Nearly 17,000 single-family homes could be on the horizon in Hardeeville, South Carolina, over the next 10 to 15 years in response to the city's burgeoning job base and easy access to employment hubs in neighboring Georgia.
City leaders have approved 16,794 homes, with building permits already issued for more than a third of those. D.R. Horton, the largest U.S. homebuilder last year by sales and revenue, is planning nearly 6,500 units, while Lennar, the second-largest builder, has 4,000 units on tap.
Last year, the city issued more than 1,300 certificates of occupancy for single-family homes, up from 1,175 in 2023 and about 1,063 in 2022, City Manager Josh Gruber said.
"We're on a rocket ride in an upward direction," Gruber told Homes.com.
Companies such as TS Conductor are bringing hundreds of jobs to Hardeeville and Jasper County. The city along the Interstate 95 corridor is about 15 miles north of Savannah, Georgia, home to the Port of Savannah and its growing industrial base.
Hardeeville is also about 35 miles northeast of Ellabell, Georgia, home to Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America, which plans to produce 500,000 Hyundai, Kia and Genesis electric and hybrid vehicles each year. The plant is expected to create 8,500 jobs and result in thousands more as suppliers open operations to be close to it.
City is 'next place to buy and build'
Many residents are coming to Hardeeville because it's a more affordable alternative to nearby Hilton Head, South Carolina, a resort town with oceanfront mansions and golf course homes, according to Gruber.
The most recent U.S. Census estimate in July 2024 shows Hardeeville's population at just under 14,000, but Gruber said recent growth already has pushed the city closer to 20,000 residents.
"We've become the next place to buy and build," he said. "All of those things coming together make us the epicenter of growth in this area."
Another plus for Hardeeville is that it's slightly inland, away from the coastal wetlands that present natural and regulatory constraints on construction, according to Chuck McShane, senior director of market analytics for Homes.com and CoStar.
"Hardeeville’s location puts it squarely in the path of growth and offers builders a lot of advantages," McShane said.
Meanwhile, Jasper is the nation’s third-fastest-growing county, according to the U.S. Census. It grew by 5.9% from 2023 to 2024, behind only Dawson County, Georgia, at 6.4% and Kaufman County, Texas, at 6%.
What's more, Jasper is the fastest-growing U.S. county for housing units at 8.4%, the Census figures show.