Golf Cart Rules in North Myrtle Beach: What Buyers and New Residents Need to Know

Complete SCDMV Form GC-2 with your driver's license and proof of golf cart liability insurance, and pay $5 for a decal that's valid five years or until you move. North Myrtle Beach also issues its own city decal, free to residents and property owners through City Hall. Keep your license, the SC DMV registration certificate, and proof of insurance in the cart at all times.

The driver must be at least 16 with a valid license, and every passenger needs to follow the town's seat belt and car seat rules. Carts stay on secondary streets posted 35 mph or lower, within four miles of the registration address, and never on US-17, Sea Mountain Highway, the beach, sidewalks, or bike paths. Since a June 2025 city ordinance, carts are allowed on public streets only between sunrise and sunset, headlights or not; a low-speed vehicle (LSV) is what you need to legally drive after dark.

Violations carry up to a $100 fine and 30 days, plus towing at your expense. A standard homeowners or auto policy usually excludes a golf cart driven on public streets, so ask about a dedicated golf cart policy. Gated neighborhoods and golf communities often add their own registration, speed limits, and cart-path rules on top of the city's, and city law doesn't override a stricter HOA rule on private community roads.

Check that the streets between a home and the places you'd actually go, groceries, restaurants, a beach access, are posted 35 mph or lower, and watch for a highway like US-17 sitting between a community and the oceanfront: a golf cart can't legally travel along it. If a cart conveys with a home, look for a VIN plate; it may be an LSV, titled and registered differently. Local to Coastal Realty can walk you through which North Myrtle Beach neighborhoods are genuinely golf-cart friendly before you buy. Get in touch to talk specifics.