Assessor’s Office

The Richland County Assessor’s Office welcomes you to our information page. The general duties of the Assessor are to appraise all property at fair market value and place them on the tax rolls to generate revenue for Richland County. We also classify property at a 4% ratio for your legal residence meaning that you own and occupy the property as your primary residence or at a 6% ratio for commercial property or non-owner occupied. We have approximately 176,400 pieces of property in our inventory and we are monitoring values and adding new construction each year as buildings are built. State Law requires we do a reassessment every 5 years and the latest reassessment was accomplished in the tax year 2019 the next reassessment will be in the tax year 2024.

We also have a complete list of ownership of all property owners in Richland County and we separate parcels by taxing district so we can turn these values over to the Auditor for determination on millage in order to create the tax bills which are done roughly in November of each tax year. The office has 29 employees of which we have 12 appraisers who are out in the field, each day. When building permits are received from county and local municipalities, we work those building permits and in this way, we add value to the tax rolls. We also accept appeals. Each year we will send notices of classification appraisal and assessment of real estate for all new construction providing that the value increases by a sum greater than $1,000. By law, if you receive a notice, you are given 90 days to appeal the value of the property. Otherwise, you have the right to appeal between January 16 of that tax year going all the way through the first penalty period in the next year. Essentially from January 16 through January 15 of the next tax year.

Contact

Office Hours: 8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.

2020 Hampton Street, 2^nd Floor

Post Office Box 192
Columbia, SC 29202

Telephone: 803-576-2640

Fax: 803-576-2681

Email: AssessorOffice@RichlandCountySC.Gov

The Auditor's Office has mailed out the 2024 Real Property tax bill. Please note the bill is in the owner of record as of 12/31/2023 as required by state law.

Applications/Forms

•Online Legal Residence Application •Appeal Form

••Multiple Lot Discount Application •Mailing Address Change

•••Online Agriculture Use Application •Builder/Developer Property Tax Exemption

•••ATI Exemption Application •Special Valuation as Homeowner's Association

Manufactured Homes

•Decal Transfer •Moving out of County

•Setup Mobile Home •Setup Permit & Moving Permit (No new Decal)

•Demolition Permit •Setup Permit & Moving within County (New Decal)

**New** Apply online for Manufactured Home Setup

•eTrakit Setup User Guide

Real Property Tax Bills Available Online

Residents seeking copies of their tax bills and other information can skip the trip to the County Administration Building. Real estate, vehicle, business, and personal property tax information is available online by making just three clicks and entering some basic data. Residents are encouraged to access their tax information by visiting richlandcountysc.gov, clicking “Online Payments” at the top of the gray menu box, clicking the tax payments link, then clicking the “Real Estate” button.

Online Property Value and Tax Estimate

Citizens can look up properties and receive tax estimates, by accessing the Property Value and Tax Estimate Inquiry page. Here the user will find real property values, property descriptions, links to maps, and the ability to receive tax estimates.

Multiple Lot Discount - May 1 annually or 60 Days After

Purchase Deadline

Multiple Lot Discount (MLD) applications for new subdivisions go in the mail in the early part of the year and are due by May 1^st. For existing, lots with a transfer must be applied for within 60 days of purchase. Please use this application. The MLD is a special valuation that is afforded only to developers, licensed homebuilders, and licensed contractors who are owners of undeveloped subdivision lots. It is codified under the SC Code of Law section 12-43-225 and over the past several years, this law has been modified. Therefore, the applicant is encouraged to review the law to ascertain their eligibility. Here is a link to Title 12, Chapter 43. For subdivision plats recorded after January 1, 2001, the subdivision must contain 10 or more buildable lots to be eligible for the MLD

Military Homeowner Protection Act

Application deadline is by the first penalty date

Active duty military that has received orders (PCS) or a temporary duty (TDY) assignment of at least one year may apply to retain the special assessment as a legal residence on their property in Richland County, even though the property is no longer occupied as their primary residence.

Click here for the online application.

It is important to note that the law requires that the property owner reapply each year to retain the special assessment