Beaufort County Recorder Information

Land records in Beaufort County are recorded by the Register of Deeds. The office is held by Patsye M. Greene.

Property Records Search (Neumo) holds converted/current data starting 2/23/2026; subscribers to the previous fraud alert system must re-register. Official searches are not performed. Document requests are processed in the order received.

Checked October 2026 against official publications. Sources: Register of Deeds · Official Record Search - Beaufort County, South Carolina Register of Deeds · Document Recording

These government fees are separate from any Deeds.com service fees. Confirm current charges with the recorder's office.

Other charges

Fee schedule effective August 1, 2019.

StatewideSection 8-21-310 sets uniform filing fees. Twenty-five dollars applies to land sale installment contracts, real estate sales contracts, UCC documents, plats or surveys not attached to another document, real estate leases, partition orders, easements, powers of attorney, and notices of mechanic's lien. Ten dollars applies to revocations of power of attorney, assignments of leases and rents and their releases, separate probates, acknowledgements, affidavits, or certificates, assignments affecting a single mortgage or instrument (seven dollars for each mortgage, instrument, or lien when more than one is affected), trustee qualifications, memoranda or certifications of trust, state or federal liens, lis pendens without summons and complaint, releases of mechanic's liens, and vacation time sharing ownership deeds. Fifteen dollars applies to a Notice of Project Commencement under Section 29-5-23.

Plats (all sizes): $25.00 per page. Timeshare Deed-Hilton Head: $10.00 flat fee plus fees based on consideration. Death Certificate: $15 flat fee. Subordination Nondisturbance & Attornment Agreement: $25.00 flat fee. Trust Certificate/Affidavit/Release of Judgment: $10 flat fee.

Paying the office

All required fees must be paid in full; a document for which all fees have not been fully satisfied is not accepted.

Transfer tax

Deed Recording Fee. One dollar eighty-five cents for each five hundred dollars, or fractional part of five hundred dollars, of the realty's value as determined by Section 12-24-30. The tax is collected when the document is recorded. (statewide, S.C. Code Ann. § 12-24-10)

StatewideThe deed recording fee is composed of a state fee of one dollar thirty cents and a county fee of fifty-five cents for each five hundred dollars, or fractional part of five hundred dollars, of the realty's value (S.C. Code Ann. § 12-24-90). It is remitted to the clerk of court or register of deeds in the county where the realty is located and recorded; where realty lies in more than one county, the value in each county is stated by affidavit (§ 12-24-50). Before recording, the officer collects the fee and places a notation on the deed showing the filing date and fee collected, or the word "exempt" (§ 12-24-60). Exemptions are listed in § 12-24-40.

Hilton Head Island Transfer Fee (all District Nos. in 500 range, but not 501): .0025 X the Consideration, collected at recording by the Register of Deeds for the Town of Hilton Head Island (Town of Hilton Head Island Municipal Code Title 4, Chapter 5 - Real Estate Transfer Fee).

Checked October 2026 against official publications. Sources: SC Code Title 8 Chapter 21 - Fees and Costs · SC Code Title 12 Chapter 24 - Deed Recording Fee · Register of Deeds · Document Recording

Confirm current requirements with the recorder's office before submitting documents.

Must leave 3" X 3" space in upper right hand corner of first page, and 1" margin at top of all other pages.

StatewideDeeds conveying an interest in land and real estate mortgages must include a derivation clause in the property description; a derivation clause is not required on a quitclaim or non-warranty deed or on utility or railroad property (S.C. Code Ann. § 30-5-35). Before recording, a deed or other instrument must be acknowledged or proved as described in § 30-5-30, including by affidavit of a subscribing witness or by acknowledgment in the presence of two witnesses.

Most documents require original signatures from two witnesses; the individuals who execute the document may not be witnesses. Deeds of all types that transfer Timeshares must indicate "Timeshare Deed" on the face of the document. All pages should be uniform - single sided preferred - prefer all pages same size. Documents submitted for re-recording must have either an Affidavit of Authority attached to the front or a dated and executed "Whereas Clause" describing the reason for the correction.

Forms filed along with a transfer

• Affidavit showing the value of the realty Statewide Clerk of court or register of deeds
  Filed with a deed; for exempt deeds the affidavit states the reason for the exemption; the clerk of court or register of deeds may waive it
• Affidavit of True Consideration Beaufort County Register of Deeds
  If a Deed does not indicate on its face the amount paid, or if the words "and other consideration" are used, or if a trade of property is involved
• Affidavit citing the exemption Beaufort County Register of Deeds
  If the Filer claims an "Exemption" from any Fees established by State or Local laws

Submitting documents

StatewideWritings concerning titles to land are recorded in the order in which they are brought to the office, and every such writing is to be recorded within thirty days after its lodgment (S.C. Code Ann. § 30-5-90).

Electronically submitted documents received after 4:30 pm EST are not processed until the next business day. Blanks cannot be filled in by the office. Plats cannot be electronically recorded. A Trusted Submitter Agreement is required for eRecording.

Checked October 2026 against official publications. Sources: SC Code Title 12 Chapter 24 - Deed Recording Fee · SC Code Title 30 Chapter 5 - Recording Generally · Document Recording