SC realtors closed 7,345 transactions in October 2025. More deals closed. More commissions earned. But from the moment a contract was signed to the day agents got paid, they waited an average of 77 days (DTC — Days to Close). That is 14.9% longer than October 2024. The market remains active and the wait is getting longer. More money earned means more money sitting unpaid for longer.
October 2023 statewide DTC was 69 days. October 2024 came in at 67 days. October 2025 landed at 77 days. Three consecutive years, three consecutive increases. The trend is structural, not seasonal.
October is SC's fall market — buyers active before winter slowdown. October 2025 closings rose 2.3%. But DTC surged to 77 days — 14.9% longer than October 2024. A nearly 15% year-over-year increase heading into the slower months is a significant structural signal.
Contract-to-close times vary dramatically across South Carolina. The same state, the same month — but a Hilton Head agent waits more than 2.5 times longer than a Charleston agent to receive the same commission check.
| Region | DTC — October 2025 | vs Statewide avg | YoY change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spartanburg | 46 days | 31 days faster | -2.1% |
| Greater Columbia | 52 days | 25 days faster | +18.2% |
| Charleston Trident | 54 days | 23 days faster | +22.7% |
| Greater Greenville | 54 days | 23 days faster | 0.0% |
| Piedmont Regional | 60 days | 17 days faster | +46.3% |
| Pee Dee | 61 days | 16 days faster | +1.7% |
| Sumter/Clarendon County | 68 days | 9 days faster | +6.3% |
| Western Upstate | 75 days | near avg | +15.4% |
| Cherokee County | 80 days | near avg | -18.4% |
| Central Carolina | 81 days | near avg | +24.6% |
| Greater Augusta | 101 days | 24 days slower | -4.7% |
| Greenwood | 103 days | 26 days slower | +14.4% |
| Aiken | 108 days | 31 days slower | +5.9% |
| Beaufort | 120 days | 43 days slower | +1.7% |
| Coastal Carolinas | 125 days | 48 days slower | +4.2% |
| Hilton Head Area | 125 days | 48 days slower | +104.9% |
The October 2025 Days to Close figure is part of a multi-year pattern across South Carolina. October 2023 the statewide average was 69 days. By October 2024 it had risen to 67 days. October 2025 came in at 77 days. That is 8 more days of unpaid commission per transaction than two years ago — with no sign of reversal.
Multiply the number of October 2025 closings by the average DTC and you get a picture of how much earned but unpaid commission is sitting in the SC pipeline at any given moment. In October 2025 that number reached 565,565 agent-days of unpaid commission statewide. The busier the market and the longer contracts take to close, the bigger that number grows.
The SC median home price in October 2025 was $339,990 (+0.1% from last year). At a 3% commission rate that is approximately $10,200 per transaction. That check is sitting unpaid for an average of 77 days (DTC) from contract signing. As both prices and DTC continue to move, the dollar amount sitting unpaid per agent changes every month.