South Carolina Tenant Background Check and Screening Laws

What a Tenant Background Check Covers

Here’s a quick overview of everything you can learn from a tenant background check, South Carolina landlords:

Criminal history: TurboTenant checks over 200 million records to reveal any misdemeanors and felonies from the past, as well as active warrants. However, some states and cities don’t allow landlords to evaluate a renter’s criminal history when deciding on an application. As a best practice, always check your area’s current regulations.

Credit history: To understand whether a renter can afford to pay rent and make rent collection easy and hassle-free, you need a detailed look at their finances. A background check shows landlords the renter’s credit score, open credit lines, payment history, accounts in collection, credit inquiries, and civil records.

Eviction history: If your local laws allow you to consider a renter’s eviction history, TurboTenant can help you by pulling over 25 million records from all 50 states, including:

• Reports of failure to pay rent,
• Writs and Warrants of Eviction,
• Unlawful detainer actions, and
• Judgments for Rent, Possession, and Money.

Rental history: Wondering whether a potential tenant is responsive and responsible, or hard to contact and difficult? Contact the landlord references they included on their rental application. You can ask about everything from rent payment habits to how well they maintained the unit.

References: As the final step, fill in any blanks by reaching out to the applicant’s personal references and previous employers.

Income verification and fraud detection: To learn more from every tenant background check, South Carolina landlords can leverage TurboTenant Pro’s advanced tenant screening, powered by Snappt. It’s a quick and easy way to catch fraud attempts, fake documents, false employer information, and known ‘bad actors’ before you face bigger problems.

Federal Tenant Background Check Laws

Before we get into South Carolina’s state laws, let’s review the federal guidelines all landlords in the U.S. must comply with:

HUD Guidelines: Judge criminal records case by case: what the offense was, how serious, and how recent. HUD had that in writing until it withdrew the guidance in a 2025–2026 deregulatory review, so the advice no longer comes from an agency. Now, it comes from the courts: A blanket ban can support a Fair Housing Act disparate-impact claim (Inclusive Communities, 576 U.S. 519 (2015)).

Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA): Get written, standalone consent before you run a screening report. It documents the “permissible purpose” the FCRA requires to pull a report, which screening a rental applicant satisfies. The law also requires you to provide applicants a summary of their FCRA rights. If the report leads to a denial, requires a co-signer, or results in less favorable terms, you must send a pre-adverse action notice with a copy of the report before the final adverse action notice (Fair Credit Reporting Act).

Fair Housing Act (FHA): Federal law prohibits discriminatory screening practices. Landlords can’t deny or discriminate against renters based on the following protected traits:

• Race,
• Color,
• National origin,
• Religion,
• Sex,
• Familial status, and
• Disability (Fair Housing Act).

South Carolina Tenant Screening Laws

Overall, the Palmetto State is one of the most landlord-friendly areas. South Carolina tenant screening laws align with federal guidelines, and there aren’t many strict state-level laws. Here’s a closer look:

Criminal history: South Carolina allows landlords to consider a renter’s criminal history when choosing a tenant. You’re not limited to any lookback period caps, and state law doesn’t ban certain types of offenses.

Fair Chance Housing (“ban the box”): You don’t have to make a conditional offer before viewing the renter’s criminal history. South Carolina law allows landlords to review an individual’s criminal record from the beginning.

State-specific Fair Housing additions: Beyond the FHA, many states protect additional renter characteristics. South Carolina does not.

State-level notice/disclosure requirements: In South Carolina, no laws require landlords to notify renters or disclose tenant screening reports and background checks.

Reusable tenant screening reports: Some states allow landlords to accept reusable tenant screening reports, but the laws change frequently. To stay compliant, check your current local laws or speak with a trusted real estate professional.

Tenant Screening Differences by City in South Carolina

Keep in mind that tenant screening laws vary across cities. Most local areas in South Carolina follow the state’s laws, but larger jurisdictions add a few additional protected classes. Let’s review the guidelines in a few of the most popular cities:

Charleston, North Charleston, and Mount Pleasant, South Carolina

Each jurisdiction listed has its own local ordinances or policies that add protection against housing discrimination based on sexual orientation and/or gender identity, in addition to federal and state laws. As a reminder, South Carolina has no statewide protections for these characteristics, so protection ends at the jurisdiction level. Enforcement runs through municipal administrative processes or penalties rather than a private civil lawsuit.

Charleston: Sec. 16-20 – Unlawful Housing Practices

North Charleston: Sec 10-94 – Unlawful Housing Practices

Mount Pleasant: Chapter §98.01 – Prevention of Discrimination in Rental or Sale of Housing

Columbia, South Carolina

The City of Columbia’s Code of Ordinances states: No person shall be discriminated against in the sale or rental of housing on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, familial status, handicap, disability, or sexual orientation (Prevention of Discrimination in the Rental or Sale of Housing). In other words, Columbia adds age and sexual orientation on top of the federal and state lists.

Rock Hill, South Carolina

The laws regulating a background check in Rock Hill align with South Carolina’s state laws. The same goes for the laws governing tenant screening in Rock Hill.

Red Flags to Watch Out For

See something concerning when reviewing a tenant background check? South Carolina landlords should proceed with caution if they come across the following red flags:

Criminal charges: While complying with your area’s legal guidelines, be wary of serious or violent criminal offenses that could indicate risk for your property, other tenants, or the community as a whole.

Unverifiable income: Ideally, your renter will have consistent income coming from a verified source — not getting paid on a random schedule. If you can’t verify income, it will be difficult to expect timely payments.

Inconsistent rental history: If the applicant has significant lapses in their rental history, it could indicate an unstable lifestyle or trouble maintaining long-term tenancies.

Late payments or collections: Consider rent debt as a major warning sign. If they’ve missed payments in the past, they can easily continue the pattern once you hand over the keys.

History of evictions: Evictions are another red flag you shouldn’t ignore if your local laws allow you to consider them.

How to Legally Run a Tenant Background Check in South Carolina

In conclusion, follow these best practices to stay compliant and get the most out of every tenant background check. South Carolina landlords, keep these tips handy:

1. Always secure the tenant’s written consent before running any screening reports.
2. Use a verified service (such as TurboTenant) to make sure your background and credit checks are thorough and compliant.
3. Read through each report carefully and make sure all the information aligns.
4. Don’t forget to verify the renter’s identity and SSN.
5. Pay attention to evictions and criminal history, if your local laws permit it.
6. Use consistent criteria across all applicants and never discriminate based on legally protected characteristics.
7. When you deny someone based on their credit report, send them an adverse action notice in compliance with the FCRA.
8. Use TurboTenant to streamline your rentals, including tenant background checks, South Carolina legal compliance, and online rent collection.