Here’s the best city in SC to live in for 2023, according to national travel magazine
Columbia was recently ranked the best South Carolina city to live in by Travel + Leisure magazine, beating out perennial favorite Charleston and upstart Greenville.
The ranking was based on information from real estate agents, the magazine said. Greenville was ranked second and Charleston third.
The magazine said while Columbia’s central location makes both the beach and the mountains accessible, don’t downplay the local natural attractions — Congaree National Park and Lake Murray.
It also is attracting Generation Z, those born between the 1990s and early 2000s. Data shows in 2022 that 12,228 of those 20-somethings moved to Columbia and 588 moved out. Columbia ranked second in the country for attracting Gen Z.
Columbia also ranked high - 8th — in health of the housing market, according to Realtor.com, the travel magazine pointed out.
“Factor in a pleasant climate, award-winning local restaurants, lively craft beer and music scenes, and a spirited festival schedule, and the popularity of Columbia is no surprise to those of us who live there,” Jill Moylan, owner and broker at Home Advantage Realty, told Travel+Leisure.
She said the colleges and university in Columbia adds to its “youthful energy.’
The magazine quotes Zillow on the median home sales price in Columbia at $216,536.
“Columbia has 14 golf courses (20 if you include those within a 20-mile radius), there are 56 tennis courts, Lake Murray provides 650 miles of shoreline for boating enthusiasts, and dedicated land for hunting, fishing, and equestrian activities,” Bhavna Vasudeva, a broker at Daniel Ravenel Sotheby’s International Realty, told the magazine.
The magazine called Greenville’s transformation “astounding.”
It quoted Sharon Wilson, president and broker at Wilson Associates Real Estate/Luxury Portfolio International, as saying, “Greenville is proud to be the home of 539 international companies from 34 countries, giving us tremendous reach across a myriad of industries.”
The magazine noted Charleston has been named the best city in the U.S. 10 years in a row by Travel+Leisure readers.
It “has plenty to offer vacationers and those lucky enough to call it home. The city’s unemployment rate is just two percent, and the cost of living is two percent lower than the country’s average, the magazine said.
Four of the cities on the list were in the greater Charleston area — North Charleston, Mount Pleasant, Sullivan’s Island and Summerville captured the four through seven spots respectively.
The other cities were HIlton Head and Bluffton.