Charleston, SC contractor license lookup: the state builder license, specialty registration and the City permit record

Which license each job needs in Charleston

The thresholds are from the commission's Residential Builder FAQ, which covers work on a residential building "not over three floors in height" when the cost "exceeds five thousand dollars", and its Specialty Contractor FAQ, which covers specialty trades "when the undertakings exceed five hundred dollars ($500)" and adds that a specialty contractor "is not authorized to construct additions to residential buildings or structures without supervision by a residential builder" (both read 26 October 2026). The commission's home page lists the Residential Electrician, Residential Plumber and HVAC Installer and Repairer licenses alongside the builder license and specialty registration. The City's permitting guidance lists "Contractor License, South Carolina – Required by South Carolina Code of Laws" and "Business License, City of Charleston - Not required for homeowners".

How to run the lookup in five minutes

1. Ask for the LLR license or registration number and the City business license number.
2. Search LLR's Residential Builders lookup by name or number ("enter numbers only"). A remodel over $5,000 needs a residential builder, not only a specialty registration.
3. Check the trade. The specialty FAQ says a registrant may not work "outside the scope of his or her registration", so a roofing registration does not cover your addition.
4. Look up the address on the City's Permit Viewer Map, as the Charleston building permit search guide shows.

Doing the work yourself

The City's guidance says a "Homeowner [is] allowed to apply for and obtain permit" and "Will be required to file with Register of Deeds if work value exceeds $5,000". So an owner can pull a permit and do the work, but on a job over $5,000 the exemption filing comes first. Local rules: remodel and new home permits.

What our Charleston pages add

LLR answers "is this firm licensed". Our Charleston page shows what the City permitted, October 2024 to September 2026, and how fast it signed jobs off:

Of the permits issued October 2024 to September 2025, 55% were finished, and the usual one took 202 days from issue to final (how long a permit takes). Statewide rules and bonds: How to check a contractor's license in South Carolina.

What this lookup does not tell you

Charleston's public permit layer names no contractor, so we cannot show who did a job or match firms to LLR records. It holds building permits only: the City's separate electrical, plumbing and mechanical permits are not published, so trade counts are far below the real number. A license says the firm may do the work, not how its last job went.