Ohio Closing Costs for Buyers: How Much You'll Pay

Transfer tax in Ohio

None beyond the conveyance fee described above; Ohio has no separate mortgage recording tax (mortgages are subject only to the flat per-page recording fees under ORC § 317.32, see recording_fees).

Who pays: The grantor (seller) pays both the mandatory state conveyance fee (ORC § 319.54) and any county-permissive additional transfer tax (ORC § 322.02); ORC § 322.02 explicitly states the county-permissive tax 'shall be levied upon the grantor named in the deed and shall be paid by the grantor... prior to the presentation of the deed to the recorder... for recording.' Source

Worked example: On a $262,900 home in FRANKLIN COUNTY (Columbus), rounding up to the nearest $100 increment used by the county's own calculator ($263,000): the combined conveyance fee at Franklin County's $3/$1,000 total rate (state $1/$1,000 + county-permissive $2/$1,000) is about $789, plus the flat $0.50 state transfer tax, for a total of about $789.50, paid entirely by the seller. In a hypothetical county that imposes NO permissive transfer tax (state minimum only, $1/$1,000), the same $262,900 home would owe only about $263 in conveyance fee plus the $0.50 transfer tax (about $263.50 total), all seller-paid. Ohio's combined conveyance fee therefore ranges from about $263 (state-only) to about $1,052 (full $4/$1,000 permissive maximum) on a $262,900 home depending on the county, entirely seller-paid in every case, this is why the buyer_share_at_median below is $0 and why this tool cannot give one single statewide total_at_median figure without knowing the specific county's permissive rate.

How much is title insurance in Ohio?

On a $262,900 home in Ohio, an owner's title policy costs about $1,729 and the lender's policy about $150 when both are issued together (the simultaneous-issue discount). The buyer customarily pays for the owner's policy and the lender's policy. Ohio is a filed-competitive state: each title insurer files its own rates, so premiums differ by company and it pays to get two quotes. Premiums computed from First American Title Fee Calculator (filed rates), Franklin County, Ohio, read September 11, 2026.

Who pays the owner's policy: buyer (First American's calculator default allocation for Franklin County; negotiable by contract) Source

Owner's policy on the full $262,900 price and the lender's policy on an 80% loan ($210,320), quoted together so the simultaneous-issue rate applies; First American filed rates for Franklin County.

Ohio-specific buyer costs on a $262,900 home

These are the line items set by Ohio law or filed rates. Lender fees, appraisal, escrow and prepaid taxes and insurance come on top and depend on your loan.

Recording fees

Recording the deed costs $34 and the mortgage $34 at the Uniform statewide statutory fee schedule (Ohio Revised Code § 317.32), applies in every Ohio county recorder's office including Franklin (Columbus) and Cuyahoga (Cleveland), the state's most populous counties. ORC § 317.32(A)(1): recording and indexing a standard instrument (deed, mortgage, or other conveyance-related document) costs a base fee of $17 plus a housing trust fund fee of $17, $34 total, for the first two pages, plus $4 base + $4 housing trust fund ($8 total) for each subsequent page (up to a $5 document preservation surcharge may also apply). A typical single-page or two-page deed therefore costs about $34 to record. A mortgage is usually longer (often 10-20+ pages with riders/legal description), so a typical Ohio mortgage recording fee commonly runs well above the $34 base, for example, a 12-page mortgage would be about $34 + (10 × $8) = $114. The $34 figure given here for 'mortgage' reflects only the base (first-two-page) fee, not a typical full mortgage package; buyers should budget for a higher total based on actual document length. These fees are set by state statute and are uniform in every Ohio county, not set by the individual county recorder.. Fee schedule

Other Ohio specifics

• County-permissive transfer tax varies by county (seller-paid, informational for buyers). Because Ohio's total conveyance fee combines a fixed statewide $1/$1,000 fee with a county-optional permissive fee of up to $3/$1,000 that varies county by county (see transfer_tax.county_rates), the SAME home price can trigger a materially different total conveyance fee depending on which Ohio county it's in, ranging from about $1/$1,000 (0.1%) in a county with no permissive tax up to about $4/$1,000 (0.4%) in a county at the permissive maximum. This cost is legally the seller's obligation in every case, but buyers negotiating price or comparing counties should be aware the figure is not uniform statewide the way it is in states like New York or North Carolina. Source

How much are closing costs in Ohio?

For a buyer, closing costs usually run 2% to 5% of the purchase price. On Ohio's median-priced home (about $262,900), that is roughly $5,258 to $13,145, and it is separate from your down payment. The exact figure depends on your lender, your loan, and local taxes.

What closing costs include

Closing costs are a bundle of one-time fees due at settlement: lender or origination fees, an appraisal, title insurance, escrow and settlement fees, recording fees and any Ohio transfer tax, plus prepaid property taxes and homeowners insurance.

Why Ohio closing costs vary

The single biggest reason closing costs differ from state to state is transfer taxes, which states and sometimes counties and cities charge on the sale. Title insurance customs and whether an attorney is required at settlement also matter.

How a rebate offsets Ohio closing costs

Buyer commission rebates are legal in Ohio. Because a rebate can be paid as a credit at closing, it can erase a meaningful share of these costs. On a $262,900 home, a 2% rebate is about $5,258, often enough to cover much of the closing bill.

See Ohio buyer rebates and how to get one →

Sources

• Ohio transfer tax statute
• Who pays the transfer tax
• First American Title Fee Calculator (filed rates), Franklin County, Ohio, read September 11, 2026
• Uniform statewide statutory fee schedule (Ohio Revised Code § 317.32), applies in every Ohio county recorder's office including Franklin (Columbus) and Cuyahoga (Cleveland), the state's most populous counties recording fees
• Franklin County Auditor, Transfer Tax & Conveyance Fee Calculator (confirms Franklin County's specific $3/$1,000 combined rate + $0.50 transfer tax + homestead reduction)
• Franklin County Auditor, Transfer & Conveyance FAQ
• Consumer Financial Protection Bureau: buyer closing costs are typically 2% to 5% of the purchase price

Ohio figures last verified against official sources on September 11, 2026.