March 28, 2024

Contact: Kim Walker, 704-940-3149

Residential Sales Trends in York, Lancaster, Chester and  Chesterfield Counties

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Canopy MLS reports on residential sales trends in the contiguous counties to Mecklenburg County, which includes York, Lancaster, Chester, and Chesterfield, South Carolina. Data included in this report is for single family, condo, and townhome property types only, for the geographies mentioned above.

In February, the four South Carolina counties south of Mecklenburg and Charlotte experienced a year-over-year rise in closed sales, marking the first increase in 12 months, with 430 properties sold. This represents a 4.6 percent increase from the 411 properties sold in February 2023. Sales compared to January 2023 were up substantially with 100 more closed sales, a 30.3 percent increase.
Buyer demand, as reflected by pending sales in the region, remained nearly unchanged. In February 2024, there were 530 properties that entered into contract, a slight 0.2 percent drop from the previous year's 531 properties. Despite this marginal decline, contract activity in February saw a 2.5 percent uptick from January. The February Showing Reports highlighted that buyer interest was particularly strong in York and Lancaster counties, with averages of 6.4 and 5.6 showings (potential buyers) per listing, respectively. Fort Mill led the way with an impressive 7.4 showings per listing, closely followed by Rock Hill with 6.6 showings per listing.

February 2024 saw a significant 26.8 percent surge in new listings, with 644 homes coming onto the market. This uptick was observed across all major cities and towns within the micro-region. Rock Hill, Lake Wylie, and Fort Mill were the leading areas contributing to most these new listings. Compared to January 2024, the number of new listings rose by 25.3 percent, representing an increase of 130 available properties.

“Leveraging the knowledge and skills of a Realtor® can be incredibly advantageous for those looking to successfully maneuver within the current market conditions.” said Colleen Coesens, a Canopy MLS Board of Director representing South Carolina and a Realtor®/broker with EXP Realty, Fort Mill. “While we’re optimistic about a stronger spring market for 2024, the reality of high demand paired with a still-limited inventory means that properties will likely keep selling swiftly. Buyers should ask their Buyer’s Agent about the new Down Payment Resource tool in Canopy MLS; more than 70 percent of properties qualify for some kind of down payment assistance.”

Inventory experienced a 20.6 percent increase with 867 available properties at the time of reporting. This is a rise from February 2023, which had 719 homes on the market. Additionally, there was a modest 2.5 percent increase from January 2024's figures. Marking the second consecutive month of year-over-year inventory growth, the region is poised to surpass the spring market performance of 2023 if growth continues for a third consecutive month. For the sixth time in a row, months of supply increased from last year, resulting in 1.7 months of supply. Within the region, Lancaster and York counties are experiencing the tightest supply alongside the highest demand.

The average sales price of $421,871 was a 10.5 percent increase compared to February 2023, the largest increase in the previous 12 months. However, there was a slight decline of 4.2 percent from $440,410 in January 2024. The median sales price for the region rose to $380,000, a modest 5.6 percent increase from the previous year. Sellers continued to receive amounts close to their asking prices, with the ratio of the original list price to the sales price at 98.6 percent. Over the past 12 months, sellers generally secured 98.9 percent of their asking price.

Coesens continues, “The mismatch between low inventory levels and high demand indicates that prices will remain under pressure for most of the year. Additionally, it's possible that the average time listings are active on the market will shorten as we enter the spring market. While market conditions may not be ideal, the combination of increased inventory and softer interest rates will provide some welcome respite from the market's intensity over the past few years.”

The average number of days homes spent on the market in February tightened by 2.2 percent year-over-year, settling at 44 days. This was the third consecutive decrease in days on market. February was flat when compared to the previous month of January.

A closer look at the four South Carolina counties

York County sales increased 7.1 percent year-over-year with 342 homes selling across the county. Pending contract activity rose slightly by 1.8 percent year-over-year as 342 homes went under contract compared to 336 during the same period last year. Contract activity was up year-over-year in Tega Cay (5.3%), Clover (20%), Town of York (73.7%), and Lake Wylie (23.5%) but decreased in Fort Mill (-9.1%) and Rock Hill (-17.6%). New listings increased 32.1 percent as sellers listed 416 homes for sale, which is 101 more homes listed than last year. Inventory also increased in February by 22 percent to 515 homes for sale, bumping supply to 1.5 months.

All pricing metrics witnessed increases in February 2024. The median sales price went up 8.3 percent to $392,000 and the average sales price increased 14.5 percent to $443,468. The average list price slightly this month to $461,323, which brought the original list price to sales price measure to 96.6 percent.  Days on market tightened 7 percent and showed homes averaged 40 days on market until sale.

