Property taxes
Horry County property taxes:
the 4% vs 6% rule.
By Devin Day, Operations Officer & licensed MLO · Reviewed by Timmy Fredrick Nash, Broker-in-Charge
Live in the house: one of the lowest tax bills on the East Coast. Rent it or vacation in it: three to four times more. Here is exactly how it works, with a calculator.
The direct answer
How South Carolina's 4% and 6% property tax rates work
Every home in Horry County falls into one of two classes. Your legal residence, the home you own and live in, is assessed at 4 percent of its value. Everything else, second homes, vacation condos, rentals, investment property, is assessed at 6 percent. Those are the official names in state law, and there is no separate "second home rate": 6 percent is simply what you pay when the home is not your legal residence.
The ratio is only half the story. Legal residences are also fully exempt from the school operating tax, the single biggest line on a Horry County bill at 109.1 mills for 2025. Six percent properties pay all of it. Stack the two rules and the real gap is not 1.5 times. It is roughly 3.3 times in unincorporated Horry County and about 4.3 times inside the city of Myrtle Beach.
Real numbers for a $400,000 house, tax year 2025:
| Location | 4% legal residence | 6% second home / rental |
|---|---|---|
| City of Myrtle Beach | about $1,430 | about $6,110 |
| Unincorporated Horry County | about $1,470 | about $4,820 |
Myrtle Beach's 4 percent figure includes the city's Tourism Development Fee credit at the 2025 level; the city cut that credit for 2026 bills, so city legal-residence bills tick up slightly. All figures are estimates from certified 2025 millage, before the 65-plus Homestead Exemption.
Free calculator
Horry County property tax calculator
Pick the location and how you will use the home. The estimate uses the county's certified tax year 2025 millage, the Act 388 school exemption, the Myrtle Beach city credit, and the Homestead Exemption.
Estimated annual bill
$1,470
Estimate only, from tax year 2025 certified millage. It excludes small special districts, the $89 unincorporated stormwater fee, and any millage changes after 2025. The county's own estimator and your closing attorney give the official number. We run this exact math, with the correct district millage, inside every buyer and investor analysis we prepare.
Getting the 4%
Applying for the 4% legal residence rate in Horry County
Move into a home you own and do nothing, and Horry County bills you at 6 percent. The 4 percent legal residence rate takes an application with the county Assessor, and approval turns on proving the home is genuinely your primary residence: Planning to rent the home short-term instead? Start with the short-term rental rules by city.
- ✓SC driver's license or ID for every owner-occupant, and their spouse.
- ✓SC vehicle registration showing the property address.
- ✓Redacted tax returns, the first pages of your most recent federal 1040 and SC return.
- ✓One per household, nationwide. You and your spouse get one 4 percent residence between you, and you certify under penalty of perjury that you claim no other.
- ✓The 72-day rental rule. Rent the home more than 72 days in a calendar year and the 4 percent is gone. Fourteen days or fewer and the rental income is federal income tax free on top.
The legal window runs through January 15 of the year after the tax year, but the county asks for applications by May 31 so your October bill prints at 4 percent from the start. File once and it stays until something changes; you have six months to report a change like moving out or renting it. Relocating here? Getting the license, registration, and this application done in the right order is part of our relocation checklist.
The reset
Why property taxes go up the year after you buy
Here is the sequence that surprises almost every new owner. Your first October bill is still calculated from the seller's assessment class and the seller's taxable value. Then, the following year, up to three resets land at once. The taxable value resets to roughly what you paid, because a sale is an "assessable transfer of interest." The ratio flips to 6 percent if the home is not your legal residence. And with the 6 percent comes the full school operating tax. A bill that read $1,500 at closing becomes $5,000 or more twelve months later, and if your mortgage escrow was set from the old bill, the shortage gets collected from you on top. Inherited homes get the same reset when they leave the 4 percent class; details in our guide to selling an inherited house.
Investors get one partial break: the 25 percent ATI exemption. If the property was already taxed at 6 percent before you bought it, you can knock 25 percent off the new taxable value, with limits, by filing with the Assessor before January 31 of the first year you claim it. It is not automatic either. We flag it on every eligible purchase.
