Mortgage by CountyWhat home buyers actually paid, county by county

Independent analysis of official mortgage recordsHMDA 2025 · 7,155,718 applications

Ohio · Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN

Butler County, OH: mortgages, home buyers & loan limits

What buyers in Butler County actually borrowed, earned and paid in 2025, from the official Home Mortgage Disclosure Act records — plus the 2026 conforming and FHA loan limits.

HMDA 2025 data released June 23, 2026 · Loan limits for calendar year 2026

In 2025, lenders reported 3,879 home-purchase mortgages for owner-occupied, single-family homes in Butler County, OH. The median buyer borrowed $275,000 on a home valued at $335,000 and reported a household income of $100,000.

Buyers financed a median 90% of the home's value (roughly 10% down), paid a median 6.625% on 30-year fixed conventional loans and faced median conventional loan costs of $4,410.

Lenders denied 6.6% of completed home-purchase applications.

Conforming limit 2026
$832,750
1-unit home · FHFA
FHA limit 2026
$541,287
1-unit home · HUD
Buyer income
$100,000
U.S. $116,000
30-yr fixed rate
6.625%
U.S. 6.625%
Loan costs
$4,410
Conventional · U.S. $5,570
Denial rate
6.6%
Purchase · U.S. 8.5%

Key facts about Butler County mortgages

  • Home buyers' median income ($100,000) is 14% lower than the U.S. median ($116,000).
  • Median conventional loan costs ($4,410) were 21% lower than the U.S. median ($5,570).
  • The most common age bracket among borrowers was 25–34 (33.5% of purchase loans).
  • 55.6% of purchase mortgages had a single borrower with no co-applicant.
  • The most-cited reason for denial was debt-to-income ratio (35.1% of denials with a stated reason).

National rank among 1,994 counties with at least 100 purchase loans: median income of home buyers 792nd · median home-purchase loan 839th · median conventional loan costs 1192nd · purchase application denial rate 1392nd. See rankings.

2026 loan limits in Butler County

PropertyConforming 2026vs 2025FHA 2026vs 2025
1 unit $832,750 +$26,250 $541,287 +$17,062
2 units $1,066,250 +$33,600 $693,050 +$21,850
3 units $1,288,800 +$40,650 $837,700 +$26,425
4 units $1,601,750 +$50,500 $1,041,125 +$32,825

2026 limits for Butler County, OH: conforming (Fannie Mae / Freddie Mac) from FHFA; FHA forward-mortgage limits from HUD. FHA limit is at the national floor for low-cost areas. Loans above the conforming limit are "jumbo" loans.

All Ohio counties: Ohio 2026 loan limits. FHFA and HUD normally announce the next year's limits in late November.

Who bought homes in Butler County

Home-purchase mortgages for owner-occupied, single-family (1–4 unit) site-built homes, first liens, originated in 2025.

Purchase loans
3,879
of 4,285 applications
Buyer income
$100,000
Middle half $69,000–$151,000
Home value
$335,000
Middle half $235,000–$465,000
Loan amount
$275,000
Middle half $195,000–$385,000
Down payment
10%
37.8% put 20%+ down
Single borrower
55.6%
No co-applicant

Values are medians; "middle half" is the 25th to 75th percentile.

Loan type

Conventional 72.8% 2,825
FHA 19.6% 762
VA 7.2% 279
USDA 0.3% 13

What the homes were for

Primary residence 96.6% 3,924
Second home 0.6% 26
Investment property 2.7% 111

All first-lien, closed-end purchase mortgages, including second homes and investors.

Borrower age

Under 25 9.3%
25–34 33.5%
35–44 23.9%
45–54 14.6%
55–64 10.8%
65–74 5.5%
75 and over 2.3%

Debt-to-income ratio

Under 20% 4.2%
20–29% 13.8%
30–35% 16.0%
36–42% 27.1%
43–49% 31.7%
50–60% 7.0%
Over 60% 0.3%

Monthly debts (including the new payment) as a share of income, as used in underwriting.

