Housing · Warranty of habitability
Warranty of Habitability in South Carolina
What a landlord in South Carolina must keep livable, and your remedy when they do not: whether you can withhold or escrow rent, or must use another route. This is the landlord duty behind the repair-and-deduct remedy. Cited to the statute.
What the warranty of habitability covers in South Carolina
What the landlord must maintain, whether you can withhold or escrow rent, and the limits on the remedy.
| What the law says | What it means |
|---|---|
| An enumerated statutory duty | S.C. Code Ann. § 27-40-440 requires the landlord to comply with building and housing codes affecting health and safety, make all repairs reasonably necessary to keep the unit fit and habitable, keep common areas reasonably safe, make available running water and reasonable hot water and reasonable heat, and maintain in reasonably good and safe working order the electrical, gas, plumbing, sanitary, heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning facilities. |
| Appliances are presumed to be the landlord’s | Item five carries a pro-tenant rule found in no other state. Appliances present in the dwelling unit are presumed to be supplied by the landlord unless specifically excluded by the rental agreement, and no appliance or facility necessary to the provision of essential services may be excluded at all. That makes it hard for a landlord to disclaim, for example, an air conditioner that is physically in the unit. |
| Rent is tied to the duty | Under S.C. Code Ann. § 27-40-340, a rental agreement or security instrument may not permit the receipt of rent absent the obligation to comply with § 27-40-440(a). The right to collect rent and the duty to maintain the unit are linked. Only Connecticut has the same idea. |
| Where it does not apply | What it means |
|---|---|
| Notice and a fourteen-day window first | Under S.C. Code Ann. § 27-40-610 the tenant gives written notice specifying the problem, and the tenancy may terminate no less than fourteen days after receipt if the breach is not remedied within fourteen days. A breach that does not affect health and safety and cannot be fixed in fourteen days is excused if repair is begun in that period and pursued in good faith. That extension is not available for health-and-safety breaches. |
| The standard is softened by "reasonably" | South Carolina inserts the word "reasonably" three times, so repairs must be reasonably necessary, common areas kept reasonably safe, and facilities kept in reasonably good and safe working order. The clean-common-areas duty applies only to premises with more than four dwelling units, and there is no separate trash-receptacle duty at all. |
| Tenant-caused conditions | The duty is about the landlord’s failure to maintain. It does not cover damage the tenant or a guest caused, and the tenant still has to give notice and a chance to fix the problem before a remedy applies. |
What you can do right now
Concrete, neutral steps when a rental in South Carolina is not being kept livable. This is legal information, not legal advice.
- Put the problem in writing
Describe the defect in writing to the landlord, date it, and keep a copy. Written notice under S.C. Code Ann. § 27-40-610 starts the fourteen-day clock and specifies the acts and omissions you are complaining about.
- Check the lease for excluded appliances
Because appliances in the unit are presumed to be the landlord’s unless the lease specifically excludes them, read your lease. An air conditioner or other appliance the lease does not carve out is presumed the landlord’s to maintain.
- Document the condition
Take photos or video, keep any city inspection reports, and save your messages with the landlord. This record shows the breach and the landlord’s response if you later go to court.
- Get South Carolina tenant help
If the landlord does not fix the problem within fourteen days, South Carolina Legal Services can explain your options under the Residential Landlord and Tenant Act before you act.
Withholding rent the wrong way can risk eviction, so a legal aid office can confirm the exact notice and escrow steps before you stop paying.
→ South Carolina Legal ServicesThis is general legal information, not legal advice. The notice, the escrow account, and what counts as uninhabitable all matter, so confirm your situation against the statute before withholding rent.
What renters in South Carolina get wrong about habitability
South Carolina answers the habitability question with a statute, S.C. Code Ann. § 27-40-440, but it drafts the list its own way. There are five items rather than the usual six, and the word "reasonably" appears three times, softening the standard from a flat result to a reasonableness test. There is no separate trash-receptacle duty, and the clean-common-areas duty reaches only buildings with more than four units. Cutting the other way is a pro-tenant rule no other state has: appliances present in the unit are presumed to be supplied by the landlord unless the lease specifically excludes them, and appliances needed for essential services can never be excluded. That presumption makes it hard for a landlord to disclaim an air conditioner or other appliance that is simply sitting in the unit. Enforcement runs through § 27-40-610, which gives the landlord fourteen days after written notice, and the duty cannot be waived under § 27-40-330. Section 27-40-340 goes further and bars collecting rent at all absent the obligation to comply with the maintenance duty.
Common questions
Is my air conditioner the landlord’s responsibility in South Carolina?
Probably, if it is in the unit. S.C. Code Ann. § 27-40-440 presumes appliances present in the dwelling to be supplied by the landlord unless the lease specifically excludes them, and appliances necessary for essential services can never be excluded. Read your lease to see whether it carves the appliance out.
How much notice do I give my South Carolina landlord?
Under S.C. Code Ann. § 27-40-610 you give written notice specifying the problem, and the landlord has fourteen days to fix it. A non-health-and-safety problem that cannot be fixed in fourteen days is excused if repair is begun and pursued in good faith, but that extension is not available for health-and-safety breaches.
Can my South Carolina landlord collect rent on an unfit unit?
The law ties the two together. S.C. Code Ann. § 27-40-340 says a rental agreement may not permit the receipt of rent absent the obligation to comply with the maintenance duty in § 27-40-440(a). Whether you can withhold in practice is a separate question, so get advice before stopping rent.
What must a South Carolina landlord maintain?
Under S.C. Code Ann. § 27-40-440 the landlord must comply with health-and-safety codes, make repairs reasonably necessary to keep the unit fit and habitable, keep common areas reasonably safe, make available running water, reasonable hot water and reasonable heat, and keep the electrical, gas, plumbing, sanitary, heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning systems in reasonably good working order.
Not legal advicePlainStatute provides plain-language summaries of public law for general information only. This is not legal advice. Statutes change; always confirm current requirements with the official source linked above before acting.