Aiken County, SC Rental Property Rules: Repairs & Habitability (2026)

Article IV is enacted under South Carolina Code § 31-15-320 (§ 15-35) and lets the building official act whenever a dwelling is unfit due to '(a) dilapidation, (b) defects increasing the hazards of fire, accidents or other calamities, (c) lack of ventilation, light or sanitary facilities or (d) other conditions rendering such dwellings unsafe or unsanitary, dangerous or detrimental to the health, safety or morals' of residents (§ 15-37). Section 15-44 sets the fitness standard the official applies, finding a dwelling unfit if conditions are 'dangerous or injurious to the health, safety or morals of the occupants,' including defects that increase fire hazards, lack of adequate ventilation, light or sanitary facilities, dilapidation, disrepair, structural defects, uncleanliness, or breeding areas for insects or vermin.

A complaint from at least five county residents, or the official's own investigation, triggers a written notice and a hearing held ten to thirty days later (§ 15-39). If the dwelling is found unfit, the owner must repair it when the cost is fifty percent or less of the dwelling's value, or vacate and close it; if repair would exceed fifty percent of value, the order requires removal or demolition (§ 15-40). An owner who ignores the order lets the building official carry out the repair, closure, removal or demolition directly, post a 'not fit for human habitation' placard, and place a lien for the cost against the property, collectible like county taxes (§§ 15-41, 15-42).