South Carolina is the strictest deed state we cover. A quitclaim deed needs the grantor's signature acknowledged in front of two witnesses and an officer who can administer an oath, the grantee's mailing address written on it, and a value affidavit or an exemption reason. You can skip the derivation clause on a quitclaim. Recording is a flat $15, and the deed fee is $1.85 per $500, so a $20,000 sale costs $89.
South Carolina also treats a real estate closing as the practice of law, which shapes who should prepare the deed. That is covered near the end.
This is general information, not legal advice. A real estate attorney in your state can confirm how it applies to you.
The general mechanics are in how a quitclaim deed works. Below is only what South Carolina changes.
How many witnesses does a South Carolina quitclaim deed need?
Two. Section 27-7-10 says a conveyance of fee simple land is valid if it is "executed in the presence of and subscribed by two or more credible witnesses." The recording statute lines up with it. Under 30-5-30(B), the grantor signs and the signing is acknowledged in the presence of two witnesses, taken before an officer inside the state who can administer an oath. A notary alone is not the whole job here; the two witnesses watch the signing and sign too.
The code offers a second route. Section 30-5-30(A)(1) lets a subscribing witness prove the execution by affidavit before an oath-taking officer. Either way, the statutes assume someone other than the notary saw the grantor sign, so a deed signed with no witnesses has nothing to build either route on.
One trap in the code itself: the form printed in 27-7-10 is a warranty-style release, with "bargained, sold and released" and a covenant to defend the title. It is not a quitclaim form. A South Carolina quitclaim uses "quitclaim" and "release" and leaves the warranty out; the effect is explained in quitclaim deed vs warranty deed.
Does a quitclaim deed need a derivation clause in South Carolina?
No. Section 30-5-35 requires a derivation clause, naming the grantor of the deed you got your title from and its recording date, on deeds and mortgages after July 1, 1976, but its last sentence says a clause "is not required on a quitclaim or non-warranty deed of real property." Greenville County's checklist repeats the exemption.
The grantee's mailing address is another matter. The same section requires it to be "inscribed" on every deed, and the register may not record a deed without it. Write the grantee's full mailing address under the name, not just the property address.
What does a South Carolina register of deeds check?
Greenville County's recording sheet is a fair model of the checklist:
- Grantor's signature and the grantee's name and address.
- Two witnesses, plus a probate or acknowledgment.
- A property description, usually by plat book and page or metes and bounds.
- The tax map number.
- The affidavit of consideration when one applies.
In most of the state the register of deeds is the clerk of court. Section 30-5-10 lists 24 counties that have a separate register of deeds, including Charleston, Greenville, Richland, Horry and Spartanburg. Everywhere else, you record at the clerk of court's office.
How much does it cost to record a quitclaim deed in South Carolina?
Two charges. The recording fee is $15 for a deed to real estate, set by 8-21-310 and uniform in every county. Greenville County's page confirms it for deeds, deeds of distribution and quit claim deeds. (A mortgage, easement or land sale contract is $25.)
The second is the deed recording fee, which South Carolina people call deed stamps, under 12-24-10: $1.85 for each $500 of value or fraction, made up of a $1.30 state fee and a $0.55 county fee. The grantor owes it, and the grantee is secondarily liable. Value means the consideration paid or to be paid, less any lien that stays on the land. Greenville states the same rate as $3.70 per $1,000.
| Value | Units of $500 | Deed fee | Plus $15 recording |
|---|---|---|---|
| $20,000 sale | 40 | $74.00 | $89.00 |
| $60,000 sale | 120 | $222.00 | $237.00 |
Computed in python from 12-24-10 and 8-21-310. The overall picture for other states is in quitclaim deed cost.
Which quitclaim deeds are exempt from the deed fee?
Section 12-24-40 lists them. The ones landowners meet are a deed of $100 or less in value, a transfer between spouses or incident to divorce that falls under Section 1041 of the Internal Revenue Code, a partition where no other consideration changes hands, and, in item 12, a corrective or quitclaim deed "used to confirm title already vested in the grantee" when no consideration is paid.
Read that last one carefully. It covers cleanup deeds, such as adding a name that was left off, not a parent giving land to a child. If you claim an exemption, 12-24-70 requires the affidavit filed with the deed to state the reason, and a false affidavit is a misdemeanor with a fine up to $1,000 and up to a year in jail. For a pure gift with nothing paid, the statute measures value by consideration, so ask the register how the office treats it before you file.
Do you need a lawyer for a South Carolina quitclaim deed?
For the deed alone, no statute says an owner cannot sign one. For a closing, South Carolina is one of the states where the Supreme Court treats the work as the practice of law. The cases to look up are State v. Buyers Service Co. (1987), Doe v. McMaster (2003) and Boone v. Quicken Loans (2017). The practical result is that a lawyer, not a title company alone, has to be in the closing. If your deed is part of a sale rather than a family transfer, read whether you need a lawyer to sell land.
What a quitclaim deed does not do here
It does not clear title, it does not remove a mortgage, and it gives the grantee no warranty to enforce. See quitclaim deed and mortgage if the grantor still owes a lender.
If you are trying to sell a parcel rather than move it within a family, none of this paperwork is your problem with a direct buyer: a cash buyer typically closes in 7 to 21 days and the closing attorney handles the witnesses and the affidavit. You can sell land in South Carolina that way, or compare other states in quitclaim deed forms by state.
FAQs
Does a South Carolina quitclaim deed need two witnesses?
Yes. Sections 27-7-10 and 30-5-30 both build on two witnesses, either watching the signing and the acknowledgment or one of them swearing to it by affidavit afterward.
How much does it cost to record a deed in South Carolina?
$15 flat for a deed under 8-21-310, plus the deed recording fee of $1.85 per $500 of value unless the deed is exempt.
Is a derivation clause required on a South Carolina quitclaim deed?
No. 30-5-35 excuses quitclaim and non-warranty deeds. The grantee's mailing address is still required.
Who records a deed in South Carolina?
The register of deeds in 24 named counties, and the clerk of court in all the others, in the county where the land is.