What is the cheapest city to buy a house in Ohio?

Youngstown, with a median closed price of $90,000 over its reporting window, among Ohio cities where Resideline tracked at least 100 closings inside the city limits.

Are these asking prices or sale prices?

Closed sale prices. Every price median is the price homes actually closed at inside the municipal boundary, not a listing price. The one column measured differently is realized appreciation, which uses the postal city, as the note under the table says.

Why does a cheap city show a high price per square foot?

Because the ranking median covers every property type that closed, condos and multi-family included, while the $/sqft column is single-family houses only. In cities where most sales are condos, the median price is low and the house $/sqft can still be high.

Is the appreciation figure a forecast?

No. It is the median annual change between consecutive sales of the same home, on repeat-sale pairs. It is historical and nominal, and it says what happened, not what will.

Cheapest Cities to Buy a House in Ohio (2026)

Every Ohio city below cleared 100 closings in its window and is ranked by the median price homes actually closed at, not the asking price. The columns beside it are the questions that follow a low price: what you pay per square foot, what the same homes did on resale, and how quickly listings go.

The ranking

#	City	Median closed price	Houses $/sqft	Realized appreciation	Days to contract	Closings	Window
1	Youngstown	$90,000	$68	4.61%/yr	25	407	six months
2	Canton	$114,600	$90	4.00%/yr	17	585	six months
3	Lima	$114,900	$89	4.39%/yr	16	227	six months
4	Cleveland	$120,000	$84	3.92%/yr	18	2,920	six months
5	Warren	$121,800	$83	6.35%/yr	12	258	six months
6	Maple Heights	$123,700	$94	n/a	13	187	six months
7	Marion	$125,000	$100	6.34%/yr	14	289	six months
7	Toledo	$125,000	$104	4.34%/yr	26	2,035	six months
9	Ashtabula	$129,900	$100	3.91%/yr	34	279	12 months
10	Garfield Heights	$132,000	$90	n/a	18	229	six months
11	Dayton	$135,000	$104	4.10%/yr	13	1,174	six months
12	Steubenville	$135,500	$98	n/a	43	238	12 months
13	Akron	$135,678	$104	4.02%/yr	16	1,508	six months
14	Alliance	$137,000	$105	4.34%/yr	17	187	six months
15	Euclid	$145,000	$101	3.49%/yr	15	416	six months

1. Youngstown, $90,000

Homes in Youngstown closed at a median of $90,000 over the last six months, about 35 percent of the Ohio statewide median. Resideline tracked 407 closings there, roughly 68 a month. On a per-square-foot basis, houses there closed at a median of $68, measured on 375 sales. Between consecutive sales of the same home, prices moved a median 4.61 percent a year (3,601 pairs, postal-area scope), a historical figure rather than a projection. The median listed home took 25 days to go under contract, across 234 listed closings. Full detail is on the Youngstown market page.

2. Canton, $114,600

The median closed price in Canton is $114,600 across the last six months, which puts it at roughly 44 percent of the state figure. Resideline tracked 585 closings there, roughly 98 a month. Single-family houses closed at a median of $90 per square foot across 515 sales with usable living area. Between consecutive sales of the same home, prices moved a median 4.00 percent a year (4,118 pairs, postal-area scope), a historical figure rather than a projection. The median listed home was under contract in 17 days, so a buyer here needs financing lined up before the search, not after. Full detail is on the Canton market page.

3. Lima, $114,900

Homes in Lima closed at a median of $114,900 over the last six months, about 44 percent of the Ohio statewide median. 227 closings sit behind that figure, about 38 a month, enough to price against. On a per-square-foot basis, houses there closed at a median of $89, measured on 214 sales. Homes that sold twice appreciated at a median of 4.39 percent a year between those sales, on 2,257 repeat-sale pairs across the postal area that shares the city's name; that is what happened, not what will. Listed homes went under contract in a median of 16 days, which is fast for the state and leaves little time to deliberate. Full detail is on the Lima market page.