What borrowing cost in Butler County

Medians for 2025 home-purchase loans. Total loan costs are section D of the Loan Estimate/Closing Disclosure (lender and third-party loan charges, excluding taxes, prepaids and escrow). FHA and VA costs include the upfront mortgage insurance premium or VA funding fee, so compare like with like.

MeasureButler CountyOhioU.S.
30-year fixed rate · conventional6.625%6.625%6.625%
30-year fixed rate · FHA6.500%6.575%6.250%
30-year fixed rate · VA6.375%6.250%6.125%
15-year fixed rate · conventional5.875%5.875%5.875%
Rate spread vs. APOR · conventional+0.22 pts+0.22 pts+0.13 pts
Total loan costs · conventional$4,410$4,610$5,570
Total loan costs · FHA$9,630$9,160$11,310
Total loan costs · VA$5,040$5,600$6,490
Origination charges (all loan types)$1,750$1,780$1,860
Borrowers paying discount points47.3%51.4%51.3%
Points paid, when paid (% of loan)0.67%0.76%0.87%
Borrowers receiving lender credits33.1%33.5%33.1%
Adjustable-rate mortgages5.5%7.2%7.4%
Jumbo loans (above conforming limit)1.1%1.3%3.8%

Medians are shown only when at least 30 loans report the field. Rates are those reported at closing; market rates changed during 2025, which the rate spread (APR minus the average prime offer rate on the lock date) adjusts for.

Approvals and denials

Butler County: 281 of 4,285 completed home-purchase applications were denied (6.6%).

Denial rate

ApplicationButler CountyOhioU.S.
Home purchase6.6%7.1%8.5%
Conventional5.3%5.7%7.1%
FHA11.8%11.4%12.5%
VA3.7%8.2%8.0%
USDA—9.5%12.5%
Refinance13.5%16.4%17.9%
Cash-out refinance32.0%33.3%33.6%

Main reason for purchase denials

Debt-to-income ratio 35.1%
Collateral (appraisal/property) 18.3%
Credit history 13.3%
Credit application incomplete 9.3%
Other 8.6%
Unverifiable information 7.2%
Insufficient cash (down payment/closing costs) 6.1%
Employment history 2.2%

First reason the lender reported.

Denial rate = denied ÷ (originated + approved but not accepted + denied). Withdrawn and incomplete applications are excluded. Differences between places reflect who applies, not only lender behavior.

Refinancing in Butler County

Refinances
914
Median loan $285,000
Refi rate
6.30%
30-yr fixed, conv.
Refi loan costs
$3,280
Conventional
Cash-out refis
869
Median loan $215,000
Cash-out rate
6.875%
30-yr fixed, conv.
Cash-out income
$90,000
Median borrower

Top mortgage lenders in Butler County

277 lenders originated at least one home-purchase or refinance loan here in 2025. The table ranks them by loan count; pricing columns compare conventional purchase loans only.

