Beaufort County, SC Short-Term Rentals: Short-Term Rental Permits (2026)

360 was adopted because County Council found that short-term rentals raise traffic, noise, trash, parking, and safety concerns in residential neighborhoods, and it regulates every Short-Term Rental Property (STRP) in unincorporated Beaufort County. Once a STRP use is authorized through the applicable zoning process, an owner must obtain both a Short-Term Rental Property Permit and a business license before offering, advertising, or providing the property for short-term lodging; renting without that permit is not allowed. The permit must be renewed annually: the renewal application needs the fee plus a notarized affidavit from the owner confirming the STRP use and prior application information have not changed and that the property still complies with the current version of the article.

The county mails renewal notices by the end of January each year, but the permit terminates every April 1 regardless of whether the owner receives that notice. Every STRP must post a tenant notice in each lodging room listing the owner's contact information, the STRP permit number, trash collection details, and fire and emergency evacuation routes, and every advertisement for the property must include the county-issued permit number. Application submittal requirements include the owners' contact information, a signed application, a restricted covenants affidavit, the property's address and parcel ID, the dwelling unit type being rented, and the maximum number of bedrooms.