South Carolina Bans Local Rent Control

S.C. Code Ann. § 27-39-60 provides that "No county or municipal corporation may enact, maintain, or enforce any ordinance or resolution which would regulate in any way the amount of rent to be charged for privately owned, single family, or multiple unit residential, or commercial rental property." The statute does not bar a county or municipal corporation from regulating rent on property it owns, or from entering agreements with private persons that set rent. South Carolina imposes no statewide cap on rent or rent increases, so for ordinary private rentals the rent amount and any increase are governed by the lease terms, not by any rent-control law. A 2025-2026 "South Carolina Rent Control Act" bill (H.3346) was introduced but has not become law.

Any local rent-control ordinance is void as preempted by S.C. Code Ann. § 27-39-60 and unenforceable against landlords. Because there is no statewide rent cap, a landlord setting or raising rent on a private rental faces no rent-control penalty; the only constraints are the lease terms.