Our clients do not get the year-two surprise, because we never price a deal from the seller's old bill. Every analysis we run prices the tax at your future reality: your purchase price, the correct district millage, 6 percent if it is a rental. What still surprises people is what the honest number does to a deal. Taxes at the 6 percent rate can be the roughly $150 a month that turns a marginal rental's cash flow negative, and we would rather show you that before you offer than let the county show you after. Run any address through the Grand Investor Tool and the correct tax is already in the projection.
65 and older
The South Carolina Homestead Exemption at age 65
Homeowners 65 or older, totally and permanently disabled, or legally blind get the first $50,000 of their legal residence's market value exempted entirely. Requirements: the home already has the 4 percent rate, one year of South Carolina residency, and you reached 65 by December 31 of the year before. In Horry County you apply in person at the Auditor's office, once; it renews on its own afterward.
On a typical bill that is another $180 to $290 a year saved, on top of a 4 percent bill that is already among the lowest of any East Coast beach market. Low carrying costs are a large part of why this area works so well on a fixed income; the full picture is on our retiring to Myrtle Beach page.
The calendar
Horry County property tax due dates and penalties
- ✓Around October 1: bills mail to the owner of record.
- ✓January 15: last day to pay without penalty.
- ✓January 16 / February 2 / March 17: penalties step up 3 percent, then 10, then 15, and on March 17 the account goes delinquent and starts down the tax sale track.
- ✓Also separate: vehicles, boats, and RVs get their own 6 percent bills in Horry County, paid before you can register with the DMV, plus a $50 per-vehicle road fee. New residents meet these first.
Know your Horry County tax bill before you offer.
Tell us the address and how you will use it. We price the bill at your purchase price and the correct district millage, not the seller's old number. Ratios and exemptions in this guide come from the South Carolina Department of Revenue and the Horry County Assessor; millage is the county's 2025 certified schedule. Buying? The escrow this creates at closing is itemized in the closing costs calculator.
Common questions
Horry County property tax FAQ
How much are property taxes in Myrtle Beach?
For tax year 2025, a $400,000 home in the city of Myrtle Beach pays roughly $1,400 to $1,600 a year if it is the owner's legal residence at the 4 percent rate, and about $6,100 a year at the 6 percent rate that applies to second homes and rentals. In unincorporated Horry County the same house runs about $1,470 at 4 percent and about $4,800 at 6 percent. The rate class matters more than the house.
Why is the gap between the 4% and 6% rate so large?
Two reasons stack. The assessment ratio (the share of your home's value that actually gets taxed) is 1.5 times higher, and 6 percent properties also pay the school operating tax, 109.1 mills in Horry County for 2025, which 4 percent legal residences are fully exempt from under Act 388. Together that makes the real bill roughly 3.3 to 4.3 times higher, not 1.5 times.
How do I get the 4% legal residence rate in Horry County?
Apply with the Horry County Assessor after you move in. It is never automatic; without an approved application you are billed at 6 percent. You will need your SC driver's license or ID, SC vehicle registration at the property address, and redacted federal and state tax returns, for both spouses. The county asks for applications by May 31 so your October bill prints at the right rate. One legal residence per household, and renting the home more than 72 days a year forfeits the rate.
Why did my property tax bill jump the year after I bought?
Your first October bill still reflects the seller's status and the seller's taxable value. The following year, three resets can hit at once: the value resets to roughly your purchase price because a sale is an assessable transfer of interest, the ratio moves to 6 percent if the home is not your legal residence, and the school operating exemption disappears with it. That is how a $1,500 bill becomes $5,000 or more. We calculate the real post-sale number for every buyer before they offer.
Do retirees get a property tax break in South Carolina?
Yes. On top of the 4 percent rate, homeowners 65 and older, or totally disabled or legally blind, get the Homestead Exemption: the first $50,000 of the home's market value is exempt. You need one year of South Carolina residency, and in Horry County you apply in person at the Auditor's office. It renews automatically after the first application.
Can I rent my home out and keep the 4% rate?
Only up to 72 days per calendar year. Rent it more than that and the property moves to 6 percent. Rent it 14 days or fewer and the rental income is also federal income tax free on top. Between 15 and 72 days you keep the 4 percent but owe accommodations taxes and need a business license.