In Rock Hill both the median sales price ($347,000) and the average sales price ($360,900) increase 12.8 percent and 7.5 percent year-over-year. The Town of York had price increases with the median sales price ($359,000) and the average sales price ($412,551) rising 15.8 percent and 20.9 percent respectively. Fort Mill also had price increases with the median sales price ($480,000) and the average sales price ($537,960) rising 13.3 percent and 21.7 percent respectively. Lastly, in Lake Wylie prices rose with the median sales price ($512,000) and the average sales price ($606,322) increasing 14.7 percent and 15.5 percent year-over-year.

Lancaster County home sales declined 1.8 percent as 108 homes sold compared to 110 that sold in February a year ago. Contract activity decreased slightly, as 142 homes went under contract during the month, compared to 144 that were under contract last February. Contract activity was nearly flat in the Town of Lancaster with 67 homes entering into contracts, one less property than last year. New listings for the county jumped 25.6 percent to 167 homes for sale compared to 133 new listings offered by sellers in February 2023. Inventory also increased 8.3 percent to 234 homes for sale while supply increased 28.6 percent to 1.8 months of supply. All pricing metrics rose in the county during February. The median sales price ($419,208) and the average sales price ($431,371) increased by 4.8 percent and 3.4 percent year-over-year respectively. The average list price increased 12.7 percent to $468,628, bringing the original list price to sales price measure to 97 percent. Days on market slowed to 50 days compared to 47 days this time last year.

Chester County inventory increased 22.6 percent to 76 homes for sale at report time. Additionally, months of supply rose 13 percent to 2.6 months of supply. Despite these increases, new listings were down 13.8 percent as sellers listed 50 homes for sale compared to 58 listed the previous year. Home sales also declined this month by 19.2 percent year-over-year as 21 homes sold compared to 26 sold in February 2023. However, pending sales rose 5.1 percent to 41 homes under contract compared to 39 last February. The median sales price ($204,400) dipped 21.8 percent while the average sales price ($200,998) dropped 12.9 percent. Conversely, the average list price increased to $276,186, bringing the original list price-to-sales price ratio to 92.9 percent. Days on market showed homes selling quickly and averaging 45 days.
(Due to small sample sizes, percentage of change may seem extreme)

Chesterfield County witnessed increases across all available metrics in February 2024. Closed sales increased 14.3 percent as 8 homes sold compared to 7 the previous year. Pending sales rose 16.7 percent with 14 homes entering into contracts. New listings increased substantially from 2 properties in 2023 to 11 properties in 2024. Inventory climbed 39.1 percent to 32 homes for sale and 3.6 months of supply. This time last year Chesterfield County only had 2.2 months of supply. Prices rose with both the median sales price ($232,450) and the average sales price ($245,300) increasing 22.4 percent and 27.6 percent year-over-year respectively. The average list price increased 99.4 percent to $259,075 which brought the original list price to sales price ratio to 91.9 percent. Days on market increased to 77 days in February from 33 in February 2023. (Due to small sample sizes, percentage of change may seem extreme)

Canopy Realtor^® Association provides monthly reports on residential real estate market activity for the Charlotte region based on data from Canopy MLS. This report is based on the four South Carolina counties that are also included in the Charlotte region (Chester, Chesterfield, Lancaster, and York Counties).  For more details, visit the monthly report this release is based on, and search for “Piedmont Regional Association of Realtors®". 

See also Charlotte region reports and individual county reports for York, Lancaster, Chester and Chesterfield.  For more residential-housing market statistics, visit www.CarolinaHome.com and click on “Market Data.” For an interview with Canopy MLS South Carolina representative, Colleen Coesens, Realtor®/Broker-in-charge with EXP Realty, Fort Mill, please contact Kim Walker.

Canopy MLS is a wholly-owned subsidiary corporation of Canopy Realtor® Association and is the private broker cooperative used by Realtors® to bring buyers and sellers together with access to thousands of residential listings in a multicounty service area, including Charlotte, Asheville and Catawba Valley regions spanning across North Carolina, South Carolina and outside of the Carolinas. Canopy MLS, which has 21,000 subscribers, provides the most trustworthy, timely, accurate and complete property data along with proprietary tools for showings, market stats, predictive analytics, and more. Canopy MLS is used by its members to support consumers in their residential real estate transactions, whether selling, buying, investing or renting.

Original Publish Date: 3/28/2024