{"schema_version": 1, "id": "charleston-north-charleston-sc-msa/finance/2026-10", "product": "Labor Market Pulse", "metro": {"geography_id": 117, "label": "Charleston-North Charleston, SC MSA", "slug": "charleston-north-charleston-sc-msa"}, "focus_area": {"key": "finance", "slug": "finance", "label": "Finance"}, "period": "2026-10", "public_after": "2026-10-01", "frozen_at": "2026-11-03T05:07:56.878716+00:00", "headline": "Charleston wage growth doubles the national pace for finance talent.", "headline_summary": "Charleston County wages grew 6.0% year-over-year in Q1 2026 against a 3.4% national Employment Cost Index gain, while metro unemployment held at 3.2% \u2014 the tightest labor market among South Carolina metros.", "key_indicators": [{"label": "Charleston unemployment rate", "value": "3.2%", "context": "vs 4.1% national, lowest among SC metros"}, {"label": "Charleston County wage growth", "value": "6.0% YoY", "context": "vs 3.4% national Employment Cost Index"}, {"label": "CFO turnover rate (national)", "value": "18.3%", "context": "Highest since pandemic, per Crist|Kolder"}, {"label": "Metro employment", "value": "440,300", "context": "Up 8,600 (+2.0%) year-over-year"}], "takeaways": [{"headline": "Charleston wage growth is outrunning national cost assumptions.", "body": "Charleston County posted 6.0% year-over-year wage growth in Q1 2026 against a national Employment Cost Index gain of 3.4% \u2014 a gap wide enough to understate true compensation cost trajectory if Finance teams rely on corporate or national benchmarks for local budget planning."}, {"headline": "Tax Specialist pay is moving sharply in both directions at once.", "body": "Metro advertised pay for Tax Specialists rose to a median of $70,757, outpacing the national median of $69,556 \u2014 a significant local gain that suggests tightening local competition for tax and compliance talent ahead of year-end close and 2026 tax season staffing."}, {"headline": "FP&A Manager pay decline locally diverges from national demand.", "body": "Metro FP&A Manager advertised pay fell significantly to $107,584 against a national median of $130,000, up moderately nationally \u2014 a gap that may reflect softer local advertised competition even as national FP&A hiring strengthens, worth testing against actual requisition data before assuming a true market shift."}, {"headline": "Finance talent scarcity collides with a 3.2% unemployment floor.", "body": "85% of CFOs report finance talent shortages nationally, and Charleston's unemployment rate \u2014 the lowest among South Carolina metros \u2014 gives local finance teams less labor slack to absorb departures during close, audit, and budget cycles."}], "local_conditions": "Charleston-North Charleston's unemployment rate fell to 3.2% in September, the tightest of any South Carolina metro and well below the national 4.1% print, while metro employment climbed to 440,300 \u2014 up 8,600 year-over-year on continued aerospace, manufacturing, and healthcare expansion in North Charleston, Mount Pleasant, and Summerville. Charleston County wage growth of 6.0% year-over-year in Q1 2026, nearly double the national Employment Cost Index gain of 3.4%, signals a labor market where employers are competing hard for talent even as national finance headcount growth slows.", "implications": "Local wage growth outpacing national compensation cost trends by a wide margin complicates headcount cost planning for Finance teams operating budget assumptions built on national benchmarks \u2014 a 6% local wage trajectory against a 3.4% national ECI print means Charleston-based finance and accounting cost centers likely require higher inflation assumptions than corporate-wide models assume. With CFO turnover nationally projected at 18.3% for 2026 and 85% of CFOs reporting finance talent shortages, tight local labor supply (3.2% unemployment) raises retention risk precisely during close and audit cycles when vacancy costs are highest. Consider reviewing whether corporate-level compensation cost assumptions adequately reflect Charleston's above-national wage trajectory before finalizing 2027 headcount budgets.", "looking_ahead": [{"category": "Worth watching", "body": "Charleston's wage growth has accelerated from 2.2% in June to 6.0% in Q1 2026 reporting; watch whether Q3/Q4 state wage data confirms this pace holds or moderates toward the slower national ECI trend."}, {"category": "Emerging pressure point", "body": "70% of finance and accounting leaders nationally are increasing contract talent use in H2 2026; monitor whether Charleston's tight 3.2% unemployment rate pushes local finance teams toward contract staffing faster than peer metros, with implications for audit documentation and control continuity."}, {"category": "Potential inflection point", "body": "CFO turnover nationally is projected at 18.3% for 2026 with external hiring rates climbing to 37.5%; a single Charleston-area CFO or controller departure during close season could trigger premium compensation offers given the metro's already-tight labor supply."}, {"category": "Early indicator", "body": "South Carolina's 2026 unemployment insurance tax rates dropped an average 34.7% from 2025 levels; confirm this reduction is reflected in updated payroll cost forecasts for Charleston-based headcount before finalizing year-end budget true-ups."}], "roles": [{"role": "Controller", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 76450.0, "metro_p50": 111656.8, "metro_p75": 112500.0, "metro_trend_direction": "down", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 115420.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}, {"role": "Senior Accountant", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 78205.0, "metro_p50": 78206.0, "metro_p75": 81016.0, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 87731.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Financial Analyst", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 66856.0, "metro_p50": 80519.0, "metro_p75": 86050.0, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 94646.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Billing Specialist", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 37440.0, "metro_p50": 48880.0, "metro_p75": 52000.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 49000.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Tax Specialist", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 43428.0, "metro_p50": 70757.0, "metro_p75": 85738.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "significant", "national_p50": 69556.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "significant"}, {"role": "Credit Analyst", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 34007.75, "metro_p50": 36161.8, "metro_p75": 51250.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 71397.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "FP&A Manager", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 95000.0, "metro_p50": 107584.4, "metro_p75": 130000.0, "metro_trend_direction": "down", "metro_trend_magnitude": "significant", "national_p50": 130000.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}], "industry_snapshot": [], "citations": [{"source_name": "South Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce", "source_url": null, "statement": "Charleston-North Charleston unemployment rate at 3.2% in September 2026"}, {"source_name": "South Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce", "source_url": null, "statement": "Charleston County wage growth of 6.0% year-over-year in Q1 2026"}, {"source_name": "Bureau of Labor Statistics", "source_url": null, "statement": "Employment Cost Index rose 3.4% over 12 months ended September 2026"}, {"source_name": "Crist|Kolder Associates", "source_url": null, "statement": "CFO turnover projected at 18.3% in 2026, highest since pandemic"}, {"source_name": "MAVI", "source_url": null, "statement": "85% of CFOs report finance talent shortages affecting operations"}, {"source_name": "South Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce", "source_url": null, "statement": "South Carolina 2026 UI tax rates fell average 34.7% from 2025"}], "methodology": "Advertised pay from active employer job postings, not survey data. WageScape's median is calibrated to correct for spurious low-value postings: distribution analysis shows roughly the lowest 10% of raw values are erroneous entries, so the reported median is the 60th percentile of raw advertised pay.", "edition_label": "November 2026", "files": {"html": "charleston-north-charleston-sc-msa/finance/2026-10.html", "pdf": "charleston-north-charleston-sc-msa/finance/2026-10.pdf"}, "published_at": "2026-11-03T08:19:41.619763+00:00", "report_html_url": "https://reports.wagescape.com/archive/v1/editions/charleston-north-charleston-sc-msa/finance/2026-10.html", "report_pdf_url": "https://reports.wagescape.com/archive/v1/editions/charleston-north-charleston-sc-msa/finance/2026-10.pdf"}