania’s or Washington’s, so selling the membership interests in an LLC that owns a building doesn’t, by itself, trigger the fee when no deed is recorded.
At 0.37%, that is rarely a reason to sell an entity. Most buyers want the property by deed, with a new title policy, and don’t want to inherit an LLC’s past liabilities. It can make sense when a buyer already wants the entity for loan or license reasons.
Worked example: $2M and $5M South Carolina apartment sales
A 32-unit building in Greenville sells for $2,000,000 and the seller pays off the loan at closing. The value is 4,000 steps of $500. The state fee is 4,000 × $1.30 = $5,200 and the county fee is 4,000 × $0.55 = $2,200, for $7,400.
An 80-unit building in North Charleston at $5,000,000 is 10,000 steps: $13,000 state plus $5,500 county, or $18,500. Push the Greenville price to $2,000,100 and the fee becomes 4,001 × $1.85, or $7,401.85.
| Sale price | State fee $1.30 | County fee $0.55 | Total | Share of price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $2,000,000 | $5,200 | $2,200 | $7,400 | 0.37% |
| $5,000,000 | $13,000 | $5,500 | $18,500 | 0.37% |
South Carolina compared with North Carolina and Georgia
South Carolina charges almost twice North Carolina’s rate. North Carolina’s excise tax is $1 per $500, paid by the transferor before the deed is recorded, or $4,000 on a $2,000,000 sale. Georgia’s transfer tax is $1 for the first $1,000 and 10 cents for each $100 after that, about 0.1%, or $2,000 on the same sale.
None of the three is large next to the Northeast. Pennsylvania charges 2% in most places, and Philadelphia 4.578%. For an owner trading a Charleston building for one in Charlotte or Savannah, the South Carolina fee on the way out will usually be the largest transfer tax in the exchange.
| State | Rate | Tax on a $2,000,000 sale |
|---|---|---|
| South Carolina | $1.85 per $500 (0.37%) | $7,400 |
| North Carolina | $1 per $500 (0.2%) | $4,000 |
| Georgia | $1 per $1,000 after the first $1,000 (0.1%) | $2,000 |
How the recording fee fits into your total cost of selling
On most South Carolina sales the deed recording fee is a modest closing cost. The tax that moves your net is income tax on the gain. Federal tax applies to depreciation recapture at up to 25% and to long-term capital gain at up to 20%, plus the 3.8% net investment income tax for many sellers, and South Carolina taxes the gain through its income tax.
The fee you pay is a selling expense that lowers the amount realized, so keep the settlement statement. A 1031 exchange defers income tax, but it doesn’t exempt the deed. Section 12-24-40 has no exchange exemption, so the relinquished sale pays $1.85 per $500 like any other.
Selling your South Carolina apartment building to Skyline
Skyline Capital Investments buys apartment buildings with five or more units across South Carolina, including Charleston, Columbia, Greenville, Spartanburg, Rock Hill and the Grand Strand. We buy directly, can offer seller-carry terms, and work within 1031 exchange deadlines.
Send the property address and unit count through the form on this page or call (469) 660-2977. We typically respond within 48 hours. The deed recording fee is handled in the purchase agreement and settlement statement like other closing costs, and we’ll show you the net figure before you sign.