4. Cleveland, $120,000

Homes in Cleveland closed at a median of $120,000 over the last six months, about 46 percent of the Ohio statewide median. Resideline tracked 2,920 closings there, roughly 487 a month. Single-family houses closed at a median of $84 per square foot across 1,851 sales with usable living area. Homes that sold twice appreciated at a median of 3.92 percent a year between those sales, on 22,238 repeat-sale pairs across the postal area that shares the city's name; that is what happened, not what will. Listed homes went under contract in a median of 18 days, which is fast for the state and leaves little time to deliberate. About 7.9 percent of listings that sold were marketed as-is or distressed, which is high and part of why the entry price is low. Full detail is on the Cleveland market page.

5. Warren, $121,800

Homes in Warren closed at a median of $121,800 over the last six months, about 47 percent of the Ohio statewide median. 258 closings sit behind that figure, about 43 a month, enough to price against. Single-family houses closed at a median of $83 per square foot across 218 sales with usable living area. Homes that sold twice appreciated at a median of 6.35 percent a year between those sales, on 1,213 repeat-sale pairs across the postal area that shares the city's name; that is what happened, not what will. Listed homes went under contract in a median of 12 days, which is fast for the state and leaves little time to deliberate. About 6.5 percent of listings that sold were marketed as-is or distressed, which is high and part of why the entry price is low. Full detail is on the Warren market page.

6. Maple Heights, $123,700

The median closed price in Maple Heights is $123,700 across the last six months, which puts it at roughly 48 percent of the state figure. Resideline tracked 187 closings there, roughly 31 a month. On a per-square-foot basis, houses there closed at a median of $94, measured on 165 sales. The median listed home was under contract in 13 days, so a buyer here needs financing lined up before the search, not after. Full detail is on the Maple Heights market page.

7. Marion, $125,000

Marion's median closed price over the last six months was $125,000, around 48 percent of what the typical Ohio sale closed at. 289 closings sit behind that figure, about 48 a month, enough to price against. Single-family houses closed at a median of $100 per square foot across 260 sales with usable living area. Between consecutive sales of the same home, prices moved a median 6.34 percent a year (740 pairs, postal-area scope), a historical figure rather than a projection. Listed homes went under contract in a median of 14 days, which is fast for the state and leaves little time to deliberate. About 9.2 percent of listings that sold were marketed as-is or distressed, which is high and part of why the entry price is low. Full detail is on the Marion market page.

7. Toledo, $125,000

Toledo's median closed price over the last six months was $125,000, around 48 percent of what the typical Ohio sale closed at. Resideline tracked 2,035 closings there, roughly 339 a month. On a per-square-foot basis, houses there closed at a median of $104, measured on 1,797 sales. Between consecutive sales of the same home, prices moved a median 4.34 percent a year (9,701 pairs, postal-area scope), a historical figure rather than a projection. Listed homes went under contract in a median of 26 days. About 6.4 percent of listings that sold were marketed as-is or distressed, which is high and part of why the entry price is low. Full detail is on the Toledo market page.

9. Ashtabula, $129,900

Ashtabula's median closed price over the last 12 months was $129,900, around 50 percent of what the typical Ohio sale closed at. 279 closings sit behind that figure, about 23 a month, enough to price against. On a per-square-foot basis, houses there closed at a median of $100, measured on 240 sales. Between consecutive sales of the same home, prices moved a median 3.91 percent a year (735 pairs, postal-area scope), a historical figure rather than a projection. The median listed home took 34 days to go under contract, across 165 listed closings. About 6.3 percent of listings that sold were marketed as-is or distressed, which is high and part of why the entry price is low. Full detail is on the Ashtabula market page.

