Spartanburg County SC’s hot real estate market stays steady

It’s a white hot real estate market right now in Spartanburg County, which is good news for sellers and bad news for buyers, local agents say.

“If you want to sell, it is an unbelievable time to cash out of a home,” said Ray Crotts, president of the Spartanburg Area Realtors Association. “You may be one of the fortunate ones that get $40,000 over asking offer with no appraisal contingency.”

In short, home prices are skyrocketing due to high demand and short supply.

“I say there almost needs to be a new definition of an affordable home,” Crotts said.

Buyers competing

Homebuyers are competing like never before, especially local buyers trying to match high offers from an increasing number of residents who have moved to Spartanburg County from the west coast, he said.

“We have historically seen a lot of buyers from New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio and Florida, but now we have a huge influx of buyers from California and Washington state,” Crotts said. “These folks are coming in with tons of cash and will pay well over asking price and still feel like they are getting a deal when compared to where they are coming from.”

Higher prices seen this year:Will there be a housing market correction in 2022 after two years of ‘hyper-growth’?

Dennis McCall, MLS president of the Spartanburg Association of Realtors, said the prices are rising for both new and existing homes.

“We have experienced more multiple offers in the last two years than ever before,” McCall said. “Most of those occur within the first few days that the homes are on the market. With this competitive atmosphere, a lot of homes are going under contract for more than the asking price and some are being purchased without appraisals.”

The hottest areas in the county are in northern and western Spartanburg County, including Boiling Springs, Duncan and Reidville. 

New housing developments planned:Spartanburg County development: 7 new housing developments, 610 homes approved

“Areas such as Woodruff and Cowpens are also doing well,” McCall said. “Really, no part of the county is doing poorly. Homes for sale in all areas are selling within days of hitting the market. New construction, as well as townhomes, are popping up everywhere a builder can get some land to build.”

Median home prices rising across SC

Combined with skyrocketing prices for building materials, the median price of a home in Spartanburg County is now $245,000 as of January 2022 – 15.3% ($32,500) higher than in January 2021, according to the South Carolina Realtors Association.

Over the last six months, the median price in Spartanburg County for a typical three-bedroom, two-bathroom home on a small lot was $270,00. In the city, it was $223,800, Crotts said.

In January alone, the average sale price in January was $278,740 – up from $240,252 the prior January and $199,316 in January 2020, he added.

Existing starter homes that have two or three bedrooms, one to one and a half baths, are selling for $140,000 to $160,000 right now, McCall said.

Spartanburg 10th most affordable place:Analysis: Spartanburg named No. 2 job market, 10th most affordable place to live in United States

Still, it’s lower than the statewide median home price of $285,870 and lower than Charleston, $350,000; Greenville, $280,000; and central Carolina, $338,500. Hilton Head owns the highest median home price at $482,500, according to the S.C. Association of Realtors.