Overview
Columbus remains one of the more affordable big-city markets, but it is no longer cheap. Redfin's citywide median sale price was $298,858 in September 2026, up 2.2% from a year earlier, and Columbus Realtors put the broader central Ohio median at $334,250 with homes taking a median 33 days to sell, up from 30. Inventory is up more than 12% year over year, which gives first-time buyers more room to negotiate. The city's own down payment program only works inside Columbus corporate limits, which matters because many addresses with a Columbus mailing address are actually in Westerville, Reynoldsburg, Grove City or a township; check the City/Village field on the Franklin County Auditor's site before you get attached to a listing. Inside the city, assisted buyers tend to land in the Hilltop, Linden, the South Side, Northland and the east side, where prices sit below the median.
The headline local program is the American Dream Downpayment Initiative, or ADDI, and the first thing to know is that it is closed: the city's page says that as of August 8, 2026 applications are closed and new submissions go on a waitlist. When it is open, ADDI lends up to 6% of the purchase price, capped at $14,999, as a five-year deferred loan that is forgiven if you live in the home for five years. Income can be as high as 120% of area median income ($120,480 for a household of three, $133,800 for four under the June 2026 limits), which is unusually generous for a city program. The catches: you must contribute $500 of your own saved money, keep housing costs under 35% and total debt under 45% of income, hold no more than $10,000 in liquid assets after closing, use a lender on the city's certified ADDI list, and complete education with a HUD-certified agency within 18 months of closing. If you are buying in the suburbs, Franklin County funds a separate first-time buyer grant through Homeport for buyers under 80% of AMI; the county does not publish the amount, so call Homeport.
Local Programs in Columbus
American Dream Downpayment Initiative (ADDI) Program
CLOSED: the city's page states 'As of August 8, 2026 applications are currently closed' and that applications submitted during this time will be placed on a waitlist. Funds are non-federal and first-come, first-served. Guidelines updated May 1, 2026. First-time buyer means no home ownership in the past 36 months; six months of Ohio residency and permanent U.S. residency required. Buyer must contribute $500 of their own saved funds (no gifts or loans) and show $500 in post-closing reserves; post-closing liquid assets capped at $10,000 excluding retirement accounts. Housing ratio 35% and total debt ratio 45%. Fixed-rate conventional, FHA, USDA, VA and 203(k) loans eligible through a lender on the city's certified ADDI lender list. Homebuyer education from a HUD-certified agency (OSU Extension, Homes on the Hill, Homeport or Columbus Urban League) within 18 months of closing. The guidelines expressly allow combined down payment sources such as seller seconds, gift funds and other DPA grants. Review takes 4 to 6 weeks from a complete package. Must live in the home for five years or repay from sale proceeds.
Franklin County First Time Homebuyer Down Payment Assistance
The county page lists Homeport (3443 Agler Road, Columbus, OH 43219; 614-221-8889) as the contact and says first-time homebuyer counseling is available through the program; Homeport's site has no dedicated DPA page in 2026, so confirm current amount, availability and the class requirement (historically an 8-hour in-person Homeport class) directly with Homeport before relying on it.
Rise Up Down Payment Assistance Fund
Likely exhausted or closed: launched May 2024 with a $5.6 million fund, Homeport reported in February 2025 that it had already helped 200 families (which at $25,000 each accounts for essentially the whole fund), and FHLB Cincinnati's Rise Up program page now returns 'Page not found' with no 2026 round announced. Listed here so readers who see it referenced elsewhere know its status; ask Homeport (dpa@homeportohio.org) whether a new round exists before planning around it.
Stacking With Ohio Programs
OHFA's first mortgages (conventional, FHA, VA or USDA-RD through an OHFA-approved lender; 640 credit score, 650 for FHA) can carry OHFA down payment assistance of 3% of the purchase price on conventional loans or 3.5% on government loans, forgiven after seven years and repaid in full if you sell within seven; OHFA requires homebuyer education from a HUD-approved Ohio agency and publishes its own income and price limits. Columbus ADDI's May 2026 guidelines explicitly permit combining other DPA grants, seller seconds and gifts with the city loan, so an OHFA first mortgage with OHFA assistance plus ADDI is allowed from the city's side as long as the buyer still contributes the required $500 of their own money and stays within ADDI's 35%/45% ratios. OHFA's site describes combining its own products but does not address outside DPA, so the OHFA-approved lender (who must also be on the city's certified ADDI lender list) has to confirm lien position and combined loan-to-value. Note that OHFA no longer markets the old 'Your Choice' 2.5%/5% options.
Full details, income limits, and the federal FHA, VA, and USDA options are on the Ohio first-time homebuyer programs guide. When you know what you qualify for, compare the best mortgage lenders for first-time buyers and confirm the lender is approved for the program you plan to use.
Tips for First-Time Buyers in Columbus
Stacking is straightforward on paper. An OHFA first mortgage, conventional or government-backed, brings OHFA's own assistance of 3% or 3.5% of the price, forgiven after seven years. ADDI's guidelines expressly allow combined sources such as other DPA grants, seller seconds and gifts, so an OHFA loan plus OHFA assistance plus ADDI is permitted from the city's side. The practical constraint is the lender: it has to be OHFA-approved and on the city's ADDI list, and it has to clear lien order and combined loan-to-value with both agencies. On a $280,000 home that combination is roughly $9,800 from OHFA and up to $14,999 from the city, which is most of a 3.5% FHA down payment plus closing costs.
Tips for 2026. Get on the ADDI waitlist now by emailing the Housing Division, and take your HUD-certified class in the meantime, because the certificate is good for 18 months and the city will not fund without it. ADDI review takes four to six weeks from a complete package, FHA closings add about two weeks after the commitment letter, and funds take three to five business days to arrive, so write 60 days into your contract. Expect the Rise Up $25,000 grant you may have read about to be gone; the Federal Home Loan Bank of Cincinnati's page for it has been removed and Homeport reported the fund essentially spent by early 2025.
Columbus's city program is modest in dollars but easy to qualify for and fully forgivable, which makes it one of the better deals in the Midwest when it is funded. The city's budget cycle tends to reopen it, so a buyer who is ready in early 2027, with a certificate in hand and a certified lender, is positioned to use it. Until then, OHFA's assistance is the piece you can count on.
Frequently Asked Questions
Sources
- City of Columbus - American Dream Downpayment Initiative (closure notice dated August 8, 2026)
- City of Columbus - 2026 ADDI Program Guidelines, Non-Federally Funded (updated May 1, 2026)
- City of Columbus - 2026 HUD Income Guidelines, Columbus MSA (effective June 1, 2026)
- Franklin County Community Development - Economic Development Services (First Time Homebuyer Down Payment Assistance)
- Homeport - How the Rise Up Fund helped a family find belonging (February 4, 2025)
- OHFA (My Ohio Home) - Down Payment Assistance
- OHFA (My Ohio Home) - Combining Programs
- Columbus Realtors - Central Ohio Housing Reports, September 2026 (October 13, 2026)
- Redfin - Columbus OH Housing Market (September 2026)
For educational purposes only -- not financial or tax advice. Program details, funding availability, income limits, and benefit amounts change, often mid-year. Verify everything with the administering agency before you apply. Median home price: Redfin, Columbus OH Housing Market, median sale price $298,858 (+2.2% YoY), September 2026, https://www.redfin.com/city/4664/OH/Columbus/housing-market (Columbus Realtors reported a $334,250 central Ohio median, +2.8%, for the same month). Last verified: October 29, 2026.