Incentive research · statute-first
South Carolina's Abandoned Buildings Revitalization Credit, applied
Law-firm explainers cover this credit's mechanics; none walk through a real building. This page explains the statute with section citations, provides an eligibility checklist, works a dollar example — and then applies the tests honestly to a property whose listing markets the credit as "available." This is research, not tax advice.
The statute in plain English (SC Code Title 12, Chapter 67)
| Provision | Rule | Citation |
|---|---|---|
| What counts as "abandoned" | At least 66% of the building's space closed continuously to business or otherwise non-operational for income-producing purposes for at least 5 years. Prior use must have been income-producing. | §12-67-120(1) |
| Minimum spend to qualify | Rehabilitation expenses must exceed $250,000 (areas with population >25,000), $150,000 (1,000–25,000), or $75,000 (<1,000) | §12-67-130(A) |
| The credit | 25% of actual rehabilitation expenses | §12-67-140(B)(2) |
| Cap | $700,000 per taxpayer per tax year (raised from $500,000 by 2024 legislation) | §12-67-140(B)(3)(b) |
| How it pays (income-tax route) | Equal installments over 3 years; unused credit carries forward 5 years | §12-67-140(B)(3)(a) |
| Alternative (property-tax route) | Credit against up to 75% of real property taxes on the site each year for up to 8 years (a local-approval process applies) | §12-67-140(C)(3)(a) |
| The trap | A Notice of Intent to Rehabilitate must be filed with SCDOR before the first rehabilitation expenses are incurred. Spend first, file second — and qualifying expenses can be lost. | §12-67-140(B)(1) |
| Subdivision | A building site may be subdivided into units/parcels, each deemed its own abandoned building site (relevant to phased or multi-entity projects) | §12-67-120(1) |
| Deadline | The chapter is repealed December 31, 2035 | 2024 Act No. 169, §1 |
Eligibility checklist
- Was the building previously used for an income-producing purpose?
- Has ≥66% of its space been continuously closed/non-operational for ≥5 years — and can you document the start date (utility records, tenant records, affidavits)?
- Will qualifying rehabilitation expenses exceed the threshold for your location (for most of Spartanburg County, assume the $250,000 tier and confirm with counsel)?
- Have you filed the Notice of Intent to Rehabilitate with SCDOR before spending anything you want to count?
- Have you chosen the income-tax route (25% over 3 years + carryforward) or the property-tax route (≤75% of property taxes, ≤8 years, local approval)?
- Does your projected credit respect the $700,000/taxpayer/year cap — and if larger, does a compliant multi-parcel or multi-year structure exist?
- Will the project be placed in service before the December 31, 2035 repeal?
- Has a SC tax professional reviewed all of the above against the current statute, SCDOR ruling, and form TC-55?
A worked example (illustrative numbers)
Suppose a qualifying buyer rehabilitates a qualifying ~10,000 SF building with $400,000 of qualifying expenses (comfortably above the $250,000 tier):
- Credit = 25% × $400,000 = $100,000 (under the $700k cap).
- Income-tax route: ~$33,333/yr against SC income tax for 3 years, with 5-year carryforward for any unused portion.
- Property-tax route: on a building assessed like 125 Dillon Drive (current taxable value $471,500 at the 6% commercial ratio), a credit of up to 75% of the site's annual property-tax bill for up to 8 years — the better route for owners with modest SC income-tax liability; requires the local process.
- Effective impact at this scale: the credit funds roughly a quarter of the renovation — material, but it never turns a bad project into a good one. Model the project without the credit first.
How this may relate to 125 Dillon Drive — honestly
The listing for 125 Dillon Drive markets "abandoned building tax credits available." Here is what we can and cannot verify (as of 2026-08-23):
- ✔ Prior income-producing use: yes — a former eye-clinic medical office.
- ✔ Spend threshold: plausibly met — the building is mid-renovation with core areas at studs; a completion budget likely exceeds $250,000 (unverified).
- ✘ The 66%/5-year continuous-vacancy test is undocumented. The property last sold in March 2021; the eye clinic's closure date is not public. If the building was substantially occupied at any point in the last five years, the credit clock may not have run. This single fact decides eligibility, and no public record we found establishes it.
- ✘ Notice of Intent status: unknown — and renovation work has already occurred, which makes the before-spending filing rule a live diligence question for any buyer counting past or future expenses.
Correct posture: potential eligibility, marketed by the listing, decided by documents a buyer must obtain. Anyone underwriting the credit as certain is underwriting a hope.
What could make this page wrong
- Statutory amendment (the General Assembly has changed caps and dates twice in recent years — 2023 and 2024 acts).
- SCDOR interpretive guidance on "continuously closed" applied to partially renovated buildings.
- The population-tier threshold applying differently to this unincorporated location than assumed — confirm with counsel.
Related: the owner-user case and multi-tenant case model economics without the credit, treating it strictly as upside. Property record: /property/.
- SC Code of Laws, Title 12, Chapter 67 — Abandoned Buildings Revitalization Act (statute text) [T1 statute · current through 2024 amendments]
- SCDOR — Abandoned Building Revitalization Credit guidance and form TC-55 [T1 regulator]
- 2024 Act No. 169 (cap increase to $700k; repeal date December 31, 2035) [T1 statute · 2024]
- Burr & Forman / Cherry Bekaert / Wyche analyses (corroborating secondary readings) [T3 · 2023–2024]
- Crexi listing 2356244 (the "tax credits available" marketing claim) [T4 · as of 2026-08-23]
Last reviewed 2026-08-23. Not tax advice; consult SC tax counsel.