Charleston, SC Short-Term Rentals: Repeat Violator Strikes (2026)

Charleston's three STR permit categories each carry their own applicant eligibility test, and the last item in each list is a look-back at the applicant's enforcement history. Sec. 1(a)(11), governing Category 1 permits for properties inside the Old and Historic District, states that the applicant for the STR use shall not be someone who has had an STR Permit revoked within the previous twenty-four (24) months. Sec. 2(a)(8), for Category 2 peninsula properties outside the historic district and the Short Term Rental Overlay Zone, and Sec.

3(a)(7), for Category 3 properties off the peninsula, impose the identical 24-month bar. The disqualification attaches to the applicant, not just the address, so an owner who lost a permit at one Charleston property cannot simply apply for a new STR permit at a different property until the two-year window has passed. Revocation itself flows from the Chapter's violation and penalty section, Sec. 54-208(e), which lets the zoning administrator revoke an STR or bed-and-breakfast permit for any violation, including operating without complying with the chapter, expanding an STR without a new permit, or advertising without the required permit number displayed.

Because the look-back runs from the revocation date rather than the underlying violation, an owner facing possible revocation has a direct stake in contesting it through the city's appeal process, since a revocation starts the 24-month clock immediately.