Cost to Build a House South Carolina 2026: Real Numbers — Hereda Team at Carolina Crafted Homes

New ConstructionMarket TrendsBuilding Process

May 22, 2026

TL;DR: A typical newly-built single-family home cost roughly $162 per square foot to construct in the most recent national NAHB data — and on a 2,647-square-foot home, that worked out to about $428,000 in hard construction costs before the lot, soft costs, or builder margin. For coastal South Carolina in 2026, expect total all-in pricing for a custom build to sit meaningfully above that national figure once lot, design, fees, and coastal code requirements are layered in.

If you've asked three builders in Horry County what it costs to build a house and gotten three different answers, you're not alone. The honest reason is that "cost to build" is a stack of numbers, not a single one — and most quoted ranges leave half the stack out. The most recent NAHB Construction Cost Survey (January 2025) pegged the average national construction cost at $162 per square foot, the highest in the history of the series. That number is a useful anchor, but it's a national average — and in the Grand Strand, hurricane-zone code, lot scarcity, and active resale competition pull the real figure in specific directions. Let's break down what actually goes into the price tag.

What the cost to build a house in South Carolina 2026 looks like — by the numbers

The cleanest starting point is the NAHB Construction Cost Survey, which surveys builders nationally and breaks the sales price of a typical new home into seven categories. According to NAHB (January 2025), the average sales price of a newly built single-family home in the 2024 survey was $665,298 on an average finished area of 2,647 square feet.

Here's how that $665,298 was distributed:

Source: NAHB Construction Cost Survey (January 2025) — 2024 national data

  
       Sales Price Component Average Cost Share of Price 
  Finished lot cost $91,057 13.7% 
 Total construction cost $428,215 64.4% 
 Overhead and general expenses $38,248 5.7% 
 Financing, marketing, sales commission $34,808 5.1% 
 Builder profit (pre-tax) $72,971 11.0% 
  
  

Sales Price Component	Average Cost	Share of Price
Finished lot cost	$91,057	13.7%
Total construction cost	$428,215	64.4%
Overhead and general expenses	$38,248	5.7%
Financing, marketing, sales commission	$34,808	5.1%
Builder profit (pre-tax)	$72,971	11.0%

The takeaway: hard construction is the largest piece, but it's not the whole picture. About one-third of the final price comes from everything else — lot, soft costs, and margin.

Why the per-square-foot number keeps rising

NAHB reports the per-square-foot construction figure has climbed steadily: $80 in 2011, $114 in 2019, $153 in 2022, and $162 in 2024 (NAHB, January 2025). That's roughly a doubling over 13 years.

Two pressures explain the recent move. First, building material prices spiked through 2022 and have only partially settled. Second, NAHB attributes ongoing increases largely to construction labor shortages, which have pushed wage growth in the home building industry. For Grand Strand projects, the labor pressure is especially relevant because coastal South Carolina competes with active resort, multifamily, and commercial work for the same skilled trades.

It's worth noting these are national figures. NAHB explicitly cautions that "building practices, the cost of labor, the cost of land, and to some extent the cost of materials can vary from place to place." Coastal Carolina builds typically involve enhanced wind-rated construction, elevated foundations in some areas, and specific code compliance that can push hard costs above the national mean.

Where the construction dollars actually go

If you're building in Horry County, knowing the rough share of each stage helps you sanity-check estimates. Per NAHB (January 2025), the eight construction stages broke down as follows for a typical 2024 build:

Interior finishes: 24.1% (the single largest category — cabinets, flooring, trim, paint, fixtures)
Major system rough-ins: 19.2% (plumbing, electrical, HVAC)
Framing, including roof and trusses: 16.6%
Exterior finishes: 13.4% (wall finish, roofing, windows, doors)
Foundations: 10.5%
Site work: 7.6% (including permits, impact fees, water/sewer, architecture)
Final steps: 6.5% (landscaping, driveway, outdoor structures)
Other: 2.1%

Within site work, building permit fees averaged 1.8% of construction cost ($7,640), impact fees 1.5% ($6,367), and water/sewer fees 1.5% ($6,260). Together those regulatory and utility connection costs accounted for roughly $20,000 on the average build — and they vary meaningfully by jurisdiction within Horry County. We cover this in more depth in our breakdown of soft costs, design fees, and permits for Myrtle Beach builds.

How Grand Strand resale prices help you frame the build-vs-buy question

Construction cost is only meaningful in context. According to CCAR MLS (January 2026), the 2025 median single-family sales price across the Coastal Carolinas market was $328,000, with Horry County at $310,000 and submarkets ranging from $260,000 in Myrtle Beach proper to $513,745 in Pawleys Island / Litchfield.

