Price Isn't the Only Thing You Can Negotiate. Here's What Central Ohio Buyers Should Ask For Instead

September 07, 2026•7 min read

Price Isn't the Only Thing You Can Negotiate. Here's What Central Ohio Buyers Should Ask For Instead.

By Amy Warren, Ohio REALTOR®

I had a buyer last month dead set on getting a seller to come down $10,000 on an already well-priced listing in Powell. The seller wouldn't budge an inch on price. What they would do was cover $8,000 in closing costs and pay for a one-year rate buydown. My client got essentially the same financial benefit, just structured differently, and skipped the standoff entirely.

That's the conversation I want to have with you today, because national headlines about "price cuts are back" don't tell the whole story, and Central Ohio's version of this story looks different from what you're reading about Austin or Tampa.

Why Straight Price Cuts Are Harder to Get Here

Central Ohio is still, by the numbers, a strong seller's market. Columbus REALTORS® regional data puts the metro at just 2.4 months of supply as of July 2026, well under the 4-to-6-month range considered balanced. In the city of Columbus specifically, homes are selling at a 99.6% sale-to-list price ratio, 37.1% are going for above list price, and the average home is fielding 2 offers, according to Redfin's Columbus market data. I wrote more about why that's true even as national inventory rises in It Feels Like a Buyer's Market. So Why Is Central Ohio Still a Seller's Market?

None of that means sellers are giving nothing. Nearly 30% of Columbus listings have had at least one price reduction. But that's usually a signal a specific home was overpriced out of the gate, not proof that the market broadly favors buyers on price. If you're negotiating a well-priced, well-located home here, price alone is rarely where you'll win.

What's Actually Happening Nationally

The "buyers are pushing back" headlines are real, they're just concentrated in different places and showing up in different forms than a straight price cut.

On the resale side nationally, roughly 18% of existing-home listings carried a price discount in late 2025, and nearly 11% of active listings had been reduced three or more times by January, according to the National Association of REALTORS®. That pattern is heavily weighted toward oversupplied Sun Belt metros like Austin, San Antonio, and Tampa, where more than one in five listings has seen multiple cuts.

New construction tells a related story. Roughly 36% of builders cut prices in February, averaging a 6% reduction, and about 65% of builders are now layering in incentives instead: closing cost assistance, design-upgrade credits worth up to $100,000, and mortgage rate buydowns as low as 4.99%. That builder playbook, concede on terms before conceding on the sticker price, is exactly the model resale sellers here are increasingly borrowing from.

The Real Negotiating Table: Five Levers Beyond Price

If you're buying in Central Ohio right now, this is where the actual room to negotiate tends to live.

Seller-paid closing costs. Ohio closing costs typically run 2% to 4% of the purchase price. Asking a seller to cover part or all of that has the same effect on your bottom line as a price cut, without asking them to change the number everyone sees in the public listing history. I break down the full closing cost picture in The True Cost of Buying a Home in Ohio: Beyond the Purchase Price.

Rate buydowns. A seller credit can fund a temporary buydown (lowering your rate for the first year or two) or, less commonly, a permanent one. With builders now offering buydowns as low as 4.99% to move inventory, resale sellers in competitive price points are starting to match that offer to stay competitive with new construction down the street.

Repair credits instead of repairs. After an inspection, you can ask a seller to fix an issue or, often more useful, ask for a credit at closing so you control who does the work and when. See Ohio Home Inspection Guide: What Every Buyer Needs to Know Before They Sign for what typically comes up and which items are worth pushing on.

Possession date and rent-back terms. A seller who needs extra time to close on their next home may value a flexible possession date or a short rent-back agreement more than an extra few thousand dollars, because it solves a logistics problem money alone can't fix for them.

Home warranty or included items. Smaller in dollar terms, but a seller-paid home warranty, included appliances, or a window treatment package are all easy asks in a negotiation that isn't going to move on price.

When Straight Price Negotiation Still Makes Sense

Some situations are genuinely different. A home that's been sitting 60-plus days, one already priced above comparable recent sales, or one that's already had a prior price cut is a much better candidate for a price conversation than a fresh, well-priced listing in a hot pocket like Dublin or Plain City. I go into how to read those signals in How Long Are Ohio Homes Really Sitting on the Market Right Now?

What This Means If You're Buying

Walk into a negotiation knowing which lever fits the situation instead of defaulting to a lowball offer on price. On a hot, fresh listing, ask for terms. On a stale or already-reduced listing, price is fair game. For more on building an offer that actually lands, see How to Make a Competitive Offer on a Home in Ohio.

What This Means If You're Selling

If you want to avoid a formal price reduction showing up in your listing history, and potentially affecting how the next buyer perceives your home, consider offering a closing cost credit or rate buydown upfront instead. It can solve the same affordability problem for a buyer without ever touching your list price. For the full math on what selling actually costs in this market, see How Much Does It Cost to Sell a Home in 2026?

Bottom Line

The national conversation about price cuts is real, but Central Ohio's version of it is quieter and shows up in the terms, not the sticker price. Know which lever to pull before you sit down at the table, and you'll usually end up with a better outcome than a buyer who's only asking one question.

📞 Call or text: 614-881-2923 📧 Email: [email protected] 🌐 Visit: amywarrenohiorealtor.com

Frequently Asked Questions

Are home prices actually dropping in Central Ohio?

Not broadly. The metro is still a strong seller's market at 2.4 months of supply as of July 2026, and Columbus homes are selling at 99.6% of list price on average. However, nearly 30% of Columbus listings have had at least one price reduction, usually a sign a specific home was overpriced rather than a market-wide trend.

What can I ask a seller for besides a lower price?

Common asks include seller-paid closing costs, a temporary or permanent mortgage rate buydown, a repair credit at closing instead of completed repairs, a flexible possession date or short rent-back, and a home warranty.

What's a mortgage rate buydown and how does it work?

A seller credit is used to reduce your interest rate, either temporarily for the first year or two of the loan or, less commonly, for its full term. It lowers your monthly payment without changing the purchase price, and it's the same tactic homebuilders are using nationally to keep sales moving.

Should I ask for repairs or a credit instead?

A credit is usually more useful because it puts you in control of the timeline and the contractor. The exception is a major system, like a roof or HVAC unit, where you may prefer the seller complete verified repairs before closing rather than manage that project yourself right after moving in.

Amy Warren is a licensed Ohio REALTOR® serving buyers and sellers across Plain City, Dublin, Powell, and Central Ohio. She started her real estate career in 2016 as a Transaction Coordinator in Denver, where she helped close over 650 transactions before relocating to Central Ohio in 2022 and earning her Ohio license in 2025.

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