The South Carolina constitution provides for the following ratios to be applied to the market or use value of property to arrive at the assessed value:

• Your home (legal residence) - 4%
• Second home (or any residential property where you do not live) - 6%
• Vacant Land - 6% 
• Agricultural real property (private owner) - 4%
• Agricultural real property (corporate owner) - 6%
• Commercial real property - 6%

Common Terms
Ad Valorem Tax
(Latin for according to value) A tax imposed on properties in proportion to each one’s value. The most common are the ad valorem taxes imposed on real and personal property, which is on the assessed or appraised values.

Appraised Property Value
Also known as Actual or Fair Market Value - it is the true market value of a property.

Assessed Property Value
The amount of a property’s value to be taxed as determined by the Assessor. To determine the assessed value, the appraised value is multiplied by the appropriate assessment ratio.

• Owner-occupied and agricultural properties are assessed at 4 percent of their appraisal value.
• Commercial and non-owner-occupied residential properties are assessed at 6 percent.
• Manufacturing properties are assessed at 10.5 percent of the appraised value (determined by the S.C. Department of Revenue).

Legal Residence Special Assessment
Owners who occupy the property are assessed at 4 percent property’s appraised value (as compared to 6 percent for non-residents and 10.5 percent for manufacturers). To qualify, the owner must occupy the residence during the tax year and submit an application before first penalty date for taxes due.