STR rules · verified 1mo ago
Short-term rental rules in Kershaw County, SC
Kershaw County (Camden seat, heart of the South Carolina horse country and home of the Carolina Cup steeplechase at Springdale Race Course — a 450-acre thoroughbred training facility) does not maintain a stand-alone county short-term rental ordinance; STR activity defaults to South Carolina state law plus any City of Camden municipal rules. South Carolina imposes a 2% state accommodations tax (S.C. Code §12-36-920) plus the 6% general state sales tax on STR lodging of less than 90 continuous days, and counties may levy local accommodations tax up to 3% (cumulative cap per §6-1-540). South Carolina has no statewide STR preemption (S. 442 of 2025-2026 session proposed but not enacted). The Carolina Cup (held annually in late March / early April since 1930) and the steeplechase fall calendar drive intense 1-2 day STR demand spikes in Camden's residential horse-country market.
What's behind the sign-in
- Registration fees — initial + annual renewal cost, per permit type
- Permit caps + waitlists — exact cap values, current waitlist counts
- Owner-occupancy rules — days/year requirement, permit-class splits
- Zoning carve-outs — which districts allow / disallow STR
- Tax stack — TOT, hotel, county + state layers
- Stay limits — min/max nightly, max nights/year
- Operational requirements — parking, insurance, fire inspection, neighbor notice
- Penalties — per-night fines, revocation thresholds
- City-specific gotchas — HOA carve-outs, pending legislation, recent court rulings
- Refresh on demand — re-run the agentic pipeline against the city's current ordinance
Frequently asked
Are short-term rentals legal in Kershaw County, SC?
Kershaw County is currently unknown for short-term rentals. We couldn't extract a clear status from the city's published ordinance — most often because the city has no STR-specific rules and state defaults apply. For the actual fees, caps, owner-occupancy rules, and city-specific gotchas, sign in.
Do I need a permit to run an Airbnb in Kershaw County?
Almost certainly yes — almost every U.S. city now requires a short-term rental permit, vacation rental permit, or transient lodging permit before you can legally list. The specifics for Kershaw County (cost, renewal cycle, required documents) are behind sign-in. You can also read the source ordinance directly: https://library.municode.com/sc/kershaw_county/codes/code_of_ordinances.
What happens if I rent without a permit in Kershaw County?
Most cities charge per-night fines (a few hundred to a few thousand dollars per violation), escalating to cease-and-desist letters and platform delisting on repeat. Airbnb and Vrbo now share permit-validation feeds with most major cities, so unpermitted listings get blocked at the platform level. Sign in to see the specific penalty schedule for Kershaw County.
How current is this data for Kershaw County?
This record was verified 1mo ago against the city's published ordinance (.gov or the city's official municipal-code publisher). Cached cities re-verify on a cadence — daily for cities under active legislation, weekly otherwise. Signed-in users can hit Refresh on any city to force a fresh pull. If you're underwriting a deal, always confirm against the city's code-enforcement office before closing.
Can my HOA or condo association ban STRs even if Kershaw County allows them?
Yes. City permits authorize you under municipal law, but your HOA, condo association, or co-op board sets contractual rules that override the city for your unit. Many HOAs adopted blanket STR bans between 2018 and 2024 in response to neighbor complaints. Read the CC&Rs, bylaws, and rental addendums before you buy with an STR plan — the city saying yes does not mean your building says yes.