Property tax by ZIP code in South Carolina
Enter a South Carolina ZIP and see the median property tax paid, median home value, and effective tax rate from the 2020–2024 American Community Survey — plus how it compares to the South Carolina state median.
Look up a South Carolina ZIP code
Enter a 5-digit South Carolina ZIP code above to see its property tax data.
ZIP doesn't have ACS data — typically because it's a PO-box-only ZIP, a single-business ZIP, or a small area where the Census suppresses small-sample estimates. Try a nearby ZIP.
ZIP isn't a South Carolina ZIP code. This page covers South Carolina only. Other states are launching state by state — check back, or use our state-by-state median page in the meantime.
South Carolina's effective property-tax rate on owner-occupied homes runs among the lowest in the country — roughly 0.48% of value statewide — largely because a primary residence is assessed at just 4% of market value, compared with 6% for second homes, rentals, and most other real property. That classification gap, plus the Act 388 school-tax swap, is the whole story behind South Carolina's low resident bills.
Enter a 5-digit South Carolina ZIP to see its median property tax, median home value, and effective rate from the US Census American Community Survey 2020–2024 vintage, plus how it compares to the South Carolina state and US national medians. The explainer below covers the 4% vs 6% assessment ratios, the five-year reassessment cycle and its 15% cap, the Act 388 school-operating exemption, and the over-65 Homestead Exemption.
How South Carolina property tax works
South Carolina runs a classified property-tax system. A county assessor values real property at market value, but the taxable assessment is only a fraction of that value, and the fraction depends on use. An owner-occupied primary residence (your "legal residence") is assessed at 4% of fair market value; second homes, rentals, and most other real property are assessed at 6%. That single distinction is why a primary residence and an identical house used as a rental next door can owe very different bills.
Values are refreshed on a cycle, not every year. State law requires a countywide reassessment once every five years, and an increase in market value attributable to that periodic reassessment is capped at 15% over the five-year period — so a hot market shows up in your assessment gradually rather than all at once.
The biggest break for residents is Act 388: owner-occupied homes receiving the 4% ratio are exempt from property taxes levied for school operating purposes (bond-debt millage still applies), with that revenue replaced by a statewide one-cent sales tax. On top of that, the Homestead Exemption exempts the first $50,000 of a legal residence's fair market value for homeowners who are age 65 or older, totally and permanently disabled, or legally blind. These are enacted, current-law provisions, not proposals.
Why your actual bill differs
The numbers above describe a typical homeowner in this ZIP — not your specific bill. A few things move bills away from the median:
- 4% vs 6%. Whether a home is your legal residence (4%) or a second home/rental (6%) changes the taxable assessment by half before any millage is applied — the single biggest swing in South Carolina.
- Act 388 and the school-operating exemption. An owner-occupied home drops the school-operating portion of the bill entirely, which a rental or second home in the same ZIP still pays.
- Homestead Exemption. The over-65 / disabled / blind exemption removes the first $50,000 of market value, pulling a qualifying owner's bill below the ZIP median.
South Carolina has no single statewide bill lookup. Your county assessor sets the value and ratio, the auditor applies exemptions, and the county treasurer bills and collects — Greenville County's online tax payment site is a working example; for other counties, search your county's treasurer or tax-collector page.
Methodology
Data on this page comes from the US Census American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 vintage (released January 29, 2026), at the ZIP Code Tabulation Area (ZCTA) level. After filtering ZCTAs the Census suppresses for privacy or small-sample reasons, this page covers 375 South Carolina ZIPs.
Topcoding in South Carolina. The Census caps median property tax at $10,000, reporting anything higher as $10,001. With the 4% owner-occupied ratio holding resident bills down, topcoding is essentially absent here, so the figures are true medians. ACS responses also blend owner-occupied (4%) and other (6%) homes, which is one reason a ZIP median can sit above what a primary-residence owner actually pays.
See the full methodology page for source details (Census table IDs, the comparison-median rule, calculator formulas), how we handle topcoding across every state, and the refresh cadence.
Frequently asked questions
Why is the median tax in my ZIP different from what I pay?
Median is the middle of the distribution, not your bill. An owner-occupied home is taxed on 4% of value versus 6% for other property, and the Act 388 school-operating exemption and the over-65 Homestead Exemption move qualifying owners well below the median.
Why might my ZIP show $10,001 as the median tax?
That's the Census topcode for privacy, but it's essentially absent in South Carolina — the 4% owner-occupied ratio keeps medians under the $10,000 cap, so the figures here are true medians.
Where do I find my actual South Carolina property tax bill?
Through your county. South Carolina has no statewide portal; the assessor values the property, the auditor applies exemptions, and the treasurer bills and collects. Greenville County's online payment site is a working example.
When does South Carolina data update on this page?
Annually, when the Census Bureau releases a new ACS 5-year vintage. The 2020–2024 vintage released January 29, 2026. The next vintage (2021–2025) typically follows the next year, though the Census has not yet posted its release date.
Why don't you cover other states yet?
State-by-state rollout. Each state needs its own context section (assessment ratios, exemptions, local taxing structure) to be genuinely useful. High-search-volume states are going live first.