Mortgage by CountyWhat home buyers actually paid, county by county

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

Georgia · Athens-Clarke County, GA

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

What buyers in Oconee 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 445 home-purchase mortgages for owner-occupied, single-family homes in Oconee County, GA. The median buyer borrowed $475,000 on a home valued at $605,000 and reported a household income of $159,000.

Buyers financed a median 80% of the home's value (roughly 20% down), paid a median 6.50% on 30-year fixed conventional loans and faced median conventional loan costs of $6,490.

Lenders denied 3.8% of completed home-purchase applications.

Conforming limit 2026
$832,750
1-unit home · FHFA
FHA limit 2026
$616,400
1-unit home · HUD
Buyer income
$159,000
U.S. $116,000
30-yr fixed rate
6.50%
U.S. 6.625%
Loan costs
$6,490
Conventional · U.S. $5,570
Denial rate
3.8%
Purchase · U.S. 8.5%

Key facts about Oconee County mortgages

  • Home buyers' median income ($159,000) is 45% higher than the Georgia median ($110,000).
  • The median 30-year fixed conventional rate here was 13 basis points below the U.S. median (6.625%).
  • Median conventional loan costs ($6,490) were 17% higher than the U.S. median ($5,570).
  • FHA loans made up 8.3% of purchase mortgages, versus 21.1% nationally.
  • 60.2% of buyers put at least 20% down (financed 80% or less), compared with 38.5% nationally.
  • The most common age bracket among borrowers was 35–44 (35.8% of purchase loans).
  • 43.6% of purchase mortgages had a single borrower with no co-applicant.

National rank among 1,994 counties with at least 100 purchase loans: median income of home buyers 87th · median home-purchase loan 108th · median conventional loan costs 248th · purchase application denial rate 1944th. See rankings.

2026 loan limits in Oconee County

PropertyConforming 2026vs 2025FHA 2026vs 2025
1 unit $832,750 +$26,250 $616,400 +$12,650
2 units $1,066,250 +$33,600 $789,100 +$16,200
3 units $1,288,800 +$40,650 $953,850 +$19,600
4 units $1,601,750 +$50,500 $1,185,400 +$24,350

2026 limits for Oconee County, GA: conforming (Fannie Mae / Freddie Mac) from FHFA; FHA forward-mortgage limits from HUD. FHA treats this county as a high-cost area (limit above the national floor). 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 Oconee County

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

Purchase loans
445
of 473 applications
Buyer income
$159,000
Middle half $115,000–$240,000
Home value
$605,000
Middle half $485,000–$765,000
Loan amount
$475,000
Middle half $355,000–$605,000
Down payment
20%
60.2% put 20%+ down
Single borrower
43.6%
No co-applicant

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

Loan type

Conventional 84.9% 378
FHA 8.3% 37
VA 6.5% 29
USDA 0.2% 1

What the homes were for

Primary residence 92.6% 448
Second home 1.7% 8
Investment property 5.8% 28

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

Borrower age

Under 25 3.4%
25–34 29.1%
35–44 35.8%
45–54 16.0%
55–64 9.2%
65–74 4.5%
75 and over 2.0%

Debt-to-income ratio

Under 20% 5.0%
20–29% 17.8%
30–35% 21.1%
36–42% 23.1%
43–49% 27.9%
50–60% 4.8%
Over 60% 0.3%

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

What borrowing cost in Oconee 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.

MeasureOconee CountyGeorgiaU.S.
30-year fixed rate · conventional6.500%6.624%6.625%
30-year fixed rate · FHA6.000%6.125%6.250%
30-year fixed rate · VA—6.249%6.125%
15-year fixed rate · conventional—5.750%5.875%
Rate spread vs. APOR · conventional+0.00 pts+0.13 pts+0.13 pts
Total loan costs · conventional$6,490$6,350$5,570
Total loan costs · FHA$13,160$11,920$11,310
Total loan costs · VA—$6,330$6,490
Origination charges (all loan types)$2,280$2,590$1,860
Borrowers paying discount points52.4%58.3%51.3%
Points paid, when paid (% of loan)0.75%0.91%0.87%
Borrowers receiving lender credits32.7%36.4%33.1%
Adjustable-rate mortgages11.2%4.8%7.4%
Jumbo loans (above conforming limit)7.2%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

Oconee County: 18 of 473 completed home-purchase applications were denied (3.8%).

Denial rate

ApplicationOconee CountyGeorgiaU.S.
Home purchase3.8%9.9%8.5%
Conventional2.5%8.2%7.1%
FHA9.8%13.7%12.5%
VA11.8%9.0%8.0%
USDA—11.1%12.5%
Refinance10.8%19.8%17.9%
Cash-out refinance19.7%37.4%33.6%

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 Oconee County

Refinances
105
Median loan $465,000
Refi rate
6.49%
30-yr fixed, conv.
Refi loan costs
$6,160
Conventional
Cash-out refis
88
Median loan $355,000
Cash-out rate
6.75%
30-yr fixed, conv.
Cash-out income
$129,000
Median borrower

Top mortgage lenders in Oconee County

128 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) 51 8.0% 6.1% 6.374% −0.20 $7,630
2 City National Bank of Florida 39 6.1% 0.0% 6.500% −0.06 $5,940
3 Lennar Mortgage, LLC 34 5.3% 10.5% 5.500% −0.99 $6,410
4 Rocket Mortgage, LLC 33 5.2% — — — —
5 Regions Bank 30 4.7% 3.6% — −0.06 $7,940
6 Ameris Bank 29 4.5% 9.5% — — —
7 Synovus Bank 28 4.4% 4.2% — −0.18 $6,050
8 First American Bank and Trust Company 27 4.2% 0.0% — — —
9 Oconee State Bank 20 3.1% — — — —
10 DHI Mortgage Company, Ltd. 20 3.1% 0.0% — — —
11 Pennymac Loan Services, LLC 16 2.5% — — — —
12 Fairway Independent Mortgage Corporation 12 1.9% — — — —
13 CrossCountry Mortgage, Inc. 12 1.9% — — — —
14 Banksouth Mortgage Company, LLC 11 1.7% — — — —
15 Navy Federal Credit Union 10 1.6% — — — —
16 Acopia, LLC 10 1.6% — — — —
17 Kind Lending, LLC 10 1.6% — — — —
18 Pinnacle Bank 9 1.4% — — — —
19 Freedom Mortgage Corporation 9 1.4% — — — —
20 Everett Financial, Inc. 8 1.3% — — — —
21 Newrez LLC 7 1.1% — — — —
22 Magnolia Bank, Incorporated 7 1.1% — — — —
23 Veterans United Home Loans 6 0.9% — — — —
24 Eustis Mortgage Corporation 6 0.9% — — — —
25 BankSouth 6 0.9% — — — —

Lenders in Oconee 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 Oconee County

Typical effective property-tax rate 0.70% = 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
Clarke County, GA9 mi686$295,000$110,000$832,750$616,400
Morgan County, GA17 mi200$375,000$122,000$832,750$718,750
Walton County, GA17 mi1,212$355,000$113,000$832,750$718,750
Barrow County, GA19 mi1,569$345,000$97,000$832,750$718,750
Oglethorpe County, GA21 mi112$305,000$104,000$832,750$616,400
Jackson County, GA22 mi1,600$375,000$116,000$832,750$541,287

Frequently asked questions

What is the 2026 conforming loan limit in Oconee 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 Oconee County?

$616,400 for a one-unit home (HUD). Oconee County is an FHA high-cost area; HUD's median price used to set the limit is $536,000.

How much do home buyers in Oconee County earn?

The median household income reported on 2025 home-purchase mortgages was $159,000; the middle half of buyers reported $115,000 to $240,000.

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

The median rate on 30-year fixed conventional purchase loans was 6.50%; FHA borrowers paid a median 6.00%. These are rates locked during 2025; check today's rates with several lenders.

How often are mortgage applications denied in Oconee County?

3.8% of completed home-purchase applications were denied in 2025.

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