Four kinds of companies make home loans in South Carolina, and they do not all answer to the same regulator or owe you the same duties. This site explains the differences in plain language, so you can compare lenders on more than a quoted rate.
Lend their own deposits and sell one menu of loans: their own. Depository institutions regulated by a federal banking agency are exempt from the state mortgage licensing chapters.
Member-owned depositories. You join first, then borrow. Like banks, they offer their own products and keep many loans on their books.
Non-bank companies that make or service loans. In South Carolina they hold a license under the Mortgage Lending Act.
Do not lend their own money. A broker takes one application and places it with the wholesale lender that fits, under the Licensing of Mortgage Brokers Act.
Every lender must give you this three-page form after you apply. Line up the origination charges and the cash to close from each one, not the headline number.
A South Carolina broker fee agreement must say the broker acts as your agent. A bank loan officer works for the bank.
One institution means one set of underwriting rules. A broker can move a file to another lender when the first one says no.
Look the company and the loan officer up by NMLS number before you hand over documents.
State law treats the types differently. A mortgage lender is licensed through the State Board of Financial Institutions; a mortgage broker is licensed by the Department of Consumer Affairs and must post a surety bond. Both hold records in the Nationwide Mortgage Licensing System. Knowing which one you are dealing with tells you where a complaint goes and what paperwork you are owed at application.
Two laws, two agencies. Which one covers the company you are talking to, and what each must give you in writing.
You choose the closing attorney and the insurance agent. The state also bars loan flipping and financed credit insurance.
The deed recording fee is $1.85 per $500, and a home you live in is assessed at 4 percent, not 6. Both change your numbers.
The state housing agency backs several loans with forgivable down payment help. They are only available through its lending partners.
One number covers the whole state in 2026: $832,750 for a single-family home. Above it, the loan is a jumbo.
Home Loans Inc is a South Carolina mortgage broker in North Charleston. One application, priced across many wholesale lenders, with a person who answers the phone.