Permits through August 2026Yearly permits since 1995Pickens County index 1979–2025
Pickens County (100 = first year)United States, rebased to the same startNBER recession
House prices are indexed by county, not by city: this is Pickens County's FHFA index, with the national index rebased to the same start.
Census Bureau notes: building permit figures cover new privately owned housing units authorised by permit-issuing places; permits do not mean the units were started or completed, and places that report less often than monthly are imputed in monthly totals. FHFA notes: The FHFA HPI is a broad measure of the movement of single-family house prices. The FHFA HPI is a weighted, repeat-sales index, meaning that it measures average price changes in repeat sales or refinancings on the same properties.
Clemson, South Carolina (Pickens County), authorised 264 housing units through building permits in the 12 months to August 2026, +277.1% on the previous 12 months.
33 of those units were single-family houses (13%), 4 were in two- to four-unit buildings and 227 in buildings of five or more units. That is 13.9 units per 1,000 residents, well above the county's 7.2 and well above the state's 8.3.
Since 1995 the place has authorised 4,861 units, with the busiest year 2016 (514 units). Pickens County's FHFA house price index rose +110.1% over the ten years to 2025.
264units permitted, 12 months to August 2026+277.1% on the previous 12 months
33single-family units13% of the total
227units in 5+ unit buildings86% of the total
13.9units per 1,000 residentsPickens County 7.2 · South Carolina 8.3
Permits by month and structure type
Housing units authorised in Clemson by month, latest 24 monthssingle-family2+ unit buildings
Units, 12 months to August 2026
Clemson
Pickens County
South Carolina
United States
All housing units
264
998
46,439
1,418,086
Single-family (1 unit)
33 (13%)
756 (76%)
39,742 (86%)
888,241 (63%)
2 units
4
10
188
34,814
3–4 units
0
0
169
17,298
5 or more units
227 (86%)
232 (23%)
6,340 (14%)
477,733 (34%)
Units per 1,000 residents
13.9
7.2
8.3
4.1
Change on previous 12 months
+277.1%
−2.8%
+1.3%
−0.1%
Permits by year since 1995
Housing units authorised in Clemson by year, 1995–2025single-family2+ unit buildings
4,861 units since 1995; the busiest year was 2016. Annual figures include units imputed for months a place did not report.
Home prices in Pickens County
FHFA's index for Pickens County rose +110.1% over the ten years to 2025 (+7.7% a year) and +2.0% in the latest year, against +104.3% and +3.5% for South Carolina. Full county page: decade table, peak-to-low declines, every ZIP code and every permit-issuing place in the county.
Questions and answers
How many homes are being built in Clemson, SC?
264 housing units were authorised by building permits in the 12 months to August 2026, against 70 in the previous 12 months.
What kind of housing is being permitted in Clemson?
33 single-family units, 4 in two-unit buildings, 0 in three- and four-unit buildings and 227 in buildings of five or more units.
How does Clemson compare with its county and state?
13.9 units per 1,000 residents in Clemson, 7.2 in Pickens County and 8.3 in South Carolina.
How have home prices moved in Pickens County?
FHFA's index for Pickens County rose +110.1% over the ten years to 2025 and +2.0% in the latest year; the county page has the full series.
What does a permit count?
A housing unit authorised by a building permit for new privately owned residential construction, as reported to the Census Bureau Building Permits Survey by the permit-issuing office. Permits are not completions; some permitted units are never built, and places that report only annually are imputed in monthly figures.
Provenance
Permits: US Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey, place-level monthly and annual files through August 2026 (permit office 123000); county and state comparisons from the county and state files. Population: Census Bureau vintage 2025 estimates for incorporated places, matched on FIPS place code where the permit office is one. House price index: Federal Housing Finance Agency. Public domain. Corrections · Building Permits Survey.