Counties with the oldest homes in South Carolina

Written by:
September 25, 2025
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Counties with the oldest homes in South Carolina

There's an undeniable charm that comes with pre-World War II American architecture, characterized by high ceilings, crown molding, hardwood floors, and ornate details. In fact, 11.4% of all housing units in America were built in 1939 or before, showing the popularity of the preservation of these units. Owning a piece of history can sometimes come with a cost: Many old homes come with asbestos, lead piping, knob-and-tube wiring, and other outdated building styles that can rack up a hefty price tag to modernize. However, with more and more modernized pre-war homes on the market, generally located just outside bustling downtown metros, investing in property that has withstood the test of time is an attractive prospect.

Stacker compiled a list of the counties in South Carolina with the oldest homes using data from the U.S. Census Bureau. Counties are ranked by median year the structure was built according to 2023 5-year estimates. Ties broken by the highest percentage of homes built before 1939.

The country's domestic architecture is perhaps best characterized by a rugged individualism as opposed to the hybridization of disparate architectural elements. As Maya Angelou once perceptively observed, "the ache for home lives in all of us," a phrase that has meant very different things to different people.

Modest or palatial, there is no shortage of noteworthy homes in the U.S. Log cabins constructed by industrious pioneers have dotted the landscape alongside traditional Native American dwellings ever since immigrant Swedes introduced them to the New World in 1638. The unprecedented personal fortunes amassed by the so-called "Robber Barons" at the close of the 19th century gave way to the construction of a staggering number of Gilded Age estates.

The ravages of time spared neither the sumptuous nor the humble. Stately mansions, often prohibitively costly to maintain in the modern era, were frequently neglected; simple structures were forgotten, discarded by their owners, and damaged by natural elements. However, the tireless efforts of architectural preservationists and local historical societies have saved many of these homes from demolition, leading to their inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places and thereby safeguarding them for future generations.

Keep reading to learn more about which counties in South Carolina have the oldest homes.

#46. Jasper County

- Median year homes built: 2002
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 4.9% (678 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 5.8% (801 homes)
- Total homes built: 13,868

#45. Berkeley County

- Median year homes built: 2000
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 0.9% (832 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 5.1% (4,958 homes)
- Total homes built: 97,512

#44. Dorchester County

- Median year homes built: 1999
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 1.4% (935 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 2.6% (1,699 homes)
- Total homes built: 66,435

#43. York County

- Median year homes built: 1999
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 2.8% (3,328 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 2.4% (2,844 homes)
- Total homes built: 118,063

#42. Horry County

- Median year homes built: 1998
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 0.9% (1,810 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 2.6% (5,577 homes)
- Total homes built: 211,686

#41. Lancaster County

- Median year homes built: 1998
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 3.5% (1,493 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 4.0% (1,722 homes)
- Total homes built: 42,696

#40. Beaufort County

- Median year homes built: 1997
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 0.9% (904 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 2.0% (1,981 homes)
- Total homes built: 101,177

#39. Lexington County

- Median year homes built: 1992
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 2.1% (2,790 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 2.1% (2,716 homes)
- Total homes built: 130,874

#38. Greenville County

- Median year homes built: 1992
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 3.2% (7,556 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 3.0% (6,910 homes)
- Total homes built: 233,254

#37. Kershaw County

- Median year homes built: 1991
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 2.9% (870 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 1.5% (444 homes)
- Total homes built: 29,623

#36. Georgetown County

- Median year homes built: 1991
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 3.0% (1,103 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 1.6% (602 homes)
- Total homes built: 36,704

#35. Charleston County

- Median year homes built: 1991
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 5.2% (10,822 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 1.9% (3,959 homes)
- Total homes built: 206,299

#34. Oconee County

- Median year homes built: 1990
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 3.8% (1,573 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 1.8% (727 homes)
- Total homes built: 41,514

#33. Clarendon County

- Median year homes built: 1989
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 2.9% (467 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 1.0% (155 homes)
- Total homes built: 16,009

#32. Pickens County

- Median year homes built: 1989
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 4.3% (2,475 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 1.5% (882 homes)
- Total homes built: 57,695

#31. Richland County

- Median year homes built: 1989
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 4.3% (8,052 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 1.3% (2,463 homes)
- Total homes built: 185,196

