COLUMBIA, S.C. — Looking to buy or sell a home?
Two South Carolina cities may be your best bet.
A new study by realtor.com shows Columbia and Charleston are among the top 10 housing markets in the country.
The study ranked Columbia as number five and Charleston as nine.
Analysts with the company say people are looking for more affordable housing and these two cities ranked as a top affordable alternative to more expensive cities across the United States.
The study also predicts that realty sales are expected to slow by 1.8% nationwide next year, but the top 10 markets should see a 2.4% increase.
Area-property tax and a low unemployment rate, are just two of the reasons Michael DiMaria, a local realtor and member of the Central Carolina Realtor's Association's Board of Directors, believes Columbia is a prime candidate for movers.
"Columbia's got it's act together right now. It's just a wonderful, stable economy. It always has been. We have some of the lowest unemployment rates in the country and in the state," DiMaria said. "We're close to the mountains; we're close to the coast. It's just a very attractive place for a lot of people to want to live and raise their families and, also, we're seeing a lot of retirees come to our area. So we're seeing a lot of categories right now starting to want to migrate into the Columbia area."
That's great news for people like Malinda Alford, a three-year realtor in the city.
"It's very exciting for me," she said. "It's important that the real estate market is growing here in Columbia because it allows me to help families that they just don't know that they can buy a home."
Other cities to make the list are Boise City, ID, McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, TX and Tucson, AZ .
You can find the full list on Realtor.com.