Ohio Real Estate Markets
Cheap entry with a property-tax line that decides the math. P/I 2.67, cap rate proxy 5.0%, median home $206,217. A 3.5% flat income tax keeps costs low. 1.44% property tax is the catch.
Investor Profile
Price-to-Income
2.7
Census ACS
Rent-to-Income
21.2%
HUD + ACS
Cap Rate Proxy
5.0%
HUD + ACS
Net Migration
-0.06%
IRS SOI
Permits / 1K
2.9
Census BPS
Unemployment
4.6%
BLS
Demographics & Income
Median HHI
$71,048
Census ACS
Vacancy Rate
8.2%
Census ACS
Rent-Burdened
41.0%
% of renters paying 30%+ of income toward rent
Census ACS
Investor Climate
Rent control
1031 exchange
Deposit cap
Explore 15 metros across Ohio
Ohio
15 metros · 88 counties
2.1M
0.7M
0.6M
Hover any county to see its metroTap any county to see its metro
Census ACS · FHFA · BLS · HUD · IRS14 metros in Ohio. Click to view full market hub.
| # | Metro | Population | HPI 5yr Growth |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Springfield, OH | 0.1M | 63.7% |
| 2 | Mansfield, OH | 0.1M | 63.6% |
| 3 | Youngstown-Warren-Boardman, OH-PA | 0.5M | 63.2% |
| 4 | Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN | 2.3M | 57.1% |
| 5 | Dayton-Kettering, OH | 0.8M | 57.0% |
| 6 | Columbus, OH | 2.1M | 54.6% |
| 7 | Cleveland-Elyria, OH | 2.1M | 54.0% |
| 8 | Lima, OH | 0.1M | 53.5% |
| 9 | Akron, OH | 0.7M | 53.2% |
| 10 | Canton-Massillon, OH | 0.4M | 53.1% |
Where Ohio sits on the distress curve
Composite index built from federal GSE loan data covering Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac single-family loans. Weighted 40% serious delinquency, 20% entrenched stress, 20% forbearance share, 20% REO inventory. Useful for spotting markets where distressed inventory is building before price effects show up. Read the full methodology →
Source: FHFA Foreclosure Prevention and Refinance Report · 2025Q4
See all 51 states rankedOhio ranks top-decile on cash-flow fundamentals and bottom-decile on property tax — the two facts that define how this market underwrites. Price-to-income 2.67, cap rate proxy 5.0%, median home $206,217, across 11,780,046 residents and 14 metros. Property tax runs 1.44% effective — the line item every out-of-state investor has to underwrite explicitly.
The FHFA HPI is up 54.5% over five years and 5.4% in the last year — in line with the Midwest, not ahead of it. Builders pulled 34,397 permits TTM. Net migration is essentially flat at −0.06% of population. Unemployment sits at 4.6% with median household income at $71,048.
The metros sort by strategy fit. Columbus ($274K median) is the growth bet — Intel's Licking County fab, Honda's EV expansion, Ohio State driving the workforce. Cleveland ($147K median, 6.4% cap rate proxy) is the state's cash-flow standout — deep housing stock, healthcare and manufacturing demand. Cincinnati ($240K) sits between them. Dayton, Toledo, Akron, Canton, and Youngstown are the secondary tier — entry $135K–$200K, cap rates 4.8–6.4%, smaller job bases that demand more local diligence.
Indiana is the sharper peer — lower property tax (under 1%), nearly identical cash-flow math, similar landlord rules. Ohio wins on scale: 15 metros to Indiana's smaller pool, and Columbus's Intel anchor changes forward demand in a way Indianapolis can't match. Against Illinois it's not close — higher income tax, higher property tax, persistent out-migration. Against Michigan and Wisconsin, Ohio wins on income tax.
Operating environment is landlord-friendly: 30-day eviction timeline, no rent control, 67.3% homeownership, 8.2% vacancy. Insurance averages $1,122/yr.
So what does an investor do?
- Cash flow: Cleveland is the math. A 6.4% cap rate proxy at a $147K median is the cleanest combination in the Midwest peer set. Dayton, Toledo, Akron, Canton, Youngstown carry the same thesis at smaller scale. Underwrite the 1.44% property tax as a line item.
- Appreciation: Columbus is the only metro with a forward-demand thesis strong enough to justify the tighter math. Intel and Honda are the catalysts.
- Out-of-state: Ohio's 5.0% cap rate proxy is the best in the Midwest peer set. Run Ohio vs. Indiana per-property before committing.
Cap rate measures a property's annual net operating income as a percentage of its purchase price or current market value, assuming an all-cash purchase.
Read definition →Price-to-income ratio is median-home-price divided by median-household-income—a measure of housing affordability.
Read definition →Fair Market Rent (FMR) is HUD's annual estimate of what a household must pay for gross rent — rent plus tenant-paid utilities — on a privately-owned, decent, safe unit in a specific market area. FMRs are published each fall at huduser.gov and set the ceiling for Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher payment calculations.
Read definition →A building permit is a government authorization to construct a new residential or commercial structure, and the monthly count of permits issued across the U.S. functions as a leading economic indicator that signals where housing supply is heading months before any new unit is completed.
Read definition →The percentage of time a rental property sits empty and produces no income, calculated as vacant units divided by total units — the silent profit killer in rental investing.
Read definition →Homeownership rate is the percentage of occupied housing units whose residents own — rather than rent — the property. It measures the split between owner-occupants and renters in a given geography.
Read definition →