It is always amazing how quickly the year passes. Every year we try to predict and plot how the real estate market in Charleston will evolve. This is one of the tools that we hope to have assist our clients when making their real estate decisions. Our predictions and estimations are constantly being adjusted as we watch the outside environment and market data.
In 2025 we started with one prediction variable that we face whenever a new president is elected, the first 100 days. During this time many are trying to see what policies and plans will quickly be implemented and how to interpret them. One of the biggest announcements was the plan for trade deals. The announcement and subsequent actions led to swings in the stock market. This led to a lot of uncertainty in the real estate market during the first quarter but subsided as trade deals were executed. Interest rates came into 2025 with predictions happening that rates would gradually decline with hopes of coming in under 6%. Those predictions did not come to fruition as rates climbed a bit with average rates in 2025 around 6.75%. All of this led us to a bit of a slow start in the first quarter, with a strong second quarter. The third quarter is typically a slower quarter in real estate for Charleston as school is out and the warm summer months hit Charleston. This year was no exception, and the summer slowdown happened. After the third quarter slowdown we typically see an increase in sales contracts happening in September and October. The early part of September we saw this, but then sales lagged for the rest of the month and into October. The strange delay may have been because of more outside forces, as the longest United States government shutdown occurred from October 1st to November 12th. Since the shutdown, we have seen many contracts as we end the year.
Through November, sales in the Charleston Trident Area were virtually flat with a 1% increase versus the previous 12 months. The average sales price was up 3.4% and the median sales price was up 1.9%. Charleston has trended with the national numbers of a 1.7% increase in home sales and a 2.1% price increase.
Be on the lookout after the new year, as we will dive into the final sales numbers of 2025 for Charleston, the luxury real estate market, and what we predict for 2026.
