(A) All residential builders must be licensed, and all residential specialty contractors must be registered, by the commission for a period established by the commission in regulation. Licensees and registrants must pay an annual fee established by the department and based upon the department’s costs in carrying out the provisions of this chapter.

(B) An applicant for a license or certificate shall file with the commission a written application on a form as may be prescribed by the commission. The application must be accompanied by the payment of all applicable fees required by the commission. A prerequisite for taking the examination for a residential builder’s license is a minimum of one year of actual experience under the supervision of a licensed residential builder, or other appropriately licensed professional who is engaged in residential building construction involving the trades or crafts for which the license is desired, or other education or experience or a combination of these as may be approved by the commission.

The commission, in examining an applicant, may consider the following qualifications of the applicant:

(1) experience;

(2) ability;

(3) character;

(4) financial condition;

(5) equipment;

(6) workers’ compensation insurance;  and

(7) other pertinent information the commission may require.

(C) The commission shall issue a residential builder’s license if, as a result of examination, the commission finds that the applicant is qualified to engage in residential building in South Carolina, and the applicant submits an executed bond in the form and with a surety approved by the commission in the sum of not less than fifteen thousand dollars or proof of financial responsibility acceptable to the commission.