South of Broad
The oldest addresses in the city, from Broad Street to the Battery, where the regional record was set.
Where a house is a provenance, not a floor plan.
South of Broad is the few dozen blocks between Broad Street and the harbor: the Battery, East Battery, Murray Boulevard, and the interior streets of Tradd, Legare, Church, Meeting and King. It is the most protected residential district in the city, the most photographed, and the one where a buyer from New York or Chicago is likeliest to ask for the house by name.
The money here follows history. The most expensive single-family sale ever recorded in the Charleston region closed on East Bay Street in October 2025 at $21,028,560, with a separate bill of sale for the furnishings. The year before, the record South of Broad sale on East Battery went to contract in 39 days at $18,250,000 plus $3,000,000 for contents. Those are not typical numbers. They are the ceiling, and the ceiling matters because it tells a seller how far the right buyer will reach for the right house.
Beneath the records, the district trades on a handful of things that cannot be built: harbor frontage, a double piazza facing south, a walled garden, a kitchen house, an address that a preservation society has already written up. Every one of them is reviewed by the Board of Architectural Review, which has had jurisdiction here since 1931, and every one of them sits in a flood zone. Selling or buying South of Broad means understanding both, which is where a native advisor earns the fee.
What the address actually buys.
- 01
The Battery and the waterfront
East Battery and Murray Boulevard face the harbor across the seawall promenade. The antebellum houses along East Battery are the city's postcard, and the few that trade each year set the regional benchmark.
- 02
Walled gardens and piazzas
The Charleston single house, turned sideways to the street with its piazza to the south, was built for the breeze. Some of the best examples South of Broad have gardens by Loutrel Briggs and kitchen houses converted to guest quarters.
- 03
Walkable to everything that matters
Broad Street, the restaurants of the lower peninsula, St. Michael's and the courthouse are a few blocks away. Most residents keep a car they rarely use.
- 04
A buyer pool that flies in
At this price band the buyer is usually from somewhere else, pays cash or borrows against investments, and decides quickly once the house is right. Marketing has to reach them where they already read.
The streets.
East Battery and the High Battery
The harbor-facing row south of Water Street. Houses here include the Louis DeSaussure House at 1 East Battery, the Roper House at 9, Edmondston-Alston at 21 and the Charles Drayton House at 25, which came to market in late 2025 asking $28,000,000.
Murray Boulevard and South Battery
The boulevard built on fill along the Ashley side, with larger lots, deeper setbacks and open water views. An off-market sale at 18 Murray closed in 2025 at $15,200,000 after going under contract within a week.
Tradd, Legare and Church
The interior streets where the eighteenth and early nineteenth century houses sit shoulder to shoulder behind brick walls. Fewer harbor views, more gardens, and the densest concentration of landmark houses in the district.
Meeting and King, below Broad
Grander lots and the houses that once belonged to the merchants who could afford them. 39 Meeting Street, built around 1766, sold in March 2025 for $8,900,000.
South of Broad in facts.
Only what we could verify. Where a number is missing, we would rather leave it out than guess.
| Type | Historic residential district, Old and Historic District of the City of Charleston |
|---|---|
| Governing review | Board of Architectural Review, established 1931; reviews exterior work visible from the public right-of-way and any demolition regardless of age |
| Flood | Special Flood Hazard Area; new residential construction requires 2 feet of freeboard above base flood elevation (since July 1, 2020) |
| Regional record sale | 51 East Bay Street, $21,028,560 (Oct 31, 2025), plus furnishings |
| South of Broad record | 5 East Battery, $18,250,000 plus a $3,000,000 bill of sale (Feb 28, 2025); 39 days to contract |
| Downtown Charleston, 2025 | Median $1,940,000, 195 closed sales, 52 days on market (CTAR) |
| Downtown $2M+ houses, Q1 2026 | 53 closings, up from 32 in Q1 2025; luxury price per square foot about $1,600 to $1,900 |
| 2025 historic-district sales above $15M | Three ($15M, $18M, $21M) against one at $9.7M the prior year |
Sources
| Regional record at 51 East Bay Street | The Post and Courier, Nov 4, 2025 www.postandcourier.com/business/real_estate/charleston-sc-record-home-sale-51-ea |
| 5 East Battery sale and days to contract | The Post and Courier, Mar 8, 2025 www.postandcourier.com/record-set-for-south-of-broad-with-the-sale-of-5-east-bat |
| 18 Murray Boulevard off-market sale | The Post and Courier, 2025 www.postandcourier.com/business/real_estate/downtown-charleston-battery-18-murra |
| 39 Meeting Street sale | The Post and Courier, Jul 14, 2025, 10 most expensive homes sold in Charleston County in 2025 www.postandcourier.com/business/real_estate/charleston-county-luxury-home-sale-k |
| Downtown 2025 median, sales and days on market | The Post and Courier, Jan 16, 2026, 2025 CTAR year-end by submarket www.postandcourier.com/business/real_estate/charleston-sc-homes-price-sale-2026/ |
| Q1 2026 downtown $2M+ closings and price per square foot; 2025 $15M+ sales | The Post and Courier special section, spring 2026, and Stats and Facts, Jan 31, 2026 www.postandcourier.com/business/real_estate/special-advertising/charleston-housi |
| Board of Architectural Review history and scope | City of Charleston charleston-sc.gov/293 |
| Freeboard and floodplain rules | City of Charleston Floodplain Development charleston-sc.gov/2382/Floodplain-Development |
| 25 East Battery listing at $28,000,000 | The Post and Courier e-edition, late 2025 www.postandcourier.com/epaper/page-b2/page_edf4a57a-7857-5d7a-a969-95d0580be74c. |
South of Broad, answered.
What is the most expensive home ever sold South of Broad?
5 East Battery, the John Ravenel House built around 1848, sold on February 28, 2025 for $18,250,000 plus a $3,000,000 bill of sale for its contents, after 39 days on the market. The broader regional record is 51 East Bay Street, just north of the district, at $21,028,560 on October 31, 2025.
Can I renovate a South of Broad house?
Yes, with review. The City of Charleston's Board of Architectural Review, in place since 1931, reviews new construction, alterations and renovations visible from the public right-of-way in the historic district, and any demolition regardless of the building's age. Interior work is generally outside its scope. Because the district is also a flood hazard area, a permit is required for all work, and substantial improvements trigger elevation requirements. DHG reads a house against both before a client commits.
Do South of Broad homes flood?
The district sits in a Special Flood Hazard Area and the Battery seawall has been overtopped in storms. Elevation of the finished floor relative to base flood elevation, the home's flood history and its insurance record are part of every DHG due-diligence file, and they are part of how we position a listing, because a buyer who sees the certificate up front trusts the rest of the package.
How is Damian Hall Group different from other South of Broad agents?
South of Broad has very good agents who have sold here for decades. What DHG adds is the machine around the house: an in-house film studio directed by Damian, a national audience of relocating households through Southern Escapes, placement with the Christie's advisors who represent collector-level buyers in other markets, and a native who started his career in Charleston in 2007. We take fewer listings and run the whole program on each one.
Other submarkets we work.
The Historic Peninsula
Everything north of Broad that still has a cobblestone, a courtyard or a harbor view.
Sullivan's Island
The highest median in the region, by design: a town that capped house size, banned short-term rentals and kept the island small.
Isle of Palms and Wild Dunes
Oceanfront, the Intracoastal and a gated resort at the north end, where a $15,000,000 sale reset the island in 2026.
Find your home in South of Broad.
Tell us about the house, the timeline and what matters. Damian reads every message that comes through this page.