#LenderLoansShareDenial rate30-yr rate*Spread*Costs*
1 United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM) 485 8.6% 5.8% 6.625% +0.33 $6,850
2 Rocket Mortgage, LLC 375 6.6% 13.9% 6.625% +0.22 $4,770
3 Union Savings Bank 353 6.2% 3.5% 6.625% +0.20 $1,420
4 First Community Mortgage, Inc. 220 3.9% 4.3% 6.750% +0.34 $5,490
5 Union Home Mortgage Corp. 184 3.3% 3.3% 6.750% +0.43 $4,930
6 Fifth Third Bank, N.A. 171 3.0% 7.9% 6.625% +0.10 $3,540
7 The Huntington National Bank 152 2.7% 4.7% 6.625% +0.11 $3,710
8 CrossCountry Mortgage, Inc. 147 2.6% 4.5% 6.875% +0.34 $6,400
9 M/I Financial, LLC 121 2.1% 5.6% 5.875% −0.35 $6,430
10 Freedom Mortgage Corporation 113 2.0% — — — —
11 Veterans United Home Loans 106 1.9% 3.4% — — —
12 U.S. Bank, N.A. 103 1.8% 10.5% 6.500% +0.15 $4,170
13 DAS Acquisition Company, LLC 96 1.7% 0.0% 6.875% +0.54 $6,600
14 American Neighborhood Mortgage Acceptance Company LLC 88 1.6% 1.3% 6.990% +0.53 $5,130
15 Ruoff Mortgage Company, Inc. 84 1.5% 1.2% 6.875% +0.19 $4,040
16 JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. 81 1.4% 14.5% 6.500% +0.07 $1,470
17 Pennymac Loan Services, LLC 80 1.4% 3.9% — — —
18 Guardian Savings Bank 77 1.4% 14.7% 6.625% +0.24 $1,720
19 First Financial Bank 74 1.3% 7.4% 6.750% +0.36 $4,050
20 Fairway Independent Mortgage Corporation 72 1.3% 6.8% 6.750% +0.49 $5,790
21 3rd Street Financial Corp. 68 1.2% 0.0% 6.500% +0.06 $4,010
22 Third Federal Savings and Loan Association of Cleveland 67 1.2% 11.8% 6.425% −0.23 $3,290
23 Guaranteed Rate Affinity, LLC 65 1.1% 4.5% 6.750% +0.20 $4,400
24 Primelending, a Plainscapital Company 62 1.1% 7.6% 6.875% +0.42 $4,970
25 Sibcy Cline Mortgage Services, Inc. 58 1.0% 5.1% 6.875% +0.25 $3,710

Lenders in Butler County, OH. Loans = home-purchase, refinance and cash-out originations (2025); share = share of those loans here; denial rate = home-purchase applications. *Medians for conventional home-purchase loans, shown with at least 20 loans; spread = APR minus the average prime offer rate at rate lock (percentage points); costs = total loan costs (section D).

Check a quote for Butler County

Typical effective property-tax rate 1.22% = median real estate taxes ÷ median home value, U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2020–2024 5-year estimates.

Nearby counties

CountyDistancePurchase loansMedian loanBuyer incomeConforming limitFHA limit
Hamilton County, OH17 mi7,743$255,000$100,000$832,750$541,287
Preble County, OH21 mi410$195,000$79,000$832,750$541,287
Warren County, OH21 mi3,166$355,000$134,000$832,750$541,287
Union County, IN23 mi57$185,000$90,000$832,750$541,287
Montgomery County, OH26 mi5,669$215,000$87,000$832,750$541,287
Franklin County, IN27 mi173$245,000$97,000$832,750$541,287

Frequently asked questions

What is the 2026 conforming loan limit in Butler County?

$832,750 for a one-unit home (FHFA). Two- to four-unit limits are $1,066,250, $1,288,800, $1,601,750. Loans above the limit are jumbo loans and are not eligible for purchase by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac.

What is the 2026 FHA loan limit in Butler County?

$541,287 for a one-unit home (HUD). This is the national floor for low-cost areas.

How much do home buyers in Butler County earn?

The median household income reported on 2025 home-purchase mortgages was $100,000; the middle half of buyers reported $69,000 to $151,000.

What mortgage rate did buyers in Butler County get in 2025?

The median rate on 30-year fixed conventional purchase loans was 6.625%; FHA borrowers paid a median 6.50%. These are rates locked during 2025; check today's rates with several lenders.

How often are mortgage applications denied in Butler County?

6.6% of completed home-purchase applications were denied in 2025; the most common stated reason was debt-to-income ratio.

Sources: FFIEC/CFPB HMDA 2025 public loan/application register (Snapshot as of June 1, 2026); FHFA 2026 conforming loan limits; HUD 2026 FHA forward-mortgage limits; U.S. Census Bureau. Figures describe typical 2025 loans, not your offer. Methodology