Groundwork

Real estate · County · South Carolina

Real estate businesses in Darlington County, SC

Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for real estate businesses in Darlington County, SC, set against other counties and the U.S.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 60 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #563 of 2,229 scored counties
#11 of 40 scored counties in South Carolina

Listings
33
3 chain locations (9%)
Official establishments
15
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$338.7M
On rent and homeowner costs · $13,250 a household
Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)
237
2.4 times the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
12.9
66% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
62,888
+0.1% since 2020

See the real estate businesses around any address in Darlington County

The site report maps the real estate businesses on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of Darlington County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

As of September 2026, map listings count 33 real estate businesses in Darlington County. Chain locations make up 9% of them, against 6% across the U.S. That is 12.9 per 10,000 households, 66% below the U.S. rate of 38.5.

Households in Darlington County spend about $338.7M a year on rent and homeowner costs, or $13,250 per household, 20% below the U.S. average. Housing spending per office is 2.4 times the U.S. figure. That figure is all rent and homeowner costs, used as a measure of housing demand; it is not money real estate businesses take in.

Official counts show 15 businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in Darlington County in 2023. That is one for every 1,704 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. Another 137 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.

Population estimates put the population change in Darlington County from 2020 to 2025 at +0.1%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). For real estate businesses, Darlington County has a Groundwork market score of 60 (upper middle): #563 of 2,229 scored counties and #11 of 40 scored counties in South Carolina.

How Darlington County compares

The same measures for South Carolina and the whole U.S. Housing spending per listing divides all rent and homeowner costs by the listings counted: a measure of housing demand for each business, not money any of them take in, so it is shown against the U.S. (100) only. Households per establishment divides households by the official count.

Real estate in Darlington County, SC compared with South Carolina and the U.S.
MeasureDarlington CountySouth CarolinaU.S.
Listings per 10k households12.942.738.5
Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)23780100
Households per official establishment1,704363414
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+26.8%+15.8%
Population growth, 2020–2025+0.1%+8.5%+3.1%
Spending per household on rent and homeowner costs$13,250$14,791$16,661
Median household income$48,581$69,324$80,734
Groundwork market score6035

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
14 → 15
Employees, 2023
25
Annual payroll, 2023
$1.9M
One-person businesses, 2023
137Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
333 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
78The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
0
Amount
$0

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in Darlington County, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3.

Population and households in Darlington County

Population, 2025 estimate
62,888+0.1% since 2020
Households
25,561
Median age
40.9
Homes lived in by their owners
71%
Vehicles per household
1.8
Land area
561 sq. mi.
People per square mile
112
Median household income
$48,581+26.4% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$74,762
Median home value
$158,200
Jobs located here
21,095
Daytime population
56,282Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Darlington County?

These figures cover the whole county. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the real estate businesses on map listings by name and distance.

Or open the report at the center of Darlington County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Real estate across South Carolina

Every South Carolina market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in South Carolina for real estate businesses, numbered among those based in South Carolina, with Darlington County marked.

Top counties in South Carolina

Counties in South Carolina ranked for real estate businesses by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsHousing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)Population growthU.S. rank
1Saluda County, SC7767.8396+4.1%#65 of 2,229
2Abbeville County, SC7788.2388+2.3%#67 of 2,229
3Edgefield County, SC771515.4215+16.1%#73 of 2,229
4Laurens County, SC763011.1278+6.2%#88 of 2,229
5Newberry County, SC72149.1345+4.8%#156 of 2,229
6Chester County, SC691410.6283+2.2%#227 of 2,229
7Jasper County, SC691813.7239+32.2%#234 of 2,229
8Kershaw County, SC694617.1195+11.6%#242 of 2,229
9Chesterfield County, SC662413.7218+3.4%#343 of 2,229
10Cherokee County, SC652611.8255+3.7%#369 of 2,229
11Darlington County, SC603312.9237+0.1%#563 of 2,229

Other business types in Darlington County

Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.

Questions

How many real estate businesses are in Darlington County, SC?

Darlington County has 33 real estate businesses on map listings as of September 2026. 3 of them (9%) are chain locations. The listings count real estate agents and brokers, property managers, mortgage brokers and lenders, and home inspectors. Official counts show 15 businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in 2023. Official counts list 137 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in Darlington County, SC spend on rent and homeowner costs?

About $338.7M a year, or $13,250 per household. That is 20% below the U.S. average (an index of 80, where 100 is the U.S. average). For the 33 real estate businesses on map listings, housing spending per office is 2.4 times the U.S. figure. The spending figure is all rent and homeowner costs, a measure of housing demand, not money real estate businesses take in. It is estimated from the incomes of the 25,561 households in Darlington County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Darlington County, SC compare with the U.S. for real estate businesses?

Darlington County has 12.9 real estate businesses per 10,000 households, 66% below the U.S. rate of 38.5. The index of housing spending per office is 237, where 100 is the U.S. At the national ratio of real estate businesses to household spending, Darlington County would have about 78, against 33 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,704 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S.

How fast is Darlington County, SC growing?

Population estimates put Darlington County at 62,888 people in 2025, up 0.1% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 25,561 households. The median household income in Darlington County is $48,581 a year, 40% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 26.4% from the 2015–2019 survey, before inflation.

What is the Groundwork market score?

The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. Darlington County scores 60 for real estate businesses (upper middle), #563 of 2,229 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Darlington County. It maps the real estate businesses on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.

How the score works · Top markets for real estate businesses · All 56 business types in Darlington County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Darlington County?

A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.

The button opens the report at the center of Darlington County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.

Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.