December 7, 2023

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 October, sales across the four South Carolina counties, just south of Mecklenburg County experienced a decline of 13.1 percent compared to last year as 491 homes sold compared to 565 that sold in October 2022.  Sales compared to the month of September, were mostly unchanged, rising one percent month-over-month, as buyers moved to take advantage of falling mortgage rates.  Year-to-date closed sales were down 18.1 percent compared to sales from January through October of 2022, with a little over 5,300 homes sold so far this year. 

Pending home sales saw a decline of 7.1 percent in October, as 460 homes went under contract. A difference of 35 pending sales separated activity in October from October 2022.  Sales compared to the previous month showed contract activity somewhat on par, down only 4 percent compared to September’s contract activity. 

New listing activity had its smallest year-over-year decline this year, as sellers listed 598 homes for sale, a decrease of 3.5 percent. Month-over-month new listings were down 7.6 percent.  Seller activity in the York-area micro-market has been weak throughout the year, which has impacted growth in inventory and supply.

"We are encouraged by recent news that inflation continues to calm, which should result in mortgage rates moving down to the 7 percent range by year end, and even into the 6 percent range by spring." said Colleen Coesens, a Canopy MLS Board of Director representing South Carolina and a Realtor®/broker with EXP Realty, Fort Mill. “However, rates should not deter clients from buying or selling if all factors align. Buyers and sellers should be proactive about contacting a Realtor® and strategizing now, to prepare for the spring market.”

Inventory and supply at report time show an extremely tight market, with 991 homes for sale and 1.9 months of supply.  Inventory is down 9.7 percent compared to last year while, supply increased 5.6 percent from 1.8 months of supply in October 2022. Tight supply continues to pressure prices, which were mostly stable in October.

Both the median sales price ($385,000) and the average sales price ($431,393) rose 2.7 percent and 1.2 percent year-over-year respectively.  Though seller activity has been weaker throughout 2023, the original list price to sales price metric shows how favorable the market is, as sellers received nearly all of asking price as displayed by the original list price to sales price metric increasing 0.5 percent to 99 percent in October.

Coesens further added, "It has been an interesting year for buyers who have had to face various hurdles. However, sellers have done well. In fact, the National Association of Realtors® recently noted that the typical homeowner has accumulated more than $100,000 in housing wealth over the past three years."

Even though time on market increased 16.7 percent to 35 days in October, homes are still selling quickly, giving buyers little time to negotiate. This time last October days on market showed homes averaged 30 days on market until sale. 

A closer look at the four South Carolina counties

York County sales declined in October, falling 10.5 percent as 331 homes sold compared to 370 that sold in October 2022. Contract activity showed buyer demand rose 3.1 percent in the county as 329 homes went under contract, which is 10 more than last October. Contract activity also increased in Lake Wylie, rising 1.4 percent; the city of Rock Hill, rising 3.3 percent year-over-year; while surging in the Town of York by 55.6 percent, as buyers scramble in the wake of falling mortgage rates. New listing activity in York County declined 6.9 percent to 389 homes listed in October 2023, compared to 418 that were listed in October 2022. However, buyers will find that new listings increased 28.2 percent in the Town of Clover, which also helped to boost supply in Clover to two months of supply. York County’s inventory was down 17.8 percent at report time and showed months of supply unchanged compared to last year, at 1.7 months. The overall tight supply along with increasing demand throughout the county will continue to pressure prices, which rose modestly in October. In York County, both the median sales price ($385,000) and the average sales price ($448,435) increased by 5.5 percent and 5.3 percent year-over-year respectively, while the average list price increased 9.9 percent to $464,332. This brought the original list price to sales price measure to 97.3 percent, as sellers get closer to receiving all of list price, while days on market in October showed homes sold quickly and averaged 36 days on market until sale compared to last year’s much faster sales pace at 29 days on market in October 2022.

Lancaster County home sales declined 20.4 percent to 125 homes sold in October compared to 157 homes sold in October 2022. Pending contracts fell 24.2 percent year-over-year to 113 homes in the sales pipeline, compared to 149 that were under contract a year ago in October. New listings declined 12.5 percent as sellers brought 147 homes to market compared 168 homes listed for sale in October 2022. Inventory declined 6.3 percent at report time in October, showing 285 homes for sale or 2.1 months of supply, which increased 16.7 percent from last year’s low of 1.8 months. With supply increasing sharply, prices softened.  Both the median sales price ($410,000) and the average sales price ($416,564) declined 5.7 percent and 11.8 percent year-over-year respectively, while the average list price increased 10.1 percent to $443,485. This brought the original list price to sales price measure to 97.8 percent as sellers in Lancaster receive nearly all of asking prices while homes were on market 33 days in October, which is unchanged compared to last year. The town of Lancaster had positive sales that rose 1.5 percent compared to last year, as 68 homes sold.  The median price of a home in town is slightly lower and more affordable than the county, at $357,450 in October.

Chester County homes sales declined 27.6 percent in October to 21 homes sold compared to 29 homes sold in October 2022. Contract activity showed buyer demand increased 58.8 percent year-over-year to 27 homes under contract compared to 17 under contract a year ago. New listings rose 83.3 percent year-over-year as sellers brought 44 homes to market compared to 24 homes listed in October 2022. Inventory also increased 26.9 percent to 85 homes for sale or 2.8 months of supply. Months of supply is unchanged compared to last year.  All price indices increased in October, likely due to the surge in demand. Both the median sales price ($270,000) and the average sales price ($282,350) increased 23.9 percent and 18.9 percent year-over-year respectively, while the average list price increased 9 percent year-over-year to $266,583. This brought the original list price to sales price metric to 95.7 percent while days on market showed homes averaged 35 days on market until sale compared to 33 days on market in October 2022.  (Due to small sample sizes, percentage of change may seem extreme)

Chesterfield County had five sales in October compared to seven sales in October of last year.  There were also five homes under contract this past month, compared to nine that were under contract a year ago in October 2022. New listings increased over last year, with fourteen homes listed for sale compared to nine homes newly listed in October 2022. Inventory showed 33 homes for sale compared to 31 last October, which translates to 4.4 months of supply. Last October there was 2.6 months of supply. Prices were mixed.  The medians sales price increased 4.3 percent to $245,000 while the average sales price dipped 5.3 percent to $210,980. This brought the original list price to sales price measure to 92.8 percent, which is down from 101.2 percent last October, while days on market showed homes sold quickly, averaging 30 days on market until sale compared to 42 days on market in October 2022. (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®". 

View the monthly report that this release is based on. See also 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: 12/7/2023