Most Charleston-area rental portfolios are not on the peninsula. They are spread across North Charleston, Summerville, Goose Creek, Hanahan and West Ashley, where long-term tenants work at the port, the base, the hospitals and the region's manufacturers.
In short: LendingStreet offers blanket portfolio loans that put five or more Charleston-area rentals, each with 1 to 8 units, under one loan qualified on the portfolio's combined cash flow. You get one closing and one payment, portfolio pricing and release provisions for selling a property later. Because South Carolina taxes rentals at a 6% assessment ratio and coastal insurance is expensive, the ratio usually works best at somewhat lower leverage than investors expect, and we size the loan with that in mind.
Long-term rental investors in the Lowcountry tend to buy where prices and rents line up with the workforce. North Charleston, especially around Park Circle and the older mill-village streets, has smaller homes close to the port terminals, Joint Base Charleston and Boeing's campus. Hanahan, Goose Creek and Ladson in Berkeley and Charleston counties offer newer houses at moderate prices. Summerville, largely in Dorchester County, has a large stock of single-family homes popular with families.
Inside the city, West Ashley's brick ranches from the 1950s through 1970s and parts of James Island rent steadily to hospital and medical university staff. Peninsula properties are usually too expensive to carry on long-term rents alone and tend to be financed separately.
The blanket is qualified by comparing total rent from all properties with the combined payment: principal and interest plus taxes and insurance on every property. In the Charleston area, those last two lines are heavier than in many markets. South Carolina assesses legal residences at 4% but rentals at 6%, and owner-occupants get school operating millage relief that investors do not, so a rental's tax bill can be more than double the seller's. Coastal wind and flood insurance adds more.
That does not make portfolios unworkable. It means the loan amount is often set by the ratio rather than by the maximum LTV.
This example is illustrative and not a quote. An investor refinances six single-family rentals worth $2,040,000 combined and renting for $12,900 a month. Taxes at the 6% assessment ratio run about $1,980 a month across the six and insurance about $1,260.
At 70% of value, the loan would be $1,428,000, with estimated principal and interest of about $9,741 and a total payment of about $12,981, for a DSCR of about 0.99x, just under 1.0x. At 65% of value, the loan is $1,326,000, principal and interest is about $9,046, the total is about $12,286 and the DSCR is about 1.05x.
| Item | 70% of value | 65% of value |
|---|---|---|
| Blanket loan | $1,428,000 | $1,326,000 |
| Estimated principal and interest | $9,741 | $9,046 |
| Taxes, six properties | $1,980 | $1,980 |
| Insurance, six properties | $1,260 | $1,260 |
| Total payment | $12,981 | $12,286 |
| Combined rent | $12,900 | $12,900 |
| Portfolio DSCR | About 0.99x | About 1.05x |
A Charleston-area portfolio often crosses Charleston, Berkeley and Dorchester counties, and North Charleston itself spans two of them. Each county has its own assessor, auditor and millage, and the 6% assessment ratio applies everywhere. Pull current tax bills for every parcel, and if a property was recently owner-occupied, recalculate at the investor ratio. A blanket loan can hold properties in all three counties.
Growth patterns differ by county, too. Berkeley and Dorchester counties have added large numbers of new subdivisions around Summerville, Goose Creek and Ladson, and some of those neighborhoods have HOA leasing rules, rental caps or minimum lease terms. Check the covenants on every property in the schedule. A home in a subdivision that later bans rentals can become a problem for the whole portfolio.
Low-lying parts of North Charleston, West Ashley, James Island and Summerville can fall in mapped flood zones, and one property needing flood insurance raises the combined payment. Collect flood determinations and elevation certificates where available. Older homes with newer roofs, impact windows or wind mitigation features may price better on insurance.
Ask your agent whether the policies can be written together. A single carrier for the whole portfolio can simplify renewals and make it easier to show proof of coverage at closing, though it does not always lower the premium.
Charleston-area homes have appreciated, and many investors sell individual rentals to owner-occupants over time. Release provisions let you sell one property and pay down the blanket by an agreed amount, usually more than that property's allocated share, while the rest of the portfolio stays in place. The remaining properties generally must still meet the ratio. South Carolina deed recording fees are charged on each sale, so plan for them in your net proceeds.
Separate DSCR loans keep each property independent and can be better for homes you plan to sell soon. A blanket offers one payment, one maturity and portfolio pricing, and lets stronger properties carry weaker ones. Many investors keep a peninsula or beach property on its own loan and put their long-term workforce rentals in a blanket.
Our investor loans are business-purpose loans on non-owner-occupied property. Send a schedule with each address, county, value, rent, current loan balance, taxes and insurance. LendingStreet will size the blanket on combined cash flow, test it at more than one leverage level and explain the release terms. Call (877) 298-1001 or use the form below. Properties in other South Carolina markets, or in other states, can be combined on some programs.
Yes. Properties across Charleston, Berkeley and Dorchester counties can be in one blanket, as long as there are five or more and each has 1 to 8 units.
South Carolina taxes rentals at a 6% assessment ratio and coastal insurance is expensive, so the combined payment is heavier. The ratio, not the maximum LTV, often sets the loan size.
Yes. Its flood insurance goes into the combined payment, and the portfolio as a whole must meet the minimum ratio.
You sell one property and pay down the blanket by an agreed amount, and the rest stays financed. Deed recording fees apply at each sale.
No. The loan qualifies on combined property cash flow. You need a 620 or higher credit score and reserves.
It can, but high-value peninsula homes often carry thin ratios on long-term rents, so many investors finance them separately.
Five investment properties, each with 1 to 8 units.
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