Buying a Home in North and South Carolina
A straight guide through buying in North or South Carolina, from your first search to the day you get the keys.
A Quick Note
This article is general information, not legal or lending advice. Contract forms, loan programs, and fees change, and your finances are your own, so please confirm the details that affect you with your attorney and your lender. I am a real estate professional, and my part is the search, the negotiation, and the path to closing.
Money First, Then Houses
I start every buyer in the same place: a conversation with a lender, before we tour anything. A lender tells you what you can borrow, and I tell you what that amount actually buys here. Down payment rules are looser than many people expect. The FHA allows a down payment as low as 3.5 percent for borrowers with a credit score of 580 or higher, and Fannie Mae's HomeReady mortgage allows down payments as low as 3 percent. Your lender tells you which program fits your situation.
Being pre-approved and represented before we walk a house means you can act the day the right one appears. Read how the Ready step works.
Your Agreement With Me, in Writing
In North Carolina, the Real Estate Commission requires an agreement for brokerage services with a buyer to be in writing and signed no later than the time an offer is made. Separately, since August 17, 2024, the National Association of REALTORS requires its MLS participants to sign a written agreement with a buyer before touring a home with them, in person or by live video. The rule does not dictate what kind of relationship you choose.
I explain what I do for you and how I am paid before you sign anything, and I answer every question about it.
The Offer: North Carolina and South Carolina Contracts Differ
In North Carolina, most residential deals use the Offer to Purchase and Contract (Form 2-T), approved jointly by the NC REALTORS and the NC Bar Association. It provides for a due diligence fee, a negotiated amount, if any, that the buyer pays the seller for the right to terminate the contract for any reason during a negotiated due diligence period. If you end the contract inside that period, the North Carolina Real Estate Commission notes you typically get your earnest money back but not the due diligence fee.
In South Carolina, the South Carolina REALTORS residential contract builds its own due diligence period. It begins on the effective date and ends at the date and time written into the contract. Inside it you inspect, request repairs, and negotiate. To end the contract in that window you deliver a written notice of termination together with the termination fee written into the contract, and if the period passes without a new agreement or a termination, you are buying the home as is. Forms get revised, so I read you the current version line by line before you sign.
Inspections, Appraisal, and Closing
The inspections happen inside your due diligence period, which is why that clock matters so much and why I never let it sneak up on you. If you borrow, your lender orders the appraisal. Closing runs through an attorney in both states: the North Carolina State Bar treats handling a residential closing as the practice of law, and the South Carolina Supreme Court held that closings should be conducted only under the supervision of attorneys. I stay in touch with your lender and the closing attorney the whole way.
Walking the Houses With You
I personally walk every home with you, inland or on the coast, and I run the comps on every serious house so you see what it is worth before you fall for it. You get a straight verdict on each one, not just a tour.
Coastal buying adds a question worth asking before an offer: whether the home sits in a mapped flood zone. Federally regulated or insured lenders require flood insurance on buildings in a Special Flood Hazard Area when the loan is federally backed, so I ask for the flood zone and an insurance quote early. That matters in places like Wilmington, Myrtle Beach, and Brunswick County. Inland, we look at different things, such as lot, updates, and the sales nearby in Burlington and Greensboro.
Where to Go Next
If this is your first purchase, start at first-time buyers. If you are moving from somewhere else, relocation covers touring and timing. The free Buyer Guide walks the whole process in order, and a call with me gets you started.
Sources
The rules above come from these sources, checked in October 2026. Forms and programs change, so confirm current terms with your lender and attorney.
- HUD, FHA loan information
- HUD, Mortgagee Letter 2010-29, minimum credit scores
- Fannie Mae, HomeReady Mortgage
- North Carolina Real Estate Commission, buyer agency agreements
- National Association of REALTORS, settlement FAQs (updated August 8, 2024), practice changes effective August 17, 2024
- North Carolina Real Estate Commission, due diligence questions and answers
- South Carolina REALTORS residential purchase contract, 2024 edition of the form (copy hosted by a brokerage)
- North Carolina State Bar, Authorized Practice Advisory Opinion 2002-1
- Doe v. McMaster, South Carolina Supreme Court (2003)
- FEMA, flood risk and lending requirements
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need an attorney to buy a house in North or South Carolina?
Your closing runs under an attorney's supervision in both states. The North Carolina State Bar treats handling a residential closing as the practice of law, and the South Carolina Supreme Court held that closings should be conducted only under attorney supervision.
Is the North Carolina due diligence fee refundable?
Usually not. The fee, if there is one, is negotiated and paid to the seller for your right to terminate during the due diligence period. If you terminate in that period, you typically get your earnest money back but not the fee, according to the North Carolina Real Estate Commission.
How much do I need for a down payment?
It depends on the loan. The FHA allows as little as 3.5 percent down with a credit score of 580 or higher, and Fannie Mae's HomeReady allows as little as 3 percent down. Your lender confirms what fits you.
Do I have to sign something with you before we tour homes?
Yes. Since August 17, 2024, the National Association of REALTORS requires its MLS participants to sign a written agreement with a buyer before touring, in person or by live video. I explain it before you sign.
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