Mortgage by CountyWhat home buyers actually paid, county by county

Independent analysis of official mortgage recordsHMDA 2025 · 7,155,718 applications

Georgia · Albany, GA

Dougherty County, GA: mortgages, home buyers & loan limits

What buyers in Dougherty County actually borrowed, earned and paid in 2025, from the official Home Mortgage Disclosure Act records — plus the 2026 conforming and FHA loan limits.

HMDA 2025 data released June 23, 2026 · Loan limits for calendar year 2026

In 2025, lenders reported 357 home-purchase mortgages for owner-occupied, single-family homes in Dougherty County, GA. The median buyer borrowed $195,000 on a home valued at $205,000 and reported a household income of $76,000.

Buyers financed a median 96.5% of the home's value (roughly 3.5% down), paid a median 6.625% on 30-year fixed conventional loans and faced median conventional loan costs of $4,650.

Lenders denied 13.4% of completed home-purchase applications.

Conforming limit 2026
$832,750
1-unit home · FHFA
FHA limit 2026
$541,287
1-unit home · HUD
Buyer income
$76,000
U.S. $116,000
30-yr fixed rate
6.625%
U.S. 6.625%
Loan costs
$4,650
Conventional · U.S. $5,570
Denial rate
13.4%
Purchase · U.S. 8.5%

Key facts about Dougherty County mortgages

  • Home buyers' median income ($76,000) is 31% lower than the Georgia median ($110,000).
  • Median conventional loan costs ($4,650) were 17% lower than the U.S. median ($5,570).
  • FHA loans made up 43.7% of purchase mortgages, versus 21.1% nationally.
  • VA loans were unusually common: 22.4% of purchase mortgages.
  • 17.7% of buyers put at least 20% down (financed 80% or less), compared with 38.5% nationally.
  • 14.9% of first-lien purchase mortgages were for investment properties.
  • The most common age bracket among borrowers was 25–34 (23.8% of purchase loans).
  • 75.1% of purchase mortgages had a single borrower with no co-applicant.
  • The most-cited reason for denial was debt-to-income ratio (47.4% of denials with a stated reason).

National rank among 1,994 counties with at least 100 purchase loans: median income of home buyers 1723rd · median home-purchase loan 1543rd · median conventional loan costs 1049th · purchase application denial rate 134th. See rankings.

2026 loan limits in Dougherty County

PropertyConforming 2026vs 2025FHA 2026vs 2025
1 unit $832,750 +$26,250 $541,287 +$17,062
2 units $1,066,250 +$33,600 $693,050 +$21,850
3 units $1,288,800 +$40,650 $837,700 +$26,425
4 units $1,601,750 +$50,500 $1,041,125 +$32,825

2026 limits for Dougherty County, GA: conforming (Fannie Mae / Freddie Mac) from FHFA; FHA forward-mortgage limits from HUD. FHA limit is at the national floor for low-cost areas. Loans above the conforming limit are "jumbo" loans.

All Georgia counties: Georgia 2026 loan limits. FHFA and HUD normally announce the next year's limits in late November.

Who bought homes in Dougherty County

Home-purchase mortgages for owner-occupied, single-family (1–4 unit) site-built homes, first liens, originated in 2025.

Purchase loans
357
of 425 applications
Buyer income
$76,000
Middle half $55,000–$110,000
Home value
$205,000
Middle half $155,000–$275,000
Loan amount
$195,000
Middle half $145,000–$245,000
Down payment
3.5%
17.7% put 20%+ down
Single borrower
75.1%
No co-applicant

Values are medians; "middle half" is the 25th to 75th percentile.

Loan type

Conventional 33.3% 119
FHA 43.7% 156
VA 22.4% 80
USDA 0.6% 2

What the homes were for

Primary residence 84.4% 367
Second home 0.7% 3
Investment property 14.9% 65

All first-lien, closed-end purchase mortgages, including second homes and investors.

Borrower age

Under 25 5.3%
25–34 23.8%
35–44 23.8%
45–54 22.7%
55–64 11.8%
65–74 9.5%
75 and over 3.1%

Debt-to-income ratio

Under 20% 3.5%
20–29% 9.8%
30–35% 13.8%
36–42% 24.8%
43–49% 30.8%
50–60% 17.0%
Over 60% 0.3%

Monthly debts (including the new payment) as a share of income, as used in underwriting.

What borrowing cost in Dougherty County

Medians for 2025 home-purchase loans. Total loan costs are section D of the Loan Estimate/Closing Disclosure (lender and third-party loan charges, excluding taxes, prepaids and escrow). FHA and VA costs include the upfront mortgage insurance premium or VA funding fee, so compare like with like.

MeasureDougherty CountyGeorgiaU.S.
30-year fixed rate · conventional6.625%6.624%6.625%
30-year fixed rate · FHA6.250%6.125%6.250%
30-year fixed rate · VA6.500%6.249%6.125%
15-year fixed rate · conventional—5.750%5.875%
Rate spread vs. APOR · conventional+0.30 pts+0.13 pts+0.13 pts
Total loan costs · conventional$4,650$6,350$5,570
Total loan costs · FHA$9,120$11,920$11,310
Total loan costs · VA$3,660$6,330$6,490
Origination charges (all loan types)$2,120$2,590$1,860
Borrowers paying discount points57.6%58.3%51.3%
Points paid, when paid (% of loan)0.99%0.91%0.87%
Borrowers receiving lender credits37.5%36.4%33.1%
Adjustable-rate mortgages0.8%4.8%7.4%
Jumbo loans (above conforming limit)0.6%3.2%3.8%

Medians are shown only when at least 30 loans report the field. Rates are those reported at closing; market rates changed during 2025, which the rate spread (APR minus the average prime offer rate on the lock date) adjusts for.

