North Myrtle Beach market data / STR permit rules

Short term rental permit rules around North Myrtle Beach, jurisdiction by jurisdiction

STR registration, fees, zoning and taxes for 6 Horry County jurisdictions, North Myrtle Beach, Myrtle Beach, Horry County, Surfside Beach, Briarcliffe Acres and Atlantic Beach, each from the city or county's own page, checked October 2026.

3 of 6require a license, permit or zoning approval
3have no confirmed rule on their own site
5% + 2%state sales tax plus state accommodations tax
Not legal advice. Several of these towns host their ordinances on Municode rather than their main site, and at least one local tax rate is in dispute between the city's own notices and the county's own form. Every entry links to the page we read. Confirm with the city, town or county before you book a guest. Found a change? Tell us and we will re-check it.

Horry County, South Carolina

North Myrtle Beach

License or permit required
Permit
Business license (no separate short term rental permit as of this check)
Fee
not published on the city's own short term rental page
Renewal
annual
Inspection
not published
Occupancy
Must comply with the city's general occupancy and parking ordinances; no short term rental specific numeric limit published on the city's own page
Zoning
The city's own page states no special zoning or permit process is required beyond standard business licensing, as of this check
Local contact
not published
In effect
not published; the city's page notes a 2018 council vote on a short term rental moratorium that did not pass

Open question: Local news from late 2024 described a proposed dedicated short term rental permit, a possible $250 fee and rental inspections under review by city staff. Not shown as adopted on the city's own short term rental page as of October 2026, so not recorded as current rule. Covers our four tracked neighborhoods: Cherry Grove, Ocean Drive, Crescent Beach and Windy Hill all sit inside North Myrtle Beach city limits and fall under this entry, not a separate one.

Sources: 1 · checked 2026-10-08

Myrtle Beach

License or permit required
Permit
Business license, zoning approval required first
Fee
not published on the city's own page
Renewal
not published
Inspection
not published
Occupancy
not published
Zoning
Short term rentals (defined as under 90 days) are not allowed in any zoning district beginning with R, except the RMV (Residential Multifamily Visitor) district. Other districts are checked against the zoning code's visitor accommodations use table. Fewer than 30 houses citywide are grandfathered in residential zones; a property not already in an allowing zone cannot be converted to short term rental use
Local contact
not published
In effect
not published

Open question: Not one of our four covered neighborhoods, which all sit in North Myrtle Beach. Included because owners search this market by the broader Myrtle Beach name. Fee amount and penalty structure for the business license itself are not on this page; the page does state zoning code and business license violations are misdemeanors with fines up to $500 and 30 days.

Sources: 1 · checked 2026-10-08

Horry County (unincorporated)

License or permit required
Permit
Horry County Business License plus Hospitality Fee / Accommodations account
Fee
No separate short term rental permit fee published. Business license fee not published; the hospitality fee rate on gross proceeds is published, see local_taxes below
Renewal
annual business license renewal
Inspection
A first time commercial use or changed occupancy may require zoning compliance and life safety review before the license is issued, per the county's own business license guidance
Occupancy
not published
Zoning
Planning and Zoning must approve zoning compliance before the business license is issued
Local contact
not published
In effect
not published

Open question: No countywide short term rental specific permit was found on the county's own pages as of this check, only the standard business license and hospitality fee registration.

Sources: 12 · checked 2026-10-08

Surfside Beach

Status unknown
Permit
unknown
Fee
not published on the town's own site
Renewal
not published
Inspection
not published
Occupancy
not published
Zoning
not published on the town's own site; the town's Code of Ordinances is hosted on Municode and was not retrieved this pass
Local contact
not published
In effect
not published

Open question: The town's own Business page does not list a short term rental permit, fee or zoning district. The Code of Ordinances on Municode was not retrieved this pass, so permit and fee figures reported by third party property management sites are not recorded here.

Sources: 1 · checked 2026-10-08

Briarcliffe Acres

Status unknown
Permit
unknown
Fee
not published
Renewal
not published
Inspection
not published
Occupancy
not published
Zoning
not published; the town's code of ordinances is hosted on Municode and was not retrieved this pass
Local contact
not published
In effect
not published

Open question: No short term rental ordinance text was retrieved for this town. It is a small town inside Horry County near North Myrtle Beach; status recorded as unknown rather than guessed.