10. Garfield Heights, $132,000

The median closed price in Garfield Heights is $132,000 across the last six months, which puts it at roughly 51 percent of the state figure. 229 closings sit behind that figure, about 38 a month, enough to price against. Single-family houses closed at a median of $90 per square foot across 195 sales with usable living area. Listed homes went under contract in a median of 18 days, which is fast for the state and leaves little time to deliberate. Full detail is on the Garfield Heights market page.

11. Dayton, $135,000

The median closed price in Dayton is $135,000 across the last six months, which puts it at roughly 52 percent of the state figure. 1,174 closings sit behind that figure, about 196 a month, enough to price against. On a per-square-foot basis, houses there closed at a median of $104, measured on 963 sales. Between consecutive sales of the same home, prices moved a median 4.10 percent a year (12,511 pairs, postal-area scope), a historical figure rather than a projection. Listed homes went under contract in a median of 13 days, which is fast for the state and leaves little time to deliberate. About 8.1 percent of listings that sold were marketed as-is or distressed, which is high and part of why the entry price is low. Full detail is on the Dayton market page.

12. Steubenville, $135,500

Homes in Steubenville closed at a median of $135,500 over the last 12 months, about 52 percent of the Ohio statewide median. 238 closings sit behind that figure, about 20 a month, enough to price against. On a per-square-foot basis, houses there closed at a median of $98, measured on 195 sales. The median listed home took 43 days to go under contract, across 101 listed closings. Full detail is on the Steubenville market page.

13. Akron, $135,678

Akron's median closed price over the last six months was $135,678, around 52 percent of what the typical Ohio sale closed at. Resideline tracked 1,508 closings there, roughly 251 a month. On a per-square-foot basis, houses there closed at a median of $104, measured on 1,244 sales. Homes that sold twice appreciated at a median of 4.02 percent a year between those sales, on 6,461 repeat-sale pairs across the postal area that shares the city's name; that is what happened, not what will. The median listed home was under contract in 16 days, so a buyer here needs financing lined up before the search, not after. About 6.6 percent of listings that sold were marketed as-is or distressed, which is high and part of why the entry price is low. Full detail is on the Akron market page.

14. Alliance, $137,000

Homes in Alliance closed at a median of $137,000 over the last six months, about 53 percent of the Ohio statewide median. 187 closings sit behind that figure, about 31 a month, enough to price against. On a per-square-foot basis, houses there closed at a median of $105, measured on 171 sales. Homes that sold twice appreciated at a median of 4.34 percent a year between those sales, on 729 repeat-sale pairs across the postal area that shares the city's name; that is what happened, not what will. The median listed home was under contract in 17 days, so a buyer here needs financing lined up before the search, not after. About 7.1 percent of listings that sold were marketed as-is or distressed, which is high and part of why the entry price is low. Full detail is on the Alliance market page.

15. Euclid, $145,000

Euclid's median closed price over the last six months was $145,000, around 56 percent of what the typical Ohio sale closed at. 416 closings sit behind that figure, about 69 a month, enough to price against. Single-family houses closed at a median of $101 per square foot across 331 sales with usable living area. Homes that sold twice appreciated at a median of 3.49 percent a year between those sales, on 1,151 repeat-sale pairs across the postal area that shares the city's name; that is what happened, not what will. Listed homes went under contract in a median of 15 days, which is fast for the state and leaves little time to deliberate. About 6.8 percent of listings that sold were marketed as-is or distressed, which is high and part of why the entry price is low. Full detail is on the Euclid market page.

Note: realized appreciation is the one column measured on the postal city, from repeat sales of the same home across the ZIP codes that share the city's name; every other figure is confined to the municipal boundary.

How to read this list

A low median is where the analysis starts, not where it ends. Property type, size, condition and block move a number far more than the city line does, so check any address on this list against its own comparable closings.

Figures last updated September 5, 2026 from closings Resideline tracked. Appreciation is the median annual change between consecutive sales of the same home; it is historical, nominal and not a projection.