#30. Spartanburg County

- Median year homes built: 1989
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 5.6% (7,968 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 3.3% (4,663 homes)
- Total homes built: 141,086

#29. Calhoun County

- Median year homes built: 1989
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 7.4% (524 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 2.2% (154 homes)
- Total homes built: 7,061

#28. Colleton County

- Median year homes built: 1988
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 3.1% (616 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.9% (186 homes)
- Total homes built: 19,994

#27. Aiken County

- Median year homes built: 1988
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 4.2% (3,300 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 1.6% (1,231 homes)
- Total homes built: 78,715

#26. Edgefield County

- Median year homes built: 1988
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 6.8% (765 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 3.4% (389 homes)
- Total homes built: 11,317

#25. Sumter County

- Median year homes built: 1987
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 3.4% (1,598 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 1.6% (735 homes)
- Total homes built: 47,288

#24. Anderson County

- Median year homes built: 1987
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 3.9% (3,524 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 1.6% (1,490 homes)
- Total homes built: 91,008

#23. Saluda County

- Median year homes built: 1987
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 9.2% (862 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 1.5% (142 homes)
- Total homes built: 9,420

#22. Hampton County

- Median year homes built: 1986
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 4.6% (396 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.5% (43 homes)
- Total homes built: 8,622

#21. Chesterfield County

- Median year homes built: 1986
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 5.5% (1,137 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 1.6% (323 homes)
- Total homes built: 20,655

#20. Florence County

- Median year homes built: 1985
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 3.2% (1,959 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 1.2% (712 homes)
- Total homes built: 61,418

#19. Williamsburg County

- Median year homes built: 1985
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 4.7% (700 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 1.1% (157 homes)
- Total homes built: 14,837

#18. Laurens County

- Median year homes built: 1984
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 5.0% (1,592 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 1.3% (410 homes)
- Total homes built: 31,695

#17. Barnwell County

- Median year homes built: 1984
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 5.7% (569 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.5% (48 homes)
- Total homes built: 9,901

#16. Dillon County

- Median year homes built: 1984
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 5.8% (748 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.6% (77 homes)
- Total homes built: 12,879

#15. Darlington County

- Median year homes built: 1983
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 4.6% (1,363 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.5% (152 homes)
- Total homes built: 29,645

#14. Marion County

- Median year homes built: 1983
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 5.9% (845 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.9% (127 homes)
- Total homes built: 14,418

#13. Lee County

- Median year homes built: 1982
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 1.9% (142 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.8% (61 homes)
- Total homes built: 7,587

#12. Orangeburg County

- Median year homes built: 1982
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 4.4% (1,813 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.7% (280 homes)
- Total homes built: 41,420

#11. McCormick County

- Median year homes built: 1982
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 4.8% (265 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 1.3% (71 homes)
- Total homes built: 5,563

#10. Cherokee County

- Median year homes built: 1982
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 4.8% (1,199 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 2.7% (667 homes)
- Total homes built: 24,945

#9. Fairfield County

- Median year homes built: 1982
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 7.5% (823 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 1.2% (134 homes)
- Total homes built: 10,957

#8. Allendale County

- Median year homes built: 1981
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 4.5% (182 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 1.1% (45 homes)
- Total homes built: 4,055

#7. Newberry County

- Median year homes built: 1981
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 10.0% (1,836 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.9% (157 homes)
- Total homes built: 18,398

#6. Abbeville County

- Median year homes built: 1979
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 8.5% (998 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 1.0% (122 homes)
- Total homes built: 11,718

#5. Marlboro County

- Median year homes built: 1978
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 8.8% (1,067 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.0% (3 homes)
- Total homes built: 12,059

#4. Chester County

- Median year homes built: 1978
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 9.8% (1,436 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.8% (113 homes)
- Total homes built: 14,717

#3. Bamberg County

- Median year homes built: 1977
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 8.7% (572 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.8% (56 homes)
- Total homes built: 6,598

#2. Greenwood County

- Median year homes built: 1976
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 8.8% (2,767 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.8% (266 homes)
- Total homes built: 31,549

#1. Union County

- Median year homes built: 1973
- Homes built 1939 or earlier: 12.9% (1,744 homes)
- Homes built since 2000: 0.5% (64 homes)
- Total homes built: 13,508

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