Staff Report
Published June 19, 2012

Following a slow April, statewide home sales picked back up in May, according to the latest market report from the South Carolina Realtors.

The state’s largest metropolitan areas of Charleston, Columbia and Greenville all reported sales growth. Of those markets, Columbia posted the highest gain at 20.3%, though median sales price was down in that market, unlike Charleston and Greenville.

Statewide sales increased 9.6% in May compared to the same month last year. Sales were down 1.3% in April after a promising first quarter in the real estate market. Year-to-date sales across the state are up 1.6% and price is up 1.4% compared to the same period a year ago.

For May, average days on market dropped one day to 141 days.

Also in May, new listings were down 17.5% from a year ago to 7,250, while pending sales were down 5.2% to 4,327. Inventory levels shrank 16.4% to 49,308 units.

“The supply-demand balance stabilized as months-supply of inventory was down 23.1% to 11.7%,” the association said.

“In economic news, May's jobs report was disappointing, and there's concern about the pace of domestic growth,” the association wrote in its monthly report. “Last month was also unsettling for investors, prompting some to hunt for better returns in the housing market. This forces other consumers up the price ladder.”