Aging-in-Place Remodeling in Myrtle Beach, SC: Costs, Licenses

Myrtle Beach is 23.7% residents 65 and over, with a median household income of $60,394 and a median home value of $388,800 (Census American Community Survey 2024 five-year estimates), inside Horry County, which had 128,019 residents 65 and over on July 1, 2025, 29.9% of the county, the most in South Carolina and up 34.5% since 2020 (Census Bureau Vintage 2025 estimates). Only 38.3% of the city's homes are single-family detached; the rest are condominiums and townhomes, and across the county 12.9% of homes are manufactured. Contractors are licensed by the South Carolina LLR Residential Builders Commission. The projects that come up most are a ramp or step-free entry on a raised beach house or a manufactured home, a tub-to-shower conversion in a 1990s condo bath, and grab bars.

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Myrtle Beach by the numbers

• 23.7% of Myrtle Beach's 38,371 residents are 65 or older; median household income is $60,394, the median home is worth $388,800 and was built in 1994, and 38.3% are single-family detached (Census American Community Survey 2024 five-year estimates).
• North Myrtle Beach is 41.6% residents 65 and over (same source); Georgetown County, the south end of the Grand Strand, is 33.9% 65 and over, the highest share of any South Carolina county (Census Bureau Vintage 2025 estimates).
• Horry County had 128,019 residents 65 and over on July 1, 2025, 29.9% of 427,551, up 34.5% since 2020 (Census Bureau Vintage 2025 estimates).

The homes here

Condos first. The retirement stock is 1990s and 2000s oceanfront and golf-course condominiums: a tub-shower behind a curb, a narrow bathroom door, a slick tile balcony. The bathroom safety remodel that fits is a tub-to-shower conversion with a low or zero threshold, a fold-down bench and grab bars, inside the unit's walls so regime approval is simple.

Raised beach houses and manufactured homes. Beach and waterway houses built since the flood maps sit on pilings with stairs to the door, and 12.9% of county homes are manufactured, with a raised entry and a few steps. Both need a ramp or step-free entry: a short ramp at 1 foot of run per inch of rise for a manufactured home, a vertical platform lift for a full story. Newer subdivisions west of the waterway (24.3% of county homes date from 2010 or later) are single-story slab houses where grab bars and a curbless shower are the whole job.

Wind-rated openings. Inside the code's windborne debris region (within a mile of the coast at a 130 mph basic wind speed, or anywhere the ultimate wind speed reaches 140 mph), a replacement door or window needs impact glazing to ASTM E1886 and E1996, approved shutters or panels, or an engineered design. A wider front door or a new slider is a rated product and a permit item; ask the building department whether the address is inside the region. Entry, balcony and pool-deck tile stays wet most of the year, where non-slip flooring matters most.

Licensing and permits in Horry County

The South Carolina LLR Residential Builders Commission licenses the work: a residential builder for any job over $5,000, with a $15,000 bond on file; a registered or licensed specialty contractor for trade work between $500 and $5,000, and licensed electricians, plumbers and HVAC contractors always. South Carolina has no recovery fund, and an unlicensed builder cannot lien or sue on the contract, so check the license at the LLR licensee lookup. The beach cities issue their own permits and Horry County covers the rest; write into the contract who pulls the permit. The South Carolina page has the full state rule.

Who pays

Most Grand Strand families pay directly, from savings, a home equity line or siblings splitting the cost: no pre-approval, your choice of contractor, a start date you control, and paying out of pocket covers the tools. The Waccamaw Area Agency on Aging serves Horry, Georgetown and Williamsburg counties at 843-546-8502. Horry County's owner-occupied rehabilitation program serves homes in the unincorporated county (not inside Myrtle Beach city limits) with household income at or below 80% of the area median ($48,200 for 1 person in 2026-2027), with a forgivable lien; call (843) 915-7033. The SC Assistive Technology Loan Program lends up to $30,000 for home modifications to a resident with a documented disability, a long-term care policy often includes a capped home modification benefit, and medical modifications can count as tax deductions. Original Medicare pays nothing toward remodeling; for Medicaid, ask the South Carolina Department of Health and Human Services what is covered and whether there is a waitlist; veterans should ask the VA about the HISA grant.

Common projects in Myrtle Beach

Myrtle Beach-area construction wages averaged $24.93 an hour against $31.42 nationally in May 2025 (Bureau of Labor Statistics). Get 3 written quotes from LLR-licensed builders.

• Ramps and step-free entries: $875 to $5,000 nationally; a manufactured-home ramp is the low end.
• Bathroom safety remodel: $2,500 to $9,000 for the tub-to-shower conversion, $6,600 to $28,000 for the full accessible bathroom.
• Walk-in tub: $3,000 to $15,000 installed nationally.

Ready to talk to a certified aging-in-place remodeler? Request a match and talk to a licensed remodeler serving Myrtle Beach.