Overview
Ohio keeps refinance closings simple. No state mortgage tax on the new loan. No refinance transfer tax. No attorney mandate. Title and settlement work moves through licensed title companies, and most of the bill mirrors the national average.
Where Ohio borrowers most often leave money behind: the title insurance reissue rate. The lender's policy can typically be discounted 35 percent on a refinance if the prior title work is recent. Closing agents do not apply the discount unless asked.
Below: the lender Section A items that move with negotiation, how to claim the reissue discount, and the recurring patterns we see on Ohio refinance Loan Estimates.
One Ohio-specific pattern worth flagging in advance: county conveyance fee variation. The detailed callouts further down cover the mechanics. Worth knowing: Ohio has no mortgage tax. Conveyance fee is on deeds only, not on refinances. Title insurance is the largest variable refi cost in OH — competitive market, shopping pays off. Title underwriters active in the state include All major underwriters file independently in OH; competitive market.
Where the audit fits
When the Ohio-specific items are settled, the largest remaining negotiation lever is the lender's own fee structure. Fair Loan Check Full Analysis ($39) benchmarks the origination charge for your loan size, identifies the Section C services worth shopping, and writes a counter-offer email from your specific Loan Estimate.
Mortgage recording tax
Ohio does not levy a mortgage recording tax. The new loan amount on a refinance does not trigger any state or county tax in Ohio.
Transfer tax on refinance
Ohio exempts refinances from transfer tax. Transfer tax applies when property changes hands, not when the loan changes. If a quitclaim deed is recorded incidentally with the refi (rare, e.g., to remove a spouse), exemption (b) on DTE 100EX applies.
Exemption statute: ORC § 319.20, 319.202, 319.54(G)(3). Ohio's conveyance fee ($1/$1,000 state mandatory + up to $3/$1,000 permissive county) applies only to deeds transferring real property. Refinances do not involve a deed and are not subject to conveyance fee. DTE 100EX exemption (b): 'solely in order to provide or release security for a debt or obligation' covers any deed-like instrument tied to the refinance.
Title insurance reissue rate
Bureau-filed and binding, not underwriter-specific. OTIRB Rule PR-10 (Title Insurance Rate for Refinance Loans): where a refinance loan is made to the same borrower on the same land and the prior policy is identified, the rate on so much of the new policy as represents the unpaid principal balance of the original loan is 70% of the Original Rate if the original loan policy is 10 years old or under, and 100% of the Original Rate if over 10 years. Any new money above the prior unpaid balance is charged at full Original Rate for that bracket. Rule PR-9 is an independent second path: an owner insured under an Owner's or Homeowner's Policy issued within 10 years is entitled to 70% of the Original Rate on a new loan policy up to the face amount of that owner's policy — so a borrower can still get 30% off via their owner's policy when the prior loan policy is old or absent. Base rate is PR-8 (Standard Loan Policy): up to $250,000 $4.00 per $1,000; over $250,000 to $500,000 add $3.10; over $500,000 to $1,000,000 add $2.90; over $1,000,000 to $5,000,000 add $2.50; over $5,000,000 to $10,000,000 add $2.40; over $10,000,000 add $2.20. The Expanded Coverage Residential Loan Policy (PR-8.2) is PR-8 plus 15%. Minimum premium $150 Standard / $175 Expanded, and per GP-9 those floors survive every discount.
Typical discount on the lender's policy: 30–30% off (typical 30%).
Lookback period: 10 years, fixed by rule — not underwriter-dependent. PR-10 is explicit that an original loan policy over 10 years old carries 100% of the Original Rate, i.e. no discount. PR-9 gives a parallel 10-year lookback measured from the borrower's owner's policy.. Documentation required: A copy of the prior policy, or other information sufficient to enable the insurer to identify the prior policy upon which reissue is requested, plus the unpaid principal balance of the original loan. PR-4, PR-9 and PR-10 each condition the discount on this..
The premium itself is NOT shoppable in Ohio — OTIRB rates are binding on all members and subscribers. What is shoppable is everything outside the filing: per GP-4 the filed rates exclude any charge for title search, title examination, closing, or escrow services, and those charges are unregulated. Direct Ohio borrowers to negotiate the search/exam/closing/escrow line items, not the premium. Important consumer-protection rule: GP-6 provides that a company entitled to issue at a reduced rate may only charge Original Rate if it notifies the insured in writing of the right to the reduced rate and secures a written waiver of that right — so an Ohio borrower cannot lawfully be silently charged full rate when a reissue or refinance rate applies. Strong material for a negotiation email.
Ohio refinance gotchas
Patterns we see consistently on Ohio refinance closings, sorted by how actionable they are:
Sources
- Ohio Revised Code § 319.20 (real property conveyance fee)
- Ohio Revised Code § 319.202 (conveyance fee statement)
- Ohio Revised Code § 319.54(G)(3) (conveyance fee rate)
- Ohio Revised Code § 322.02 (permissive county transfer tax up to $3/$1,000)
- DTE Form 100EX (Ohio statement of reason for exemption from conveyance fee)
- OTIRB Schedule of Rates for Title Insurance in the State of Ohio, (March 1, 2026) Reprint, SERFF TR. NUM DEMT-134742945 — rules GP-3, GP-4, GP-6, GP-9, PR-4, PR-6, PR-8, PR-8.2, PR-9, PR-10
- Ohio Revised Code § 3935.04 and § 3953.28 (rating bureau filings binding on members and subscribers)
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