Sources: 1 · checked 2026-10-08

Atlantic Beach

Status unknown
Permit
unknown
Fee
not published
Renewal
not published
Inspection
not published
Occupancy
not published
Zoning
A February 2025 public hearing notice describes a proposed amendment to the town's Land Management Ordinance that would allow short term rentals in the residential district and reclassify the use from conditional to permitted in several areas. Adoption status not confirmed on the town's own site as of this check
Local contact
not published
In effect
not published

Open question: Not one of our four covered neighborhoods, which all sit in North Myrtle Beach. Included for completeness since Atlantic Beach sits immediately north of North Myrtle Beach. Only a pending 2025 amendment was found; the town's current, pre-amendment short term rental rule was not located on an official page this pass.

Sources: 1 · checked 2026-10-08

Researched and written by Aaron Whittaker. Updated October 8, 2026. Every fact on this page carries its source. How we rank

Taxes on North Myrtle Beach area short term rentals

LevelRateWhat it coversSource
South Carolina state sales tax5%Applies to accommodations statewideSouth Carolina Department of Revenue
South Carolina state accommodations tax2%Applies on top of the state sales tax, for a combined 7% state rate on accommodations statewideSouth Carolina Department of Revenue
North Myrtle Beachconflicting figures foundA 2019 city notice describes a 3% local accommodations tax plus a 2% hospitality tax. A December 2020 first reading city ordinance instead proposed a 1.5% accommodations fee and a 1% hospitality fee tied to a county settlement. Horry County's own accommodations return form lists a 1.5% rate for North Myrtle Beach receipts. These do not reconcile and no single current city rate is confirmed on the city's own site this passsource
Horry County, outside any city limits3%County hospitality fee on gross proceeds from rental of transient accommodations outside city limits (2.5% on food and beverage, 2.5% on paid admissions, separately)source
Myrtle Beach, Surfside Beach, Briarcliffe Acres, Atlantic Beachnot publishedLocal accommodations tax rates for these jurisdictions were not confirmed on an official page this pass; South Carolina law caps any local accommodations tax at 3% on top of the state 7%source

Questions owners ask

Do I need a permit to run an Airbnb in North Myrtle Beach

North Myrtle Beach requires a standard business license for short term rentals, with no separate short term rental permit or added zoning process on the city's own page as of this check. That covers all four of our tracked neighborhoods, Cherry Grove, Ocean Drive, Crescent Beach and Windy Hill, which sit inside North Myrtle Beach city limits rather than being their own towns. Nearby jurisdictions, including Myrtle Beach and unincorporated Horry County, set their own rules. See the full breakdown below.

Can I run a short term rental anywhere in Myrtle Beach

No. The City of Myrtle Beach bars short term rentals, defined as stays under 90 days, from every zoning district that starts with R except the RMV district. Fewer than 30 houses citywide are grandfathered in residential zones, and a property not already in an allowing zone cannot be converted to short term use. Confirm your zoning district with the city before buying or listing.

What taxes apply to North Myrtle Beach short term rentals

South Carolina charges a combined 5% state sales tax plus a 2% state accommodations tax on accommodations statewide, and state law caps any added local accommodations tax at 3%. Horry County also charges a 3% hospitality fee on short term rentals outside any city's limits. North Myrtle Beach's own local accommodations tax rate is unresolved between its city notices and Horry County's own form, so we report the conflict rather than pick a number. See the tax table below.

Do Surfside Beach, Briarcliffe Acres or Atlantic Beach have their own short term rental rules

We could not confirm current short term rental permit or zoning rules for any of these three on their own official pages. Surfside Beach and Briarcliffe Acres both host their code of ordinances on Municode rather than publishing rental rules on their main site. Atlantic Beach has a 2025 proposed zoning amendment for short term rentals that was not confirmed as adopted. None of these three are inside our four tracked North Myrtle Beach neighborhoods.

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