The credit is claimed in equal installments over 5-years beginning with the year that the property is placed in service. Any unused credit from the current year may be carried forward for the succeeding 5 years.

For property placed in service after June 30, 2003, for costs paid in taxable years beginning after 2002, a nonrefundable income tax credit is available for qualified rehabilitation expenses for a certified historic residential structure located in SC.

The credit is 25% of rehabilitation expenses, which must exceed $15,000 within a 36-month period. A taxpayer may not claim more than one credit on the same certified historic residential structure within 10 years.

A "certified historic residential structure" is an owner-occupied residence that is: (a) listed individually in the National Register of Historic Places; (b) considered by the State Historic Preservation Officer to contribute to the historic significance of a National Register Historic District; (c) considered by the State Historic Preservation Officer to meet the criteria for individual listing in the National Register of Historic Places; or (d) an outbuilding of an otherwise eligible property considered by the State Historic Preservation Officer to contribute to the historic significance of the property.

An "owner-occupied residence" is a building or portion of a building in which the taxpayer has an ownership interest, in whole or in part, in fee or by life estate or as the income beneficiary of a property trust, that is, after being placed in service, the residence of the taxpayer and is not: (a) actively used in a trade or business; (b) held for the production of income; or (c) held for sales or disposition in the ordinary course of the taxpayer's trade or business.

A property is "placed in service" when the rehabilitation is completed and allows for the intended use.

"Rehabilitation expenses" are expenses incurred by the taxpayer in the certified rehabilitation of a certified historic residential structure, and must be paid before the credit is claimed. They include expenses for: (a) preservation and rehabilitation work done to the exterior of a certified historic residential structure; (b) repair and stabilization of historic structural systems;(c) restoration of historic plaster; (d) energy efficiency measures except insulation in frame walls; (e) repairs or rehabilitation of heating, air-conditioning, or ventilating systems; (f) repairs or rehabilitation of electrical or plumbing systems exclusive of new electrical appliances and electrical or plumbing fixtures; and (g) architectural and engineering fees.

They do not include: (a) the cost of acquiring or marketing the property (b) the cost of new construction beyond the volume of the existing certified certified historic residential structure (c) the value of an owner's personal labor or (d) the cost of personal property.

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