HOA rules in South Carolina

South Carolina's Homeowners Association Act (Title 27, Chapter 30, Article 1) is a limited overlay, not a Florida-style UCIOA package. It focuses on recording governing documents and rules so they stay enforceable, 48-hour notice before a meeting that raises the annual budget (with an exemption for associations incorporated under the Nonprofit Corporation Act), and applying Nonprofit Corporation Act document-access sections to unincorporated associations for the annual budget and membership lists. Condominiums / horizontal property regimes also live under Title 27, Chapter 31 (Horizontal Property Act). Confirm which chapter covers your community, then confirm the current text on the South Carolina Legislature site and in your recorded declaration, bylaws, and rules. This page is general information, not legal advice. Statutes and documents change.

Chapter 30 Article 1 does not create a statutory pre-fine hearing process, a statutory fine dollar cap, or a statutory assessment lien. Those topics, if addressed at all, come from your governing documents, the Horizontal Property Act for regimes, and general collection/lien law. Do not invent a South Carolina HOA hearing-day count or fine cap from Chapter 30.

Article 3 directs the Department of Consumer Affairs to post educational materials, receive and record calls or written complaints, forward complaints so the other side can respond, and report data annually. The statute expressly prohibits the Department from promulgating regulations or guidelines on HOA administration/governance/governing documents and from serving as an arbiter in homeowner–association disputes (S.C. Code § 27-30-340(E)). Treat DCA as a complaint-intake and education contact, not a decision-maker.

This is general information from an AI helper, not legal advice. Confirm it against your documents and your state's law. If a deadline or hearing is coming up, talk to a licensed lawyer.