New construction made up a sizable share of activity in 2025: across the entire coastal market, 36.1% of closed sales were new construction, with Horry County at 33.7%, Loris/Longs at 64.0%, and Aynor at 49.4% (CCAR MLS, January 2026).

For April 2026, CCAR MLS reported a Myrtle Beach single-family median sales price of $478,000, with year-to-date median of $527,000 — meaningfully higher than the $260,000 area median for 2025 as a whole, reflecting the mix of higher-priced new construction sales rolling through. The April 2026 data also showed a year-to-date list-to-sale ratio of 96.2%, suggesting active price negotiation.

In plain terms: if the comparable resale near your lot is $400,000 and your projected build totals $650,000, you're paying for newness, customization, and modern systems — not arbitrage.

Why a single "real number" for 2026 is hard to pin down

There's no published figure for the 2026 average cost to build in coastal South Carolina that ties everything — lot, hard costs, soft costs, and margin — into one apples-to-apples total at the county level. NAHB's $162-per-square-foot construction figure is the most current verifiable benchmark; layer in a finished lot, soft costs, builder margin, and any coastal-specific code requirements, and total all-in pricing for a 2,500-square-foot custom build in Horry County will typically run well above the resale median. Our team walks every prospective client through the full stack during the building process, so you see the line items before any decisions are locked in. Programs, material pricing, and labor rates are subject to change; verify current details with a licensed builder for your specific lot and plan.

Got a number in mind? Pressure-test it.

If you're working with a per-square-foot figure you got from a friend, a forum, or even a builder's website, the most useful thing you can do next is map it against the seven NAHB cost categories above and ask which ones are actually included. A quote that's $140 per square foot may be honest — and may also be excluding the lot, soft costs, permits, and margin. If you'd like a walkthrough of how a Carolina Crafted Homes estimate is structured line by line, start the conversation here and we'll show you the math.

FAQ

What's the average cost per square foot to build a house in 2026? The most current national figure available is $162 per square foot in hard construction cost, based on NAHB's 2024 Construction Cost Survey (published January 2025). That's the highest in the survey's history, up from $153 in 2022 and $114 in 2019. Important context: this is construction cost only — it excludes the lot, financing, overhead, marketing, sales commission, and builder profit. When you add those in, total sales price per square foot is meaningfully higher. The figure is also a national average; coastal South Carolina pricing can vary based on local labor, materials, and code requirements.

Does the $162 per square foot include the lot? No. The $162 figure is construction cost only. According to NAHB (January 2025), the finished lot cost averaged $91,057 — a separate 13.7% of the total sales price. In a market like the Grand Strand where buildable lots near the coast are scarce, lot cost can shift well above or below that national average. Always ask a builder to itemize whether their quoted per-square-foot price includes the lot, soft costs, and margin, or only the hard construction stack.

Why is building so much more expensive than the 2025 Myrtle Beach median sales price? The 2025 median single-family sales price in Myrtle Beach was $260,000 per CCAR MLS (January 2026), while a custom new build typically lands well above that. The gap reflects three things: most resale inventory is older, smaller, or located inland; new construction includes current-code systems, finishes, and energy performance; and a custom build is priced to the specific plan, lot, and selections, not the broad market median. Comparing build cost to area median can mislead — compare to new-construction comps instead.

What share of new home cost goes to permits and fees in Horry County? NAHB's national survey (January 2025) found building permit fees averaged 1.8% of construction cost, impact fees 1.5%, and water/sewer fees and inspections 1.5% — roughly $20,000 combined on the average 2024 build. Horry County's specific fee schedule will differ, and impact fees can vary by jurisdiction within the Grand Strand. Consult with a licensed professional for fee figures on your specific lot.

How much of the price is builder profit? Per NAHB (January 2025), the pre-tax builder profit margin averaged 11.0% of the sales price in 2024, slightly above the long-run average of 9.8% since 1998. On the average $665,298 home in the survey, that worked out to roughly $73,000. Margin covers business risk, warranty obligations, and the cost of capital — it's not pure take-home. If a quote shows margin far above or below this range, ask what's driving the difference.

Has the per-square-foot cost actually doubled since 2011? Yes — and these figures are not adjusted for inflation. NAHB (January 2025) reports construction cost per square foot at $80 in 2011, $103 in 2015, $114 in 2019, $153 in 2022, and $162 in 2024. NAHB attributes much of the recent increase to ongoing construction labor shortages driving wage growth, with material prices contributing most of the 2022 spike before stabilizing. Coastal markets with active construction demand, like the Grand Strand, tend to feel labor pressure more acutely than slower-growth regions.