Real estate · County · South Carolina
Real estate businesses in Richland County, SC
How Richland County, SC compares with other counties and the U.S. for real estate businesses: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 34 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #1,942 of 2,229 scored counties
#36 of 40 scored counties in South Carolina
- Listings
- 807
- 66 chain locations (8%)
- Official establishments
- 395
- +10.6% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $2.4B
- On rent and homeowner costs · $14,565 a household
- Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)
- 70
- 30% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 48.0
- 25% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 434,956
- +4.6% since 2020
See the real estate businesses around any address in Richland 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 Richland County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardSurvey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure
What this means
Richland County scores 34 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for real estate businesses, ranking #1,942 of 2,229 scored counties and #36 of 40 scored counties in South Carolina. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.
As of September 2026, map listings count 807 real estate businesses in Richland County. Chain locations make up 8% of them, against 6% across the U.S. That is 48.0 per 10,000 households, 25% above the U.S. rate of 38.5.
Household spending on rent and homeowner costs in Richland County comes to about $2.4B a year: $14,565 per household, 13% below the U.S. average. Housing spending per office is 30% below 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.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in Richland County was 395 in 2023, up 10.6% from 2019. That is one for every 425 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 7 SBA-backed loans worth $2M have gone to businesses classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in Richland County. Population estimates put the population change in Richland County from 2020 to 2025 at +4.6%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How Richland 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.
| Measure | Richland County | South Carolina | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 48.0 | 42.7 | 38.5 |
| Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100) | 70 | 80 | 100 |
| Households per official establishment | 425 | 363 | 414 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +10.6% | +26.8% | +15.8% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +4.6% | +8.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on rent and homeowner costs | $14,565 | $14,791 | $16,661 |
| Median household income | $63,784 | $69,324 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 34 | 35 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 357 → 395+10.6% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 2,239
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $166.1M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 1,973Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 80766 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 565The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 7
- Amount
- $2M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in Richland 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 Richland County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 434,956+4.6% since 2020
- Households
- 167,961
- Median age
- 36.8
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 60%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.7
- Land area
- 757 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 557
- Median household income
- $63,784+16.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $90,966
- Median home value
- $242,800
- Jobs located here
- 234,516
- Daytime population
- 484,051Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Richland 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 Richland County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardReal 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 Richland County marked.
Top counties in South Carolina
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100) | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Saluda County, SC | 77 | 6 | 7.8 | 396 | +4.1% | #65 of 2,229 |
| 2Abbeville County, SC | 77 | 8 | 8.2 | 388 | +2.3% | #67 of 2,229 |
| 3Edgefield County, SC | 77 | 15 | 15.4 | 215 | +16.1% | #73 of 2,229 |
| 4Laurens County, SC | 76 | 30 | 11.1 | 278 | +6.2% | #88 of 2,229 |
| 5Newberry County, SC | 72 | 14 | 9.1 | 345 | +4.8% | #156 of 2,229 |
| 6Chester County, SC | 69 | 14 | 10.6 | 283 | +2.2% | #227 of 2,229 |
| 7Jasper County, SC | 69 | 18 | 13.7 | 239 | +32.2% | #234 of 2,229 |
| 8Kershaw County, SC | 69 | 46 | 17.1 | 195 | +11.6% | #242 of 2,229 |
| 9Chesterfield County, SC | 66 | 24 | 13.7 | 218 | +3.4% | #343 of 2,229 |
| 10Cherokee County, SC | 65 | 26 | 11.8 | 255 | +3.7% | #369 of 2,229 |
| 36Richland County, SC | 34 | 807 | 48.0 | 70 | +4.6% | #1,942 of 2,229 |
Other business types in Richland County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many real estate businesses are in Richland County, SC?
Richland County has 807 real estate businesses on map listings as of September 2026. 66 of them (8%) are chain locations. The listings count real estate agents and brokers, property managers, mortgage brokers and lenders, and home inspectors. Official counts show 395 businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in 2023, up 10.6% from 2019. Official counts also show 1,973 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Richland County, SC spend on rent and homeowner costs?
About $2.4B a year, or $14,565 per household. That is 13% below the U.S. average (an index of 87, where 100 is the U.S. average). For the 807 real estate businesses on map listings, housing spending per office is 30% below 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 167,961 households in Richland County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Richland County, SC compare with the U.S. for real estate businesses?
Richland County has 48.0 real estate businesses per 10,000 households, 25% above the U.S. rate of 38.5. The index of housing spending per office is 70, where 100 is the U.S. At the national ratio of real estate businesses to household spending, Richland County would have about 565, against 807 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 425 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. The official count rose 10.6% from 2019 to 2023, against +15.8% for the U.S.
How fast is Richland County, SC growing?
Population estimates put Richland County at 434,956 people in 2025, up 4.6% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 167,961 households. The median household income in Richland County is $63,784 a year, 21% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 16.5% 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. Richland County scores 34 for real estate businesses (lower middle), #1,942 of 2,229 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Richland 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 Richland County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Richland 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 Richland 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.