Sales Fall, Permits Decline in Upstate Areas of South Carolina
The housing market in Anderson County, S.C., is slowing slightly as buyers take a wait-and-see approach to the market, according to the 2007 Housing Market Prediction presented to home builders Tuesday night.
The Independent Mail reports that the number of building permits issued in the Upstate region of the Palmetto State decreased 1.8 percent in 2006 and will likely be off about 5 percent in 2007.
Dale Atkins, founder of The Market Edge Inc., a Knoxville, Tenn.-based information service that tracks building permit reports and other economic data for 62 counties, reports that it could be a lot worse.
The slight decrease is good news compared to other parts of the country, such as the Florida housing market and much of the East and West Coast, Atkins told the Home Builders Association of Anderson.
“There’s a lot of markets we’re in that would love to see a 1.8 percent decline,” he told an audience of more than 100 people.
Even with South Carolina mortgages so affordable with current low rates, Anderson County issued 9.9 percent fewer building permits last year, dropping from 1,583 in 2005 to 1,426 in 2006. Home sales dropped as well, declining 7.5 percent from 6.700 homes in 2005 to 6,200 in 2006.
Housing demand increases when employment increases, and based on employment numbers the decrease in home sales is likely to continue, Atkins said. The employed portion of Anderson County’s labor force has decreased steadily since 2004, dropping from 77,458 then to 76,606 in 2006.
“It’s more of a leveling of the industry,” said Tim Roberts, co-owner of A.B. Roberts Construction Co., and past president of the home builder association.
Area custom home builders’ business has remained steady, but production and tract home builders — both of which build on market expectations — will be most affected by the slowdown.
They’ve had an unparalleled interest in Anderson County and saturated the market. As a result those companies will likely build less in 2007 as the market catches up, he said.
Anderson wasn’t the only Upstate county to see a housing decline, despite the continued affordability of mortgage loans in the area. Pickens County saw an 18.3 percent decline in building permits issued, down from 633 in 2005 to 517 in 2006.
Permit increases in Greenville and Oconee counties kept the overall decline minimal. Oconee County saw a 5.3 percent increase from 804 permits issued to 847, while Greenville County saw a 3.8 percent increase from 4,047 permits issued to 4,200.
Greenville is a faster growing market where South Carolina mortgage activity has boomed in recent years, and Oconee County has seen an influx of development catering to retirees. The Lake Jocassee and Lake Keowee areas have been especially active.