Key points:
- • South Carolina’s commercial real estate market is bucking national trends.
- • The office sector is quietly stabilizing through reinvestment in repositioned Class A products rather than new construction.
- • West Ashley and Lower North Charleston are emerging as the market’s most compelling redevelopment stories.
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South Carolina added nearly 80,000 new residents between July 2024 and July 2025 — a 1.5% increase that made it the fastest-growing state in the nation for the second consecutive year, driven overwhelmingly by domestic migration.
And its commercial real estate market is feeling every bit of that momentum. Industrial leasing reached 3,080,440 square feet in Charleston alone in 2025, with Greater North Charleston absorbing nearly half of all industrial space leased in the region, while the office sector absorbed over 818,000 square feet statewide. Retail vacancy rates are holding steady at approximately 4.1%, underpinned by an inbound population that keeps demanding services. Office product is being repositioned rather than abandoned, and submarkets that sat dormant for decades are finally finding their moment…