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Real Estate Prices & Overview

Olympia median real estate price is $253,038, which is more expensive than 49.0% of the neighborhoods in South Carolina and 33.5% of the neighborhoods in the U.S.

The average rental price in Olympia is currently $2,439, based on NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis. The average rental cost in this neighborhood is higher than 85.9% of the neighborhoods in South Carolina.

Olympia is a suburban neighborhood (based on population density) located in Columbia, South Carolina.

Olympia real estate is primarily made up of small (studio to two bedroom) to medium sized (three or four bedroom) apartment complexes/high-rise apartments and single-family homes. Most of the residential real estate is renter occupied. Many of the residences in the Olympia neighborhood are newer, built in 2000 or more recently. A number of residences were also built before 1940.

Vacant apartments or homes are a major fact of life in Olympia. The current real estate vacancy rate here is 32.8%. This is higher than the rate of vacancies in 95.7% of all U.S. neighborhoods. In addition, most vacant housing here is vacant year round. This can sometimes be the case in neighborhoods dominated by new construction that is not yet occupied. But often neighborhoods with vacancy rates this high are places that can be plagued by a protracted vacancy problem. If you live here, you may find that a number of buildings in your neighborhood are actually empty.

Notable & Unique Neighborhood Characteristics

The way a neighborhood looks and feels when you walk or drive around it, from its setting, its buildings, and its flavor, can make all the difference. This neighborhood has some really cool things about the way it looks and feels as revealed by NeighborhoodScout's exclusive research. This might include anything from the housing stock to the types of households living here to how people get around.

People

The Olympia neighborhood stands out for having an average per capita income lower than 100.0% of the neighborhoods in the United States.

In addition, neighborhoodScout's analysis shows that the Olympia neighborhood has a greater concentration of residents currently enrolled in college than 99.6% of the neighborhoods in the U.S. With 73.3% of the population here attending college, this is very much a college-focused neighborhood.

Also, one of the really interesting characteristics about the Olympia neighborhood is that, according to NeighborhoodScout's exclusive research, it is an excellent choice in which to reside for college students. Due to its popularity among college students who already choose to live here, its walkability, and its above average safety from crime, the neighborhood is ideal for prospective or already-enrolled college students. Between semesters and during school breaks, you'll notice that the excitement here fluctuates with the college seasons. Despite the excitement however, parents of college-age children can rest easy knowing that this neighborhood has an above average safety rating. For each of these reasons, the neighborhood is rated among the top 0.6% of college-friendly places to live in the state of South Carolina.

Real Estate

92.2% of the real estate in the Olympia neighborhood is occupied by renters, which is nearly the highest rate of renter occupancy of any neighborhood in America. Despite all of the residential real estate here in the Olympia neighborhood, NeighborhoodScout has discovered that much of it is vacant. In resort or second-home vacation areas, this naturally occurs because homes and apartments are seasonally occupied, and empty for a portion of the year. In non-vacation or resort areas, however, this can be an indicator of property abandonment or a weak real estate market. The vacancy rate here is 32.8%, which is higher than 95.7% of all U.S. neighborhoods.

Modes of Transportation

In the Olympia neighborhood, walking to work is a real option for many. In fact, NeighborhoodScout's exclusive research reveals walking to and from work is the chosen way to commute for 15.1% of residents here. This is a higher proportion of walking commuters than we found in 97.1% of American neighborhoods. Get ready to put on your walking shoes if you move here!

Occupations

There are more people living in the Olympia neighborhood employed as sales and service workers (59.9%) than almost any neighborhood in the country. From fast-food service workers to major sales accounts, sales and service workers make up the largest proportion of our national employment picture. But despite that size and importance nationally, this neighborhood still stands out as unique due to the dominance of people living here who work in such occupations.

Migration / Stability

The freedom of moving to new places versus the comfort of home. How much and how often people move not only can create diverse and worldly neighborhoods, but simultaneously it can produce a loss of intimacy with one's surroundings and a lack of connectedness to one's neighbors. NeighborhoodScout's exclusive research has identified this neighborhood as unique with regard to the transience of its populace. In the Olympia neighborhood, a greater proportion of the residents living here today did not live here five years ago than is found in 99.6% of U.S. Neighborhoods. This neighborhood, more than almost any other in America, has new residents from other areas.

The Neighbors

How wealthy a neighborhood is, from very wealthy, to middle income, to low income is very formative with regard to the personality and character of a neighborhood. Equally important is the rate of people, particularly children, who live below the federal poverty line. In some wealthy gated communities, the areas immediately surrounding can have high rates of childhood poverty, which indicates other social issues. NeighborhoodScout's analysis reveals both aspects of income and poverty for this neighborhood.

The neighbors in the Olympia neighborhood in Columbia are low income, making it among the lowest income neighborhoods in America. NeighborhoodScout's research shows that this neighborhood has an income lower than 100.0% of U.S. neighborhoods. With 46.7% of the children here below the federal poverty line, this neighborhood has a higher rate of childhood poverty than 92.6% of U.S. neighborhoods.

A neighborhood is far different if it is dominated by enlisted military personnel rather than people who earn their living by farming. It is also different if most of the neighbors are clerical support or managers. What is wonderful is the sheer diversity of neighborhoods, allowing you to find the type that fits your lifestyle and aspirations.

In the Olympia neighborhood, 40.1% of the working population is employed in sales and service jobs, from major sales accounts, to working in fast food restaurants. The second most important occupational group in this neighborhood is executive, management, and professional occupations, with 30.4% of the residents employed. Other residents here are employed in clerical, assistant, and tech support occupations (17.8%), and 11.8% in manufacturing and laborer occupations.

Languages

The most common language spoken in the Olympia neighborhood is English, spoken by 94.4% of households.

Ethnicity / Ancestry

Boston's Beacon Hill blue-blood streets, Brooklyn's Orthodox Jewish enclaves, Los Angeles' Persian neighborhoods. Each has its own culture derived primarily from the ancestries and culture of the residents who call these neighborhoods home. Likewise, each neighborhood in America has its own culture – some more unique than others – based on lifestyle, occupations, the types of households – and importantly – on the ethnicities and ancestries of the people who live in the neighborhood. Understanding where people came from, who their grandparents or great-grandparents were, can help you understand how a neighborhood is today.

In the Olympia neighborhood in Columbia, SC, residents most commonly identify their ethnicity or ancestry as Irish (9.0%). There are also a number of people of German ancestry (7.8%), and residents who report English roots (6.2%), and some of the residents are also of Italian ancestry (4.7%), along with some Asian ancestry residents (3.6%), among others.

Getting to Work

How you get to work – car, bus, train or other means – and how much of your day it takes to do so is a large quality of life and financial issue. Especially with gasoline prices rising and expected to continue doing so, the length and means of one's commute can be a financial burden. Some neighborhoods are physically located so that many residents have to drive in their own car, others are set up so many walk to work, or can take a train, bus, or bike. The greatest number of commuters in Olympia neighborhood spend under 15 minutes commuting one-way to work (52.4% of working residents), one of the shortest commutes across America.

Here most residents (74.7%) drive alone in a private automobile to get to work. In addition, quite a number also hop out the door and walk to work to get to work (15.1%) . In a neighborhood like this, as in most of the nation, many residents find owning a car useful for getting to work.


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Schools include:
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