🎯 STRisker: Bulletin - Richland County, SC
No Permit? No Profit: Richland Cracks Down on Unlicensed STRs

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No Permit? No Profit: Richland Cracks Down on Unlicensed STRs

Short-term rental operators in Richland County, heads up—local authorities are turning up the heat on unlicensed hosts.
Over the weekend, a homeowner found that out the hard way after being cited for running an Airbnb without the proper business license.
It all went down on the night of June 28 when Richland County Sheriff’s deputies responded to a call about a suspicious Airbnb rental. The potential renter told the homeowner that her bank account had been hacked and the booking was made without her permission. Once deputies confirmed the story checked out, they shifted focus to a bigger issue: the legality of the rental itself.
Turns out, the property owner didn’t have a business license to operate the home as a short-term rental. The result? A citation and a warning shot to other hosts in the area who might be skipping the paperwork.

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Sheriff Leon Lott didn’t mince words following the incident.
“If you’re going to list your property on Airbnb or any other platform in Richland County, you need to be licensed. Period,” he said.
Lott emphasized that his office is committed to enforcing the county’s ordinance requiring a business license for all short-term rental operations. This isn’t just about a technicality, it’s about ensuring safety, fairness, and compliance across the board.
This recent citation signals that the rules aren’t just on paper—they’re actively being enforced. Whether you’re renting out a spare room or a whole house, Richland County wants it done by the book.

If you’re thinking of diving into the short-term rental game, make sure you’re playing by the rules. That means getting your business license in place before listing the property. Because when it comes to STRs in Richland County, “no permit” now means “no-go.”
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