HOA complaints are rising in SC. Here’s where they’re highest & why residents are concerned
For many South Carolina homeowners, conflicts with homeowners’ associations are no longer isolated disputes — they’re part of a rapidly growing statewide pattern.
Data from the South Carolina Department of Consumer Affairs shows a 176% increase in HOA-related complaints between 2019 and 2025.
The agency, which publishes an annual breakdown of complaints by county, reported receiving 586 complaints across 23 counties in 2025, targeting 339 homeowner associations and property management companies across the state.
Here’s what to know about the latest report:
What are the top areas of concern?
Over 1,100 concerns were raised by residents across the state.
The top areas of complaints filed by residents within HOA communities in 2025 were:
- Failure to adhere to and/or enforce covenants and bylaws
- Maintenance and repair
- Request to access information or view documents was ignored
If a case is filed, it does not always mean it will be reviewed. Review is dependent upon the complainant providing adequate information and context, meaning not all complaints can be addressed.
In 2025, 586 complaints were filed, but only 452 were reviewed.
Where were complaints the highest?
As the number of reports continues to escalate across the state, these are the top counties in 2025 for the number of complaints reported:
- Horry: 140
- Richland: 54
- Greenville: 40
- Charleston: 32
- Beaufort: 27
Complaints came from 23 of South Carolina’s 46 counties.
What do HOA concerns look like?
Here’s a snapshot of HOA communities on the list and some of the complaints filed against them:
Horry County
- The Isles at Bella Vita: Complaints said the HOA failed to adhere to or enforce covenants and bylaws, and that it ignored requests to access association records and documents.
- Forestbrook Condo Owners Association: Complaints involved disputes over HOA fees, concerns about how association funds were allocated, ignored requests for records and a failure to produce financial statements.
- River Oaks Golf Villas: Residents raised concerns about HOA fees, the allocation of association funds and unresolved maintenance or repair issues.
Richland County
- Villages at Lakeshore: Complaints cited disputes over HOA fees, concerns about fund allocation, foreclosure-related issues and questions surrounding board elections.
- Holly Bluffs: Residents alleged a failure to enforce covenants and bylaws, insufficient notice of board actions and disputes over violation assessments, including requests for waivers or adjustments.
- Hastings Point HOA: Complaints claimed the association ignored requests for records and failed to notify residents of board actions.
Greenville County
- Bent Brook HOA: Residents reported that requests for records and financial statements were ignored, maintenance issues were unaddressed, homeowner concerns were not considered, and covenants and bylaws were allegedly violated.
- Court Ridge Condominiums: Complaints involved concerns about the allocation of association funds, maintenance issues and ignored requests to access records and documents.
- Swansgate HOA: Residents disputed decisions made by the architectural review committee and alleged failures to enforce covenants and bylaws.
Charleston County
- The Anchorage Plantation HOA: Complaints alleged failures to enforce covenants and bylaws and cited the placement of a lien on a property.
- Proprietors Row Townhome Association: Residents reported a lack of notice regarding board actions, issues with board elections, denied access to meetings and voting and a failure to provide financial statements or records.
- Whitney Lake Townhome: Complaints included disputes over HOA fees, concerns about the allocation of funds and unresolved maintenance or repair issues.
Beaufort County
- The Preserve at Indigo Run: Residents raised concerns about the allocation of association funds, ignored requests for records and an alleged failure to produce financial statements.
- Berkeley Hall Club: Complaints alleged inadequate notice of board actions, concerns about fund allocation, failures to enforce covenants and bylaws and denied access to meetings and voting.
- Palmetto Bluff Preservation Trust: A complaint disputed HOA fees and raised concerns about how association funds were allocated.
What other counties had HOA complaints?
The 18 other counties with complaints filed against their HOAs and management were:
- Dorchester: 27
- York: 20
- Spartanburg: 17
- Georgetown: 15
- Lexington: 14
- Anderson: 12
- Aiken: 11
- Berkeley: 9
- Kershaw: 7
- Florence: 5
- Oconee: 5
- Jasper: 4
- Lancaster: 4
- Barnwell: 3
- Edgefield: 2
- Pickens: 2
- Newberry: 1
- Hampton: 1
To view the full report from the SCDCA, click here.
This story was originally published February 11, 2026 at 4:30 AM with the headline "HOA complaints are rising in SC. Here’s where they’re highest & why residents are concerned."
