Moving to The Beach

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Plan Your Move to The Beach

Moving can be stressful, but we want your move to the Myrtle Beach area to be as easy and stress-free as possible. Before you make your big move, there are several things you’re going to want to do.

• If you’re planning your move to the Myrtle Beach area from out-of-state and wish to establish a permanent residence, you’re going to need to apply for a South Carolina driver's license. You have 90 days to do so.

• Those moving to South Carolina from out-of-state and owning any vehicles must also register those vehicles with the state. You have 45 days to transfer your out-of-state vehicle registration to South Carolina.

• About a month before your move, you’ll want to contact your utility companies and set an ‘end date.’ Similarly, you’ll want to reach out to utility companies serving your new home and set a ‘start date.’ Contact information for several utility companies in the Myrtle Beach area can be found below.

• If you have school-aged children, you’ll also want to get copies of school transcripts and contact the new school in Horry or Georgetown county where your children will be students. There may be additional paperwork to be filled out, too, so be sure and contact the school district office prior to your move.

• Once you’re here and settled in, you’ll also want to apply for your South Carolina voter registration. It’s easy to make that happen on the South Carolina State Election Commission website.

More information, including detailed contact information, on each of these moving ‘to-do’ items, can be found below:

Obtaining A South Carolina Driver License

According to the South Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles (SCDMV), if you come into South Carolina from another state and establish a permanent residence, you must apply for a South Carolina driver's license. If you have a valid driver’s license issued by the state from which you moved, you can use it for 90 days, after which time you must surrender it and obtain a South Carolina driver's license. Depending on the class license you hold, you must complete a Form 447-NC or Form 447-CDL, Application for South Carolina Credential. Both forms can be found here.

If your name has changed since birth, you must provide all legal documents (adoption records, marriage certificate, certificate of naturalization, court-ordered name change) supporting all name changes from birth to present. 

For more information about the documents you will need to get an S.C. license, visit www.dmv.org/sc-south-carolina. If your driver's license from your home state has expired more than nine months, you must also pass the knowledge and road tests. To schedule a road test, you should call the DMV office where you would like to take the skills test.

Registering Your Vehicle With The State Of South Carolina

If you plan on establishing permanent residence in the Myrtle Beach area, you must also transfer your out-of-state vehicle registration to South Carolina within 45 days. According to the SCDMV, you may apply for the title and registration by mail. Form 400, Application for Certificate of Title/Registration, can be found here and must be completed, contains the proper mailing address for the department.

The first time you register your vehicle in South Carolina, you must provide the name of your insurance company. SCDMV will verify your coverage electronically. If you are a new resident in South Carolina and have an automobile policy with a national insurance company, be sure to change your address with your insurance company before you register your vehicle in South Carolina.

In order to register your vehicle with the state of South Carolina, you will need to show: 1) your out-of-state vehicle title and registration; 2) liability insurance information; 3) completed Form 400, Application for Certificate of Title/Registration; and 4) your paid vehicle property tax receipt from your new county showing you’ve paid all vehicle property taxes required.

For more information on vehicle registration, including titles and fees, visit www.dmv.org/sc-south-carolina.

Contacting Your New Myrtle Beach Area Utility Companies

You’ll want to contact all your new utility companies prior to making your move in order to set a ‘start date’ for necessary services. Below is the contact information for different utility companies in the Myrtle Beach area.

Electric

• Horry Electric Cooperative
• Santee Cooper

Water

• Grand Strand Water & Sewer Authority: 843-443-8200
• Little River Water & Sewer Authority: 843-399-1888
• Rural Community Water District of Georgetown County: 843-546-9003

Gas

• Dominion Energy
• Amerigas: 843-248-5755
• Ford’s Propane, A Blossman Company: 843-249-1614
• Jerry Cox Co.: 843-365-2353

Waste Management

• GFL: 843-397-5586
• Waste Management: 843-397-7670

Telephone

• AT&T: (800) 344-0300
• HTC: (843) 365-2151
• MCI Telecomm. Corp.: (800) 950-5555
• One Source: (843) 497-6485
• Sprint: Residential: (800) 877-7746
• Verizon: (800) 483-4000

Cable

• Spectrum (843) 913-7941
• HTC Digital Cable: (843) 365-2154
• Direct TV: (800) 280-4388

High Speed Internet

• HTC Internet: (843) 369-7223
• Earthlink: (800) 511-2041
• Spectrum: (843) 913-7941
• Frontier

Transferring School Transcripts, Needed Information To School District

Before you make the move to the Myrtle Beach area, you’ll want to attain copies of school transcripts for any school-aged children you may have. You’ll then want to contact the new school where your children will be attending as students. Before you leave, you’ll also want to contact the school district you are moving to in order to make sure all forms and applications have been completed. A complete listing of all schools in each district can be found online at each district’s website.

Horry County Schools
335 Four Mile Rd.
Conway, SC 29528
District Office: 843-488-6700

Georgetown County Schools
2018 Church St.
Georgetown, SC 29440
District Office: 843-436-7000
 

Becoming A South Carolina Voter

Before you’re able to register to vote in the state of South Carolina, you’re going to need to make sure you have obtained your South Carolina driver’s license or SCDMV ID. If you have moved from within the state of South Carolina to the Myrtle Beach area, you’ll want to make sure you update your address with the DMV before registering to vote.

There are several ways to register. You can go to scvotes.gov and complete online registration, register in person at the county board of voter registration (location information below), or mail or fax registration in to the county board of voter registration. However you choose to complete registration, you’ll first need to complete the forms available online or in-person at the county board of voter registration.

There is no length of residency requirement in South Carolina in order to register to vote. You can register at any time but must be registered at least 30 days prior to any election in order to vote in that election. For more information on voting requirements and registration, visit scvotes.gov.

Horry County Board of Voter Registration
1515 4th Ave.
Conway, SC 29526
Phone: 843-915-5440

Georgetown County Board of Voter Registration
303 N. Hazard St.
Georgetown, SC 29440
Phone: 843-545-3339