Short term rentals
Charleston Area Short Term Rental Rules for Home Buyers
By Blake Heron, Realtor, Heron Homes CHS with eXp Realty.
If renting your home by the night is part of the plan, the town matters more than the house. Here is where each Charleston area town stood in October 2026, with a link to the official source for each one.
Blake's read on the market. The biggest mistake I see is assuming a rental permit comes with the house. In most of these towns it does not. Permits and licenses generally belong to the owner, several towns cap them with waitlists, and Folly Beach is in the middle of a court fight and a moratorium. Rules here changed in 2025 and 2026 and will keep changing, so I confirm the current rule with the town for the exact home before you make an offer.
Rules by town, October 2026
Summaries of official town and city sources. Always confirm the current rule with the town before you buy.
City of Charleston, including Daniel Island
Outside a small commercial overlay in Cannonborough and Elliotborough, a short term rental must be the owner’s primary residence at the 4% tax rate, lived in at least 183 days a year, with a city permit. Investor whole home rentals are not allowed in residential areas. A 2026 proposal to change guest limits was deferred in July.
Mount Pleasant
A town permit and business license are required. Permits are capped town wide, renewals get first priority and any remaining permits go to the waitlist, so a buyer should plan on applying and waiting.
Folly Beach
Licenses do not transfer. A buyer who makes the home a primary residence at 4% can get an owner occupied license, but the city says a buyer at 6% cannot get a new investor license at this time. A judge struck down the investor cap in August 2026, the city appealed, and council approved a moratorium on new licenses, with renewals and waitlist offers exempt, so this is changing.
Isle of Palms
A short term rental business license is required, and voters rejected a cap on licenses in 2023. Overnight guests are limited to two per bedroom plus two, up to 12, and single family homes must be rented in their entirety.
Sullivan’s Island
Short term rentals are not allowed. The town’s rental form sets a minimum of 28 consecutive nights.
Kiawah Island
A town license is required, licenses do not transfer, and the number of licenses in single family areas is capped, with a limited number left in October 2026.
Seabrook Island
Since May 2025 the town caps short term rentals, with a separate limit inside its rental overlay district and outside it, and guests are limited to two per bedroom plus two.
North Charleston
A city permit is required, with a cap of 60 permits per council district, and several districts are full, so a buyer should confirm the district before counting on a permit.
Town of James Island
In residential zones, short term rentals must be owner occupied.
Summerville
In residential zones, the owner must live in the home at least 183 days a year and be on site when guests are there.
What to know before you buy for rental income
The permit stays with the owner
In most of these towns a permit or license does not transfer when the home sells. Plan on applying yourself, and check whether there is a cap or waitlist first.
Taxes change with rentals
A home rented more than 72 days a year can lose the 4% owner occupied tax rate, and rentals of 30 days or less owe lodging taxes. See the property tax guide for how 4% and 6% work.
HOA rules can be stricter
Many neighborhoods and condo associations limit rentals on top of town rules. I pull the covenants and rental rules for every home before you make an offer.
Buying a home to rent
Short term, long term or a mix, every town and neighborhood here plays by different rules. I will walk you through the current rules for your exact home and the numbers that come with them. Call or text Blake Heron at 843-718-6338. Heron Homes CHS, eXp Realty.
Explore nearby areas
Summaries of the official town and city sources linked above, checked October 2026, with Folly Beach court and moratorium news and the City of Charleston guest limit deferral from Live 5 News reports in 2026, and the Isle of Palms 2023 vote from news reports. Short term rental rules change often, and this is general information, not legal advice. Confirm with the town before you buy.
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