Ask Lori Lee: Grand Strand Edition — What are the Myrtle Beach Golf Cart Laws?

This is one of the first statements, usually within the first 10 minutes of a buyer's consultation — "we want to be golf cart distance to the beach." If this is what you want, yes, it's legal — but it comes with real rules, so let's deep dive into golf cart laws in Myrtle Beach.

Myrtle Beach Golf Cart Laws: The State Rules Everyone Must Follow

South Carolina treats golf carts as a genuine category of road vehicle, not a loophole, and the requirements come from the state, not just local custom. Before a golf cart can legally touch a public street anywhere in South Carolina, it has to be insured, permitted, and registered with the SC Department of Motor Vehicles, and that registration needs to be on the cart when you're driving it. The person behind the wheel has to be at least 16 years old with a valid driver's license.

There are a few more rules worth knowing before your first drive: children under 12 need to be buckled in if the cart has seat belts, and as of a 2025 update to the law, golf carts are limited to daylight-hours operation on public roads unless a local ordinance says otherwise. You're also restricted to secondary streets with a posted speed limit of 35 mph or under, and to a 4-mile radius — either from your registered address or from the entrance of your gated community. That last detail catches people off guard. It means a golf cart is genuinely a neighborhood vehicle here, not a way to get from North Myrtle Beach to a dinner reservation in Murrells Inlet.

Local Ordinances Can Add to (Not Loosen) the State Rules

Here's the part that trips up relocating buyers the most: cities and counties along the Grand Strand are allowed to layer their own ordinances on top of the state law — different permit stickers, specific hour restrictions, or designated golf cart routes — as long as they don't exceed that 35 mph statewide ceiling. Myrtle Beach, North Myrtle Beach, and the surrounding beach towns each maintain their own specifics, and they don't always match each other exactly. If you're planning to actually use a golf cart as a regular vehicle rather than an occasional beach-day novelty, it's worth a quick call to your specific city or county before you register one, just to confirm the local add-ons.

In my experience, this is one of those small logistics questions that ends up mattering more to relocating buyers than they expect going in — a golf cart genuinely functions as a second vehicle for a lot of my clients once they're settled, especially in golf-cart-friendly pockets like Ocean Drive, Barefoot Resort, and the Cherry Grove side of North Myrtle Beach, where running to the beach, a neighbor's driveway, or the local market by cart is just part of how the day works.

Golf Cart or Low-Speed Vehicle? The Distinction That Actually Matters

Not every four-wheeled cruiser on the Grand Strand is legally the same thing, and the difference matters more than most buyers realize. A true golf cart tops out around 15 mph and carries that 4-mile leash described above. A low-speed vehicle, or LSV, is a different legal category entirely — it's built with the full set of street-legal equipment (headlights, turn signals, seat belts, mirrors, a windshield, a horn) and gets a real DMV registration and plate, similar to registering a car. In exchange, an LSV can travel up to 25 mph on any road posted 35 mph or under, with no 4-mile restriction at all. If you're picturing a cart as genuine daily transportation rather than an occasional beach cruiser, that distinction is worth understanding before you buy one.

Buying a Cart vs. Buying a Home With Cart Access Already Built In

One more thing worth knowing before you shop: not every neighborhood is set up the same way for golf cart living. Some communities have internal cart paths connecting directly to the beach or the clubhouse, some sit right along a designated golf cart route into town, and some simply don't lend themselves to it because of how the streets and speed limits are laid out. If having a golf-cart-friendly lifestyle is part of what's drawing you here — and for a lot of buyers, it genuinely is part of the appeal — that's worth flagging early in your search so we can prioritize it alongside the usual bedroom count and square footage.

What to Look for in a Home If Cart Life Matters to You

If you know a golf cart is going to be part of your daily routine, it's worth walking a property with that in mind rather than treating it as an afterthought. A garage or covered carport deep enough to fit both a car and a cart, an accessible 110-volt outlet for charging, and a driveway with enough turning room to pull a cart in and out without a three-point maneuver all make a real difference day to day. It's also worth asking about HOA rules early — some communities restrict where carts can be parked or charged outdoors, and a few require them to be garaged out of sight overnight. None of that shows up in listing photos, so it's exactly the kind of question I build into a showing when I know a buyer plans to actually use one.

Lori Lee