Columbia, SC Home Business: Home Daycare (2026)

Under Sec. 3(d)(5) of the Unified Development Ordinance, a family child care home is permitted by right as an accessory use to a single-family dwelling in Columbia, but only if it meets seven conditions. The operator may not care for more than six children at a time, and the facility must hold a Licensed Family Child Care Home license from the State of South Carolina. Because the code treats the daycare as a type of home occupation, it must also comply with the general home occupation standards in Sec.

3(d)(6): the operator must be a full-time resident, no more than two non-resident employees may work on site, and the use is capped at 25 percent of the dwelling's floor area or 1,000 square feet, whichever is smaller. Operators must set aside a loading and unloading area adjacent to the home, outside the public right-of-way, arranged so children never cross a vehicular travel way to enter or exit the facility. Outdoor play space must total at least 500 square feet, sit to the side or rear of the buildings, and be completely enclosed by a fence at least four feet tall, kept safely away from parking, loading, or service areas.

m. Where the play area borders a residential lot line, it must be screened by a six-foot solid fence or wall, and any play equipment must sit at least 20 feet back from that lot line. The Zoning Administrator reviews these standards as part of the accessory-use approval; there is no separate special exception hearing for a family child care home unless a related activity, such as a salon, would trigger one.