New Homes In Charleston SC: Existing Homes Vs. New Homes

As I posted yesterday, sales of new homes in Charleston SC are amongst the best in the US. Here is a breakdown of the local numbers.

The average sales price of new homes in Charleston SC has increased 10.4% over the last year, while the average sales price of existing homes increased 2.3%.

New homes sold for an average of 6.82% higher than existing homes. In fact, over the last 3 years, new homes in Charleston SC have increased in value by a whopping 23.77%, while their existing counterparts increased in sales price by 7.6%.

New homes in Charleston SC increased in sales numbers over the last year by 9.7%, while existing homes increased in sales by 7.2%.

Of the 13,400 homes sold in the greater Charleston SC real estate market over the last year, 2,879 of them were new homes. That number made up nearly 21.5% of the total homes sold.

New Homes In Charleston SC: Percentage Of Sales Has Dropped

Interestingly enough, despite Charleston ranking as the 3rd best new home market, over the years the percentage of new homes that made up the total home sales has actually decreased. New homes made up nearly one third of overall sales for several years, but that number has decreased in the recent years.

A lot of that can probably be attributed to the hot Charleston market overall. But looking closely at the number of new listings to hit the market over the last year, new listings for existing homes outnumbered new listings for new homes by nearly 5 times as much (15,560 existing versus 3,780 new).

New homes average a sales price nearly 7% higher overall, and right now buyers have more options available with existing homes. These homes are ready to move in without having to wait for the construction process to unfold, so all of these factor into why new homes are not a larger percentage of overall market sales.

One final important stat to look at is the average price per square foot. In looking at overall numbers, you can’t just assume that the homes are comparable—the numbers are an overall average of all homes sold. So, there is a wide variety of homes that differ as far as size, number of bedrooms, age, and the all-important location, location, location.

New Homes In Charleston SC: Offer A Great Value To Home Buyers

However, the average price per square feet is a good number that helps equalize the playing field. New homes in Charleston SC increased in Price Per Square Foot by 7.9% while existing homes increased by 3.2%. It is interesting to take a closer look at the respective Price Per Square Foot numbers over the last three years—new homes have increased at a faster rate, but are still slightly below the existing homes.

Nevertheless, new homes in Charleston SC present a great value for buyers. As the recent survey indicated, buyers prefer new homes because of the modern amenities that are lacking in many older homes, the ability to customize a new home to their specifications, and less maintenance. However, there is an extra premium to be paid for this, as well as a little longer wait to closing, but for many buyers the value is worth the trade off.

If you are looking at new homes in Charleston SC, bee sure to visit my website–you can get a free list of new homes that match your criteria, download buyers guides, find helpful info and videos about buying new homes in Charleston SC.