According to a report by the National Association of Realtors, the South Carolina real estate industry accounted for $25.2 billion, or 15.3%, of the Gross State Product in 2010.

The study is based on an analysis of the economic contributions related to real estate, specifically from home construction, real estate brokerage, mortgage lending, title insurance, rental and leasing, home appraisal, moving truck service, and other related activities.

The report is based on data from National Association of Realtors, the Bureau of Economic Analysis, and the Harvard Center for Housing Studies.

When a home is sold in South Carolina, income generated from real estate related industries equals $13,743, with additional expenditure on consumer items such as on furniture, appliances, and paint service amounting to $5,234. These real estate transactions generate an economic multiplier, leading to additional increased spending at restaurants, sports games, and charity events, for example. The result of this multiplier effect is estimated to be $9,109.

Additional home sales induce additional home production. Typically one new home is constructed for every eight existing home sales. Therefore, for each existing home sale, 1/8 of new home value is added to the economy, which is estimate in the state to be $19,088. The collective result is an economic impact of $25.2 billion to the State of South Carolina GSP.

The real estate industry is one of the state’s top economic drivers. By comparison, the 2010 contribution of the agriculture industry totals almost $20.3 billion to the state economy. South Carolina’s economic impact from tourism in 2010 was $15 billion. And the state’s culture industry contributed about $1.9 billion in economic output.

View the South Carolina report, or see other states’ data, here.

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