SC realtors closed 5,900 transactions in December 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 80 days (DTC — Days to Close). That is 8.1% longer than December 2024. The market remains active and the wait is getting longer. More money earned means more money sitting unpaid for longer.
December 2023 statewide DTC was 67 days. December 2024 came in at 74 days. December 2025 landed at 80 days. Three consecutive years, three consecutive increases. The trend is structural, not seasonal.
December is SC's slowest closing month — winter conditions reduce buyer activity and lengthen transaction timelines. December 2025 DTC came in at 80 days — 8.1% longer than December 2024. Even the slowest month of the cycle is getting slower year over year.
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 — December 2025 | vs Statewide avg | YoY change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spartanburg | 48 days | 32 days faster | +33.3% |
| Greater Columbia | 52 days | 28 days faster | +20.9% |
| Charleston Trident | 53 days | 27 days faster | +32.5% |
| Greater Greenville | 56 days | 24 days faster | +14.3% |
| Piedmont Regional | 58 days | 22 days faster | +34.9% |
| Sumter/Clarendon County | 66 days | 14 days faster | +3.1% |
| Pee Dee | 72 days | 8 days faster | +10.8% |
| Western Upstate | 78 days | near avg | +13.0% |
| Central Carolina | 86 days | 6 days slower | +11.7% |
| Cherokee County | 92 days | 12 days slower | +37.3% |
| Greenwood | 118 days | 38 days slower | +21.6% |
| Aiken | 118 days | 38 days slower | +8.3% |
| Greater Augusta | 118 days | 38 days slower | +14.6% |
| Beaufort | 122 days | 42 days slower | +18.4% |
| Coastal Carolinas | 132 days | 52 days slower | +17.9% |
| Hilton Head Area | 134 days | 54 days slower | +139.3% |
The December 2025 Days to Close figure is part of a multi-year pattern across South Carolina. December 2023 the statewide average was 67 days. By December 2024 it had risen to 74 days. December 2025 came in at 80 days. That is 13 more days of unpaid commission per transaction than two years ago — with no sign of reversal.
Multiply the number of December 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 December 2025 that number reached 472,000 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 December 2025 was $335,000 (+1.5% from last year). At a 3% commission rate that is approximately $10,050 per transaction. That check is sitting unpaid for an average of 80 days (DTC) from contract signing. As both prices and DTC continue to move, the dollar amount sitting unpaid per agent changes every month.