Franklin County, Ohio Real Estate with Amanda Mullins

Franklin County at a glance

What is the Franklin County housing market doing?

Buyers have a few more homes to choose from, and prices are still a little higher than a year ago. Columbus REALTORS counted 1,236 closed sales in Franklin County in September 2026, down 2.8 percent, with 2,870 homes for sale at month's end, up 9.0 percent, or 2.3 months of supply. Its Franklin County median sale price was $320,000, up 2.4 percent.

Pricing is where the market is shifting. In September 2026, Franklin County sellers received 96.9 percent of their original list price and 99.2 percent of their last list price (Columbus REALTORS). Redfin reported 28.4 percent of homes selling above list price, up 2.9 points, and 24.8 percent of homes with a price drop, up 2.0 points. Realtor.com's median listing price was down 5.41 percent from a year earlier. Homes priced from recent sales still sell close to asking. Homes that start too high are more likely to need a reduction first.

For the wider region, Columbus REALTORS reported a September 2026 median sale price of $334,250 across the Columbus and Central Ohio Regional MLS, up 2.8 percent, with 2,550 closed sales, down 5.7 percent, and 2.6 months of supply. That MLS covers more than Franklin County, so its median is not the county median.

Why do the numbers not match?

The three county closed-sale figures land within about $5,300 of each other. Zillow's estimate covers all homes, not just the ones that sold, and the Census figure is older and self-reported. Inventory counts differ too: Realtor.com showed 5,305 active listings in October 2026, while Columbus REALTORS counted 2,870 homes for sale at the end of September 2026, so compare each source with itself over time. None of these numbers prices a specific house. That comes from recent comparable sales near the home, adjusted for size, condition, and updates.

How long are drives from Columbus?

Source: Google Maps, Monday 8 AM departure from the city center, October 18, 2026.

The Census Bureau puts the mean travel time to work for county residents at 21.5 minutes (ACS 2020 to 2024). From downtown Columbus, Springfield takes about 45 minutes to just over an hour at rush hour, and Wright-Patterson AFB and Dayton run about an hour to 85 minutes each way. Drive times from the suburbs will differ, so check the route from a specific address at the time you would actually leave.

Relocating to Franklin County, Ohio

Amanda Mullins, REALTOR® with eXp Realty, helps buyers relocating to Franklin County from anywhere in the U.S. or overseas narrow down where to look before they tour a single home. Some are moving for a new job or to be closer to family; others, such as service members assigned to Wright-Patterson AFB, are moving on orders. A few steps make a long-distance move easier:

• Start with the drive that matters to you, whether that is an office downtown, a suburban campus, a base, or the airport, and check it from each area at the hour you would really leave.
• Compare cities, not just the county, because median listing prices run from about $266,725 in Columbus to $743,225 in New Albany (Realtor.com, October 2026).
• Estimate property taxes from the 2026 Auditor value, not the seller's last tax bill.
• If you are buying from out of town, Amanda can tour homes with you by live video, coordinate inspections, and track the appraisal.
• Set the moving date once the closing date is firm, and leave a little room in case repairs or the appraisal shift the schedule.

For a step-by-step look at buying from out of town, see her relocation help. If you already own a Columbus property and live out of state, her guide to selling a Columbus investment property from out of state covers how a remote sale works.

What I see in this market

I was licensed in Ohio in 2021, and I have served clients in Columbus since then. One Columbus sale I wrote about shows how much of this work happens on the ground: a Florida-based owner sold an investment property on Parsons Avenue without coming to Ohio. I coordinated the painters, cleaners, a handyman, and an appliance delivery, ran a showing the day after 18 inches of snow, and set up a remote closing. The home was show-ready in 2.5 weeks.

For more than 13 years I ran the side of the business that ordered and reviewed appraisals for lenders. So when I look at a Franklin County listing, my first question is which recent sales support the price, and which do not.

In Franklin County right now, homes are staying on the market longer, and the market is shifting more toward buyers. Sellers are having to be more flexible on price and on what they offer, and seller concessions are showing up around the county. Interest rates are higher, and buyers are getting more incentives. If you are buying, that gives you room to ask. If you are selling, price it right from the start and be ready to talk about concessions.

Franklin County real estate FAQ

Sources

• Redfin, Franklin County, OH Housing Market (median sale price, median days on market, sale-to-list, sold above list, price drops; three months ending and month of September 2026), accessed October 19, 2026: https://www.redfin.com/county/2184/OH/Franklin-County/housing-market
• Redfin, Columbus, OH Housing Market (median sale price, three months ending September 2026), accessed October 19, 2026: https://www.redfin.com/city/4664/OH/Columbus/housing-market
• Columbus REALTORS, Local Market Update, Franklin County, September 2026 (closed sales, median sales price, percent of original and last list price received, inventory, months of supply; current as of October 8, 2026), accessed October 19, 2026: https://marketstatsreports.showingtime.com/CR/sst/2026-09/Franklin-County.pdf
• Columbus REALTORS, "Central Ohio Housing Reports, September 2026," published October 13, 2026 (full MLS median, closed sales, months of supply), accessed October 19, 2026: https://columbusrealtors.com/news/central-ohio-housing-reports---september-2026
• Realtor.com, Franklin County, OH Housing Market Report (median listing price, median sold price, active listings, median listing price by city; key indicators as of October 2026, charts through September 2026), accessed October 19, 2026: https://www.realtor.com/local/market/ohio/franklin-county
• Zillow, Franklin County, OH Home Values (Zillow Home Value Index, updated September 30, 2026), accessed October 19, 2026: https://www.zillow.com/home-values/2288/franklin-county-oh/
• U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts, Franklin County, Ohio (population and housing units, July 1, 2025, Vintage 2025; building permits, 2025; owner-occupied rate, median value, and mean travel time, ACS 2020 to 2024), accessed October 19, 2026: https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/franklincountyohio/PST045225
• Franklin County Auditor, "Tentative Property Values Now Available Online," June 9, 2026 (more than 440,000 parcels; residential average about 10%; Board of Revision through March 31, 2027), accessed October 19, 2026: https://auditor.franklincountyohio.gov/News-articles/20260610-Property-Value-Update
• Franklin County Auditor, Know Your Home Value website (review period ended September 5, 2026; final values and notices by mid-December 2026; property tax estimator), accessed October 19, 2026: https://audr-kyhv.franklincountyohio.gov/
• Franklin County, Ohio, Cities, Townships and Villages in Franklin County (16 cities), accessed October 19, 2026: https://www.franklincountyohio.gov/County-Government/About-Our-Community/Cities-Townships-and-Villages-in-Franklin-County
• Wikipedia, Franklin County, Ohio (county seat), Defense Supply Center, Columbus, Rickenbacker Air National Guard Base, and the city articles for Dublin, Westerville, New Albany, Reynoldsburg, and Canal Winchester (counties each city spans), accessed October 19, 2026.
• Drive times: Google Maps, Monday 8 AM departure from the city center, October 18, 2026 (ranges from Columbus to Springfield, Wright-Patterson AFB, and Dayton).