Lending Tree: Dayton home market isn’t so competitive

The Dayton housing market is one of the least competitive in the country, at least among buyers who make mortgage loan requests through the Lending Tree online marketplace, the company said.

In a national ranking, Dayton ranks relatively low for factors Lending Tree deems indicative of a competitive housing market. Prospective buyers in this area have relatively low average down payments, among other factors Lending Tree placed in the ranking.

On the list of 100 cities with the “most competitive home buyers,” Dayton ranks overall at 96, below Augusta, Ga. and above El Paso, Texas. Youngstown Ohio is last on the list at No. 100. San Francisco, Calif. is first.

RELATED: Realtors report good year for home sales, prices rise

In the Dayton market, 53 percent of buyers shop for a mortgage before identifying the home they want, leaving it ranked at No. 78 for particular criterion, Lending Tree said.

Dayton-market buyers have a down payment of 12 percent, according to Lending Tree, ranking it at 97 for that factor. Forty percent of homebuyers enjoy “prime credit,” leaving a ranking of 91.

In 2017, Dayton was ranked 95 on the list.

RELATED: Hot home market in Dayton area leaves sellers in charge

As Lending Tree put it in a release, “This is great news for buyers in Youngstown, Ohio, McAllen, Texas, and Scranton, Pa., and other accessible cities, which are often in Rustbelt and Southern states, as home ownership is accessible to a larger part of the population.”

See the ranking here.

For months, Dayton-area Realtors have said low inventory is making home-buying more competitive in this area. They routinely advise prospective buyers to be ready to move on homes they want.

“We’ve been in bidding wars on houses, which is something we haven’t seen in years,” Jan Leverett, treasurer for the Dayton Area Board of Realtors, told the Dayton Daily News last month. “Houses are coming up that are selling within 12 to 24 hours if they’re the right location at the right price.”

MORE: 2017 year of record-growing stock market: What you need to know

Lending Tree is an online loan marketplace. Again, these numbers are based on loan requests that came that company’s online marketplace.

About the Author