South Carolina deed transfer tax: $3.70 per $1,000

What is the tax and how is it calculated?

Chapter 24 of Title 12 imposes a fee “for the privilege of recording a deed” that transfers land and buildings to another person. The fee is $1.85 for each $500, or fractional part of $500, of the property’s “value.” Two fees make it up:

• a state fee of $1.30 per $500, split among the Heritage Land Trust Fund, the South Carolina Housing Trust Fund and the state general fund;
• a county fee of $0.55 per $500, kept by the county’s general fund.

The Greenville County Register of Deeds publishes the same split per thousand dollars: $3.70, of which $2.60 is the state’s and $1.10 the county’s.

“Value” means what was paid or will be paid for the property, including other property, debt forgiven or a debt assumed (§ 12-24-30). The law lets you deduct the amount of any lien that existed before the sale and stays on the property afterward, such as a mortgage the buyer assumes. You may also elect to use the fair market value used for property tax purposes.

Who pays?

The statute puts the fee on the grantor, meaning the seller. If there are several sellers, they are jointly and severally liable. The buyer is only “secondarily liable” if the seller does not pay (§ 12-24-20(A)). The exception is a deed from a master-in-equity, the federal government, a state or its subdivisions, or a tax-exempt retirement plan: then the grantee owes the fee (§ 12-24-20(B)).

The clerk or register of deeds collects the fee before recording the deed and marks it on the deed (§ 12-24-50, § 12-24-60). The person filing the deed must also file an affidavit stating the value, or the reason the deed is exempt (§ 12-24-70).

Is there a city or extra county tax in Greenville?

The Greenville County schedule lists one deed tax of $3.70 per thousand dollars, split between the state and the county. It shows no city component. The county also charges a flat $15 filing fee for a deed and $25 for a mortgage, set by § 8-21-310 and unrelated to the price. The county schedule lists no tax on the mortgage line. See closing costs in South Carolina for the full list.

Which deeds are exempt?

Section 12-24-40 lists the exemptions. Among them:

• a deed where the value is $100 or less;
• transfers to the federal government, a state, its agencies and political subdivisions, including school districts;
• transfers in which no gain or loss is recognized under Internal Revenue Code § 1041, which covers transfers between spouses and certain transfers tied to divorce (item 4);
• a deed that only partitions property, with no payment beyond the interests exchanged;
• a corrective deed or a quitclaim deed that confirms title already held, if no consideration is paid;
• a deed to a mortgagee in lieu of foreclosure, or issued in foreclosure proceedings;
• certain transfers to or from corporations, partnerships and trusts for no consideration, including transfers from a family partnership or family trust to a family member.

A deed of distribution from a decedent’s estate under § 62-3-907 is not a taxable deed at all (§ 12-24-10(B)). The Greenville County schedule also notes “no tax charged” for a deed of distribution. Exempt deeds must still be recorded, and the word “exempt” is placed on the notation.

Worked example: a Greenville home

This is an example, not a quote. Assume a $400,000 sale in Greenville County and a buyer who takes out a new loan.

If the price were $400,200, the fractional $500 counts as a full unit: 801 units × $1.85 = $1,481.85. If the buyer assumed a $150,000 loan that stays on the property, the value for the fee would be reduced by that lien (§ 12-24-30(B)).