Lexington County, SC Sign Regulations: Garage Sale Signs (2026)
Key Facts
- Maximum size
- 12 square feet
- Maximum duration
- 7 consecutive days
- Removal deadline
- Within 24 hours after event
- Spacing limit
- 1 sign per 500 ft frontage
- Permit required
- No zoning permit needed
- Applies in
- Unincorporated Lexington County only
Summary
Lexington County classifies garage sale postings as Short-Term Information Signs under Zoning Ordinance Section 26.40(g). The sign cannot exceed 12 square feet, must sit on private property with the owner's permission, and can stay up no longer than 7 consecutive days. It has to come down within 24 hours after the sale ends, and only one sign is allowed per 500 feet of street frontage.
g.Short-Term Information Signs Short-term Information Signs, such as garage sale, lost and found pets, temporary directional signs for civic, religious, community, or cultural activities, and wedding and reception directions, are allowed provided they are located on private property with the property owner's permission. These signs shall not exceed 12 square feet in size, are limited to no more than 7 consecutive days, and must be removed within 24 hours after the completion of the event. There may be only one sign per 500 feet of street frontage and these signs do not have to be set back from road rights-of-way.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 20).
Full Breakdown
40 groups garage sale signs with lost-and-found-pet notices and directional signs for civic, religious, community, cultural, and wedding events under the label Short-Term Information Signs. All of them share the same three numeric caps: a 12-square-foot size ceiling, a 7-consecutive-day display window, and mandatory removal within 24 hours of the event's end. The sign must be placed on private property and the owner has to consent to it; there's no requirement that it be set back from a road right-of-way, unlike most other temporary signs in the chapter.
Frontage is rationed at one sign per 500 feet of street frontage, so a single lot can't be papered with multiple garage sale postings at once. 11, so no application or fee is needed before putting one out. 14 requires removal of any sign whose display area is more than 20 percent torn, faded, or missing for over 30 days. These rules apply only in unincorporated Lexington County; the Town of Lexington, Cayce, West Columbia, Irmo, and Chapin each administer their own separate sign codes.
Violations & Fines
A garage sale sign left up past 7 days, oversized, or placed in the right-of-way violates Zoning Ordinance Section 174.00, which lets the Zoning Administrator order compliance, revoke any related zoning permit, or have the sign physically removed and discarded from the right-of-way. Under Section 174.10, noncompliance is a misdemeanor punishable up to the maximum fine and jail term the magistrate's court can impose, and each day the sign stays up past the deadline counts as a separate offense.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a permit to put out a garage sale sign in Lexington County?
Does my garage sale sign need to be set back from the road?
How many garage sale signs can I put up at once?
What happens if I leave my garage sale sign up too long?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Lexington County
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