08/24/2026
Yes, the Columbus market much like the rest of the country has cooled off a bit. Residential inventory is up--the highest it's been in about 10 years. We are not seeing a stampede of showings within minutes of listing and we are not seeing 20 above-asking price offers the first day on the market. Few buyers at the moment feel a need to waive appraisals and inspections today as they have.
But have we entered a Buyers Market? I humbly don't think so and here's just one data point from last month:
Among the largest 300 metro area housing markets, 64 did see year-over-year price decline (July of 2026 compared to July of 2025). Columbus is not on the list and some sub-markets I've personally analyzed have continued to experience some, albeit diminished, growth. We are closer to an equilibrium than we've been since long before covid, but we are not seeing sellers outnumber buyers to the extent needed to ignite a "price war".
As always, the big question is where are we headed. I don't know. While real estate is local in nature and I always caution my clients to take broad market analysis with a grain of salt, I do think interest rates and macroeconomic conditions will largely dictate what's to come.
