Laurel Bay, SC

Unincorporated Beaufort County (mainland areas outside Hilton Head Island, Bluffton, the City of Beaufort, and Port Royal) regulates accessory dwelling units through the form-based Beaufort County Community Development Code (CDC). The CDC treats ADUs as a 'Carriage House' building type under Article 5, Division 5.1 (Building Type Standards), allowed in most form-based transect zones (T3, T4, T5) subject to size, design and parking standards. Daufuskie Island has its own appendix (Appendix B) capping auxiliary dwelling units at 800 square feet. A zoning permit is required before placement, plus a building permit for any structure 200 square feet or larger, and an accessory dwelling cannot be placed on a lot without a principal structure.

Beaufort County (the unincorporated areas surrounding the cities of Beaufort, Bluffton, Hilton Head Island, Hardeeville, Port Royal, and Yemassee) regulates short-term rentals through Section 4.1.360 of the Beaufort County Community Development Code (CDC). Operators in unincorporated Beaufort County must obtain (1) a Short-Term Rental Property (STRP) Zoning Permit from the Planning & Zoning Department (Multi Government Center, 100 Ribaut Road), (2) a Beaufort County Business License from Business Services, (3) registration with SCDOR for State Sales Tax and State Accommodations Tax under S.C. Code Title 12, Chapter 36, and (4) compliance with the County's Fire Safety Standards Form and Short-Term Rental Safety Checklist. STRP zoning permits must be renewed annually on or before April 1 of each year. Hilton Head Island, the dominant STR market in the county, operates a separate and stricter Town-level permit regime; this entry covers unincorporated Beaufort County only.

Beaufort County is a low-country coastal South Carolina jurisdiction in the Sea Islands and ACE Basin region, regulated under Chapter 78 (Floods) of the Beaufort County Code of Ordinances and a separate Flood Damage Prevention Ordinance enforced by the County Building Codes Department. The County participates in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) and adopts FEMA Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs) for the unincorporated area that became effective in 2021. Construction in mapped Special Flood Hazard Areas along the Atlantic, Port Royal Sound, Broad River, and tidal creeks must meet elevation, foundation, and Elevation Certificate requirements appropriate to a hurricane-prone barrier-island county.