Port Royal, South Carolina
2026 Edition · 10 cards · data as of Oct 30, 2026
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Population
Growing. Up 12.8% since 2020.
16,648
people, the 31st-largest of South Carolina's cities and towns.
Census Population Estimates, 2025. Rank among South Carolina's cities and towns computed by the Almanac. Sources: Census Population Estimates
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The workday
9 in 10 jobs here go to people who live somewhere else.
89.4%
of 2,691 jobs located in Port Royal are filled by in-commuters.
Census LEHD LODES, 2023. Sources: Census LEHD LODES
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Rent
Median rent is up 99% since the 2005–2009 survey, before inflation.
$1,726
a month. South Carolina's median is $1,180.
Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024 (latest), with earlier 5-year windows. Sources: Census ACS 5-year
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The seam
Cross one tract line and median rent doubles.
A $2,266 gap between neighbors, the sharpest rent edge between adjacent tracts in Beaufort County.
- $1,235 Tract 102
- $3,501 Tract 101
Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024, adjacent tracts compared by the Almanac. Tract estimates carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census ACS 5-year
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Room to build
The median rent is above what local wages can carry.
$730–$1,096
is the monthly rent range local workforce wages support.
- $1,726 median
Supportable rent computed by the Almanac from 2023 source wage data. Median rent: Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Computed by the Almanac, Census ACS 5-year
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Building
34% of the housing here was built before 2000.
- 536 homes permitted, 2022–2025
- 46% of those were in multifamily buildings
- 34% of all homes were built before 2000
Census Building Permits Survey, 2022–2025; Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Census Building Permits Survey, Census ACS 5-year
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Units needed
Closing the gap would add 0.5–0.9% to the 5,111 homes here.
27–48
is the estimated number of missing housing units, from the lowest to the highest of three estimates.
Range computed by the Almanac from 2023 jobs and household data, using three demand models: 1% of jobs located here, 1% of renter households, and a rate by town size applied to renters. The low end is the lowest of the three and the high end the highest. It is an estimate, not a count. Sources: Computed by the Almanac
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Home value
A median home costs 34% more than South Carolina's.
$347,200
median home value in Port Royal.
- $347,200 Port Royal
- $259,000 South Carolina
- $332,700 U.S.
Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Census ACS 5-year