Living in James Island, SC
James Island is a big small town of 12,198 people in Charleston County, South Carolina. It's about 7 miles from Charleston, SC and 178 miles from Charlotte, NC, the nearest major city. Summer highs average 89°F and winter highs 58°F, with almost no snow. The typical home is valued around $509k and rent runs about $2k a month.
12,198people
$509kTypical home
$1,695/moRent
89° / 58°Summer / winter
0"Snow
239Sunny days
102Rain/snow days
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Size & setting
- Big small town of 12,198
- Part of a metro area
- About 2,520 people per sq mi
- 178 mi to Charlotte, NC
- 7 mi to Charleston, SC
- Has its own stores and services
Money
- Typical home $509k (≈$3,207/mo)
- Median rent $1,695/mo
- Median household income $104k
- Property tax about 0.4% of value
- 1.0% unemployment
Weather
- Summer highs around 89°F
- Winter highs around 58°F
- Steamy summers (dew point 74°F)
- 239 sunny days a year (79 totally clear)
- 126 cloudy days a year
- 38 of 90 winter days are gray
- 102 days a year with rain or snow
- Basically no snow
- Snow days are rare
- Rarely hits 100°F
- Rarely drops below 10°F
- Windier than most places
Safety
- About average violent crime (388 per 100k), county-wide
- About average property crime (2,086 per 100k), county-wide
People
- Median age 42
- 30% of households have kids
- 18% are 65 or older
- 50% have a college degree
- Mixed community
- 2% of residents are college students
Getting around & homes
- Average commute 25 min
- 2% walk or take transit to work
- 13 mi to CHS airport
- 13 mi to CHS (major hub)
- 10 mi to the nearest Amtrak station
- 93% single-family homes
- Typical home built around 1970
- 89% of homes have broadband
Outdoors
- Flat, open land
- Elevation 30 ft
- Right on the coast
- 34 mi to a big lake
- 26 mi to the nearest trailhead
- 106 mi to the nearest ski area
- 3 mi to the nearest campground
- 36 golf courses within 25 mi
Things to do
- 760 sit-down restaurants within 25 mi
- 95 bars within 25 mi
- 125 coffee shops within 25 mi
- 5 music venues & clubs within 25 mi
- 34 museums within 25 mi
- 19 breweries & distilleries within 25 mi
- 3 mi to the nearest farmers market
Everyday
- Schools in the top 18% of South Carolina districts (reading)
- Grocery store in town
- 3 mi to the nearest ER hospital
- 3 mi to a 4–5★ hospital
- 3 mi to the nearest vet
- 2 mi to the nearest dog park
- 7 congregations per 10k people
- 4 mi to the nearest college
Politics
- Charleston County: D+6 in 2024
- South Carolina: R+18 in 2024
Natural hazards
- High hurricane risk
- Moderate tornado risk
- Low wildfire risk
- Moderate earthquake risk
- Moderate flood risk
- Low drought risk
- Very low winter storm risk
- Moderate heat wave risk
- Very low volcano risk