This is the lane
Most Charleston agents want clean title, city sewer, and a kitchen that photographs well. I want the house with a septic repair order in the file, the carriage house that was never permitted, or the “mother-in-law suite” that fails today’s zoning.
Those deals are slower. They need inspectors, soil knowledge, permit research, and sometimes a Board of Zoning Appeals path. They also reward the buyer or seller who has someone who will not flinch.
Plain pitch: I buy and sell the homes other agents will not touch until the paperwork is clean — or I show you exactly what “clean” would cost before you write the offer.
Two problems I specialize in
01
Failed / repair-order septic
Not “homes on septic.” Homes with a real systems problem: failed field, SCDES/DHEC history, or a repair that changes the purchase math. Rural Tri-County and Lowcountry lots are the core inventory.
02
Unpermitted ADU / dependency
Carriage houses, garage apartments, and in-law suites that look rentable but are not legal. I map whether the path is permits, a variance, a remodel, or “do not bank on rental income.”
03
The combo
Estate home + deferred septic + mystery second unit. That is where patience and a calm process matter more than staging.
How a deal usually runs
- Send the address first. Remarks, photos, and tax record before emotion.
- Paper trail. Permit history, SCDES septic records where available, zoning district, and whether a second living space was ever recognized.
- Specialists early. Septic inspector who pumps and evaluates the field. Survey when lines or encroachments are in play. Attorney when title or estate authority is soft.
- Path or walk. Repair and close, variance path, price as-is for the right buyer, or stop before earnest money gets emotional.
For land and raw dirt where septic suitability is the whole question, start with the free Land Buildability Score. For secondary living space rules, read the ADU & carriage house guide.
Who this is for
- Buyers who can handle a project if the numbers and permits are honest.
- Sellers stuck with a failed system, an unpermitted unit, or a listing that died after inspection.
- Heirs and executors inheriting a rural or historic property with deferred systems — see also probate & estate.
- Investors who want legalizable income space, not wishful marketing — pair with ADU & carriage house rules and multi-generational homes.
What I will not do
I will not tell you an illegal apartment is “basically fine.” I will not treat a flush test as a septic inspection. I will not promise a Board of Zoning Appeals outcome. I will get you the truth early enough that you can still choose.
Deeper due-diligence questions live in What Complicated Properties Won’t Tell You.
Is a failed septic a deal-killer?
Often it is a price and timeline problem, not an automatic no. Soil, setbacks, and whether a repair or replacement system can be permitted decide the path. Cash and renovation loans behave differently than a clean conventional purchase.
Can I rent a carriage house that was never permitted?
Do not underwrite rental income until the use is legal for that jurisdiction. Some spaces can be brought into compliance; some become storage or guest use only. I separate “extra square footage” from “bankable ADU.”
Do you work military and VA buyers on these too?
Yes, when the property and loan type can clear. VA and assumable strategies still matter; the systems and permit work has to fit the appraisal and underwriting. Start on the VA buyers page if that is your lane.