Approvals and denials

Dougherty County: 57 of 425 completed home-purchase applications were denied (13.4%).

Denial rate

ApplicationDougherty CountyGeorgiaU.S.
Home purchase13.4%9.9%8.5%
Conventional10.2%8.2%7.1%
FHA14.4%13.7%12.5%
VA16.2%9.0%8.0%
USDA—11.1%12.5%
Refinance22.7%19.8%17.9%
Cash-out refinance43.3%37.4%33.6%

Main reason for purchase denials

Debt-to-income ratio 47.4%
Credit history 24.6%
Credit application incomplete 7.0%
Collateral (appraisal/property) 5.3%
Insufficient cash (down payment/closing costs) 5.3%
Employment history 3.5%
Unverifiable information 3.5%
Other 3.5%

First reason the lender reported.

Denial rate = denied ÷ (originated + approved but not accepted + denied). Withdrawn and incomplete applications are excluded. Differences between places reflect who applies, not only lender behavior.

Refinancing in Dougherty County

Refinances
96
Median loan $205,000
Refi rate
—
30-yr fixed, conv.
Refi loan costs
—
Conventional
Cash-out refis
127
Median loan $155,000
Cash-out rate
—
30-yr fixed, conv.
Cash-out income
$69,000
Median borrower

Top mortgage lenders in Dougherty County

109 lenders originated at least one home-purchase or refinance loan here in 2025. The table ranks them by loan count; pricing columns compare conventional purchase loans only.

#LenderLoansShareDenial rate30-yr rate*Spread*Costs*
1 United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM) 65 11.2% 4.2% — — —
2 Rocket Mortgage, LLC 43 7.4% 17.4% — — —
3 Colony Bank 39 6.7% 5.6% — — —
4 Veterans United Home Loans 39 6.7% 10.3% — — —
5 Pennymac Loan Services, LLC 35 6.0% 4.8% — — —
6 Renasant Bank 23 4.0% 5.0% — — —
7 Ameris Bank 20 3.5% 18.2% — — —
8 Synovus Bank 18 3.1% 14.3% — — —
9 Freedom Mortgage Corporation 16 2.8% — — — —
10 Georgia Community Bank 14 2.4% — — — —
11 Navy Federal Credit Union 13 2.2% — — — —
12 Newrez LLC 12 2.1% — — — —
13 loanDepot.com, LLC 11 1.9% — — — —
14 New American Funding 10 1.7% — — — —
15 Mr. Cooper 9 1.6% — — — —
16 Truist Bank 8 1.4% — — — —
17 Flagstar Bank, N.A. 7 1.2% — — — —
18 Planet Home Lending, LLC 6 1.0% — — — —
19 New Day Financial, LLC 6 1.0% — — — —
20 Village Capital & Investment LLC 6 1.0% — — — —
21 Equity Prime Mortgage LLC 5 0.9% — — — —
22 Southeast Mortgage of Georgia, Inc. 5 0.9% — — — —
23 CrossCountry Mortgage, Inc. 5 0.9% — — — —
24 AmeriSave Mortgage Corporation 5 0.9% — — — —
25 JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. 5 0.9% — — — —

Lenders in Dougherty County, GA. Loans = home-purchase, refinance and cash-out originations (2025); share = share of those loans here; denial rate = home-purchase applications. *Medians for conventional home-purchase loans, shown with at least 20 loans; spread = APR minus the average prime offer rate at rate lock (percentage points); costs = total loan costs (section D).

Check a quote for Dougherty County

Typical effective property-tax rate 1.33% = median real estate taxes ÷ median home value, U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2020–2024 5-year estimates.

Nearby counties

CountyDistancePurchase loansMedian loanBuyer incomeConforming limitFHA limit
Lee County, GA20 mi347$265,000$100,000$832,750$541,287
Baker County, GA21 mi2——$832,750$541,287
Mitchell County, GA21 mi56$165,000$69,000$832,750$541,287
Worth County, GA21 mi64$185,000$86,000$832,750$541,287
Terrell County, GA22 mi32$145,000$63,000$832,750$541,287
Calhoun County, GA25 mi9——$832,750$541,287

Frequently asked questions

What is the 2026 conforming loan limit in Dougherty County?

$832,750 for a one-unit home (FHFA). Two- to four-unit limits are $1,066,250, $1,288,800, $1,601,750. Loans above the limit are jumbo loans and are not eligible for purchase by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac.

What is the 2026 FHA loan limit in Dougherty County?

$541,287 for a one-unit home (HUD). This is the national floor for low-cost areas.

How much do home buyers in Dougherty County earn?

The median household income reported on 2025 home-purchase mortgages was $76,000; the middle half of buyers reported $55,000 to $110,000.

What mortgage rate did buyers in Dougherty County get in 2025?

The median rate on 30-year fixed conventional purchase loans was 6.625%; FHA borrowers paid a median 6.25%. These are rates locked during 2025; check today's rates with several lenders.

How often are mortgage applications denied in Dougherty County?

13.4% of completed home-purchase applications were denied in 2025; the most common stated reason was debt-to-income ratio.

Sources: FFIEC/CFPB HMDA 2025 public loan/application register (Snapshot as of June 1, 2026); FHFA 2026 conforming loan limits; HUD 2026 FHA forward-mortgage limits; U.S. Census Bureau. Figures describe typical 2025 loans, not your offer. Methodology