Home prices soar, availability shrinks along Utah's Wasatch Front
SALT LAKE CITY (KUTV) — It comes as no surprise to anyone hunting for homes but home prices along the Wasatch Front continue to rise.
According to the Salt Lake Board of Realtors, lower housing inventory led to fewer home sales in the first quarter of 2021 while "demand for homes remains at record highs." Across five counties — Davis, Salt Lake, Tooele, Utah and Weber — there were 7,703 home sales to start 2021, down 3% from the first quarter of 2020. Homes sales include all housing types. Prices however, soared.
WASATCH FRONT MEDIAM HOME PRICES
- Davis County — $430,000, up 21%
- Salt Lake County — $468,000, up 17%
- Tooele County — $360,000, up 18%
- Utah County — $450,000, up 20%
- Weber County — #340,000, up 23%
The prices above from UtahRealEstate.com are for single-family homes in the first quarter of 2021 compared with the first quarter of 2020.
The board said sales along the Wasatch Front are down this year when compared to 2020 because of scarcity, not demand.
KUTV has been documenting housing challenges for buyers recently and the realtors board says more new housing is needed to meeting "overwhelming" buyer demand.
"Multiple offers are the new normal on nearly every home listed for sale," Matt Ulrich, president of the realtors board said. Nearly one in five buyers in Utah pays with cash, according to data from UtahRealEstate.com, a trend that has accelerated in just the past three months. According to the Salt Lake board, cash sales increased to 15%, up from 10% in the same period in 2020.
Utah’s spring home-buying season is here and with 50% fewer homes for sale statewide, the chances you’ll end up in a bidding war are pretty good. High-density is part of the solution but, but it's difficult getting there."Wasatch Front homes were on the market a median of five days in the first quarter, down from 28 days in the first quarter of 2020," according to the board.
It also said sales along the Wasatch Front are down because of scarcity, but prices continue to rise rapidly. Davis County had the largest