Columbus, OH metro: mortgages and home buyers
2025 home-purchase and refinance statistics for the 10-county Columbus, OH area (OMB code 18140), from official HMDA records.
In 2025, lenders reported 22,450 home-purchase mortgages for owner-occupied, single-family homes in the Columbus, OH metro area. The median buyer borrowed $325,000 on a home valued at $385,000 and reported a household income of $114,000.
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 $4,870.
Lenders denied 6.7% of completed home-purchase applications.
Key facts
- Median conventional loan costs ($4,870) were 13% lower than the U.S. median ($5,570).
- The most common age bracket among borrowers was 25–34 (36.7% of purchase loans).
- 51.6% of purchase mortgages had a single borrower with no co-applicant.
- The most-cited reason for denial was debt-to-income ratio (43.7% of denials with a stated reason).
Counties in the metro area
| County | Purchase loans | Median loan | Buyer income | 30-yr rate | Loan costs | Conforming limit | FHA limit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Franklin County, OH | 11,860 | $295,000 | $104,000 | 6.625% | $4,880 | $832,750 | $591,100 |
| Delaware County, OH | 3,149 | $445,000 | $160,000 | 6.500% | $4,850 | $832,750 | $591,100 |
| Licking County, OH | 1,928 | $305,000 | $104,000 | 6.625% | $4,640 | $832,750 | $591,100 |
| Fairfield County, OH | 1,978 | $325,000 | $106,000 | 6.625% | $4,980 | $832,750 | $591,100 |
| Union County, OH | 1,278 | $435,000 | $153,000 | 6.500% | $5,110 | $832,750 | $591,100 |
| Pickaway County, OH | 905 | $335,000 | $105,000 | 6.625% | $4,860 | $832,750 | $591,100 |
| Madison County, OH | 583 | $305,000 | $107,000 | 6.518% | $4,750 | $832,750 | $591,100 |
| Morrow County, OH | 317 | $305,000 | $103,000 | 6.625% | $4,880 | $832,750 | $591,100 |
| Perry County, OH | 286 | $225,000 | $84,000 | 6.750% | $4,820 | $832,750 | $591,100 |
| Hocking County, OH | 166 | $225,000 | $89,000 | 6.625% | $4,780 | $832,750 | $591,100 |
Who bought homes in Columbus
Home-purchase mortgages for owner-occupied, single-family (1–4 unit) site-built homes, first liens, originated in 2025.
Values are medians; "middle half" is the 25th to 75th percentile.
Loan type
What the homes were for
All first-lien, closed-end purchase mortgages, including second homes and investors.
Borrower age
Debt-to-income ratio
Monthly debts (including the new payment) as a share of income, as used in underwriting.
What borrowing cost in Columbus
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.
| Measure | Columbus | U.S. |
|---|---|---|
| 30-year fixed rate · conventional | 6.625% | 6.625% |
| 30-year fixed rate · FHA | 6.250% | 6.250% |
| 30-year fixed rate · VA | 6.249% | 6.125% |
| 15-year fixed rate · conventional | 5.875% | 5.875% |
| Rate spread vs. APOR · conventional | +0.15 pts | +0.13 pts |
| Total loan costs · conventional | $4,870 | $5,570 |
| Total loan costs · FHA | $10,640 | $11,310 |
| Total loan costs · VA | $6,760 | $6,490 |
| Origination charges (all loan types) | $1,890 | $1,860 |
| Borrowers paying discount points | 52.1% | 51.3% |
| Points paid, when paid (% of loan) | 0.99% | 0.87% |
| Borrowers receiving lender credits | 33.9% | 33.1% |
| Adjustable-rate mortgages | 9.4% | 7.4% |
| Jumbo loans (above conforming limit) | 2.1% | 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
Columbus: 1,660 of 24,643 completed home-purchase applications were denied (6.7%).
Denial rate
| Application | Columbus | U.S. |
|---|---|---|
| Home purchase | 6.7% | 8.5% |
| Conventional | 5.5% | 7.1% |
| FHA | 11.5% | 12.5% |
| VA | 7.2% | 8.0% |
| USDA | 12.4% | 12.5% |
| Refinance | 14.7% | 17.9% |
| Cash-out refinance | 31.8% | 33.6% |
Main reason for purchase denials
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 Columbus
Source: FFIEC/CFPB HMDA 2025 public LAR (derived MSA/MD); OMB July 2023 delineations via the U.S. Census Bureau. Methodology