USA - SOUTH CAROLINA Law and Practice Contributed by: Matt Norton and Christian Kolic, K&L Gates
generally describes the right to access a portion of someone else’s land and is generally acquired pursuant to an easement agreement. 2.2 Laws Applicable to Transfer of Title South Carolina has formal requirements for the validity of conveyancing real estate instruments to be recorded in the real property records located in each county. The parcel or parcels conveyed must have been legally created as separate parcels; any conveyance subdividing a parcel or combining multiple parcels into a single parcel requires an application and government approval for such reconfiguration. There are no special laws or regulations that apply to the transfer of specific types of real estate (although specific uses are always subject to zoning and land-use regulations). 2.3 Effecting Lawful and Proper Transfer of Title Transfers of ownership of real property in South Carolina are made by deed, which may or may not include warranties of title. A deed must be in proper form and witnessed by two disinterest - ed parties. In addition, a deed must contain an acknowledgment made by the transferor before a notary public or, alternatively, an affidavit of a subscribing witness. In order to be valid as against third parties, deeds must be recorded in the real property records for the county in which the property is located. There is a transfer tax payable upon recordation of a deed, and each deed must be accompa - nied by an affidavit as to the actual considera - tion paid. South Carolina is a lawyer closing state, mean - ing that a South Carolina licensed lawyer must undertake or supervise key parts of the real estate transaction, including the title review,
drafting of the conveyancing documents, dis - bursing of funds and recordation of documents. The South Carolina Supreme Court takes these requirements very seriously and, as such, a lack of South Carolina lawyer involvement may affect the enforceability of the underlying documents. During the COVID-19 pandemic, many counties in South Carolina adopted e-recording to facili - tate recording in the real property records while offices were closed, and these counties have generally kept e-recording available on a going- forward basis. An original, wet ink signed and notarised signature is still required to e-record, and when the scanned original is submitted for e-recording, a memorandum of understanding confirming that the original, wet ink signed and notarised document is in hand with the submitter is also submitted. 2.4 Real Estate Due Diligence Many aspects of real estate transactions are subject to arcane and technical rules and reg - ulations, and, as a result, it is critical to have the assistance of knowledgeable South Caro - lina counsel. With respect to title due diligence, South Carolina is one of the few states in which law firms act as title insurance agents; most South Carolina law firms are empowered to issue title insurance commitments and policies. This arrangement facilitates the negotiation of title insurance coverage and allows for integration of title insurance coverage with the closing pro - cess. For these reasons, due diligence relating to title is generally conducted by purchaser’s coun - sel, and the purchaser or its counsel is respon - sible for the title examination and obtaining title insurance. South Carolina is a filed-rate state, meaning that title insurance premiums are largely fixed by state regulation, although there may be some nego -
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