Roof replacement is driven by age more than by any storm. We took the Census Bureau's American Community Survey (ACS) count of housing units by the decade they were built, for Greenville County and 17 Upstate towns, and compared it with the roughly 20 to 25 year life of an asphalt shingle roof in this climate. The result is a town-by-town estimate of how much housing is old enough to be on a second roof or overdue for its first replacement.
This is an estimate of housing age, not an inventory of roofs. The Census does not record when a roof was last replaced, so every figure below describes the age of the house. A 1985 house with a 2018 reroof is counted as old here. Read the table as the upper limit of how many original roofs could be at the end of their life, and use the roof lifespan guide to judge an individual roof.
Key findings
- About 74% of Greenville County's 238,260 housing units (an estimated 176,000) are 20 or more years old, and 62.1% (about 148,000, plus or minus 2,900) were built before 2000. [Estimate, from ACS table B25034, 2020-2024]
- Wade Hampton has the oldest housing among the larger Greenville-area communities in the data: 88.8% of its 9,661 housing units were built before 2000 and its median build year is 1973. Gantt (85.0%) and Berea (81.7%) follow.
- The gap inside one county is 35 points: 77.1% of Taylors housing was built before 2000, against 42.2% in Greer, where the median home dates to 2003.
- The City of Greenville is older than the county around it: 53.3% of its housing units predate 1990, against 46.7% countywide.
- In newer growth towns the replacement wave is still ahead. Only 13.5% of Five Forks housing was built before 1990 and its median build year is 2003, so most of its housing is too new for a first reroof today.
Data table: housing age by Greenville-area town
Sorted by the estimated share of housing that is 20 or more years old. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, tables B25034 (Year Structure Built) and B25035 (Median Year Structure Built). The 20+ column is our estimate; the other columns are Census estimates.
| Town | Housing units | Built before 2000 | Built before 1990 | Est. 20+ years old | Median year built |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wade Hampton | 9,661 | 88.8% | 84.2% | 93% | 1973 |
| Pickens | 1,489 | 85.5% | 77.0% | 93% | 1964 |
| Gantt | 5,863 | 85.0% | 73.9% | 89% | 1974 |
| Taylors | 10,584 | 77.1% | 62.0% | 87% | 1983 |
| Berea | 6,852 | 81.7% | 68.0% | 86% | 1979 |
| Piedmont | 2,106 | 72.5% | 57.7% | 85% | 1985 |
| Easley | 11,898 | 74.6% | 54.4% | 84% | 1987 |
| Travelers Rest | 2,802 | 62.1% | 42.5% | 80% | 1994 |
| Mauldin | 11,907 | 60.1% | 40.0% | 74% | 1995 |
| Greenville County | 238,260 | 62.1% | 46.7% | 74% | 1992 |
| Greenville | 39,373 | 62.2% | 53.3% | 70% | 1987 |
| Simpsonville | 10,582 | 50.9% | 38.5% | 65% | 1999 |
| Powdersville | 4,414 | 52.8% | 36.4% | 63% | 1998 |
| Five Forks | 6,605 | 41.3% | 13.5% | 63% | 2003 |
| Fountain Inn | 4,803 | 49.8% | 32.4% | 59% | 2000 |
| Duncan | 2,054 | 48.6% | 31.9% | 58% | 2001 |
| Greer | 17,551 | 42.2% | 29.9% | 58% | 2003 |
| Lyman | 2,425 | 41.0% | 32.3% | 47% | 2010 |
What the numbers mean for a homeowner
Asphalt shingles on an Upstate roof typically last 20 to 25 years, with three-tab shingles closer to 15 to 20. A house built before 2000 that still has its first roof is past that window; a house built before 1990 has almost certainly been reroofed at least once. In Wade Hampton, Gantt, Berea and Taylors that describes most of the housing stock, which is why those areas have the steadiest demand for replacement, repair and inspection work.
If your house is in the older group, the practical step is an inspection before a leak, not after. A free roof inspection tells you the actual age and condition of the roof, and the signs you need a new roof page lists what to check yourself. For budgeting, see the Greenville roof replacement cost guide. Insurers also look at roof age, which the roof age and home insurance guide covers.
Methodology
Data. Housing units by year structure built (ACS table B25034) and median year structure built (table B25035), ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates, for Greenville County and each place listed. Retrieved 2026-11-02 through the Census Reporter API (api.censusreporter.org), which republishes the Census Bureau's ACS release. Places are Census-designated places or incorporated cities, so they do not match ZIP codes, school zones or the town boundaries a resident would draw by hand. Some places sit partly or wholly outside Greenville County (Easley, Pickens, Powdersville, Duncan and Lyman); they are included because they are Greenville-area markets.
Built before 2000 and before 1990. Sum of the ACS decade bins 1999-or-earlier and 1989-or-earlier, divided by total housing units. These are Census estimates and carry sampling error; the county figure for pre-2000 housing is about 147,950 units with a 90% margin of error of about 2,900.
Estimated 20+ years old (our estimate). In 2026 a house built in 2006 or earlier is 20 or more years old. ACS reports 2000-2009 as one bin, so we count all housing built before 2000 plus 70% of the 2000-2009 bin (seven of its ten years), assuming construction was spread evenly across the decade. If building was concentrated in the 2000s boom, the true share is somewhat higher in fast-growing towns. The 20-year threshold is the lower end of a typical asphalt shingle life in the Upstate.
Limits. The figures describe housing age, not roof age, and cannot see reroofs. Housing units include condos, apartments and mobile homes, not only single-family houses. Small places such as Pickens, Piedmont and Duncan have wide margins of error (often a fifth or more of the pre-2000 count), so differences of a few points between small towns are not meaningful. Towns under about 1,400 housing units were left out.
Embed or cite this data
You are welcome to quote, chart or republish the table and findings. We ask that you credit "Greenville Roofing Experts" and link to this page, https://greenvilleroofingexperts.com/guides/greenville-roof-age-by-town-report/. Suggested citation: "Greenville-Area Roofs by Age, Greenville Roofing Experts, based on U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates, tables B25034 and B25035." Please keep the label "estimate" on the 20+ column. Questions or corrections are welcome through the contact page.
Roofing by Upstate town
- Roofing in Travelers Rest, SC
- Roofing in Greer, SC
- Roofing in Simpsonville, SC
- Roofing in Easley, SC
- Roofing in Taylors, SC
- Roofing in Mauldin, SC
- Roofing in Fountain Inn, SC
- Roofing in Powdersville, SC
- Roofing in Piedmont, SC
- Roofing in Pickens, SC
- Roofing in Five Forks, SC
- Roofing in Duncan, SC
- Roofing in Lyman, SC
- Roofing in Landrum, SC
- Roofing in Spartanburg, SC
- Roofing in Anderson, SC
- Roofing in Wellford, SC
- Roofing in Boiling Springs, SC
- Roofing in Inman, SC
- Roofing in Liberty, SC
- Roofing in Central, SC
- Roofing in Clemson, SC
- Roofing in Williamston, SC
- Roofing in Pelzer, SC
- Roofing in Woodville, SC
- Roofing in Belton, SC
- Roofing in Laurens, SC
- Roofing in Berea, SC
- Roofing in Wade Hampton, SC
- Roofing in Gantt, SC
- Roofing in Greenwood, SC
- Roofing in Gaffney, SC
- Roofing in Seneca, SC
- Roofing in Fair Play, SC
- Roofing in Walhalla, SC
- Roofing in Westminster, SC
- Roofing in Clinton, SC
- Roofing in Union, SC
- Roofing in Honea Path, SC
- Roofing in Woodruff, SC
- Roofing in Chesnee, SC
- Roofing in Cowpens, SC
- Roofing in Ware Shoals, SC
- Roofing in Roebuck, SC
- Roofing in Moore, SC
- Roofing in Reidville, SC
Related Guides and Services
How Greenville Roofing Experts Works
We are a referral service, not a roofing company. Your request goes to one licensed South Carolina roofer serving the Greenville area, and the referral costs you nothing. See how we vet our pros for the bar that roofer has to clear, read about us and why this arrangement works, or check the answers to common roofing questions. For anything else, contact us.
Questions homeowners ask
What share of Greenville County homes have a roof older than 20 years?
We estimate about 74% of housing units are 20 or more years old, based on Census ACS 2020-2024 data. That is the age of the house, not a count of original roofs, because the Census does not record reroofs.
Which Greenville-area town has the oldest housing?
Among larger communities, Wade Hampton: 88.8% of its housing units were built before 2000, with a median build year of 1973. Pickens, Gantt and Berea are also above 80%.
Does an old house mean an old roof?
Not always. Many older houses have been reroofed. The figures here are an upper limit on how many original roofs could be near the end of life. An inspection shows the real age of your roof.
Can I use this data in an article or on my website?
Yes. Please credit Greenville Roofing Experts and link to this page, and keep the "estimate" label on the 20+ column.
Sources
All figures retrieved 2026-11-02. Census data are estimates with sampling error; the 20+ column is our own calculation from them.
- U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, table B25034 Year Structure Built. Via Census Reporter, which republishes the Census Bureau ACS release
- U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, table B25035 Median Year Structure Built
- U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey program page. Program documentation, including margins of error
Get an honest read on your roof
Free inspection, no obligation. Pick a time and a licensed local roofer comes to you.
Schedule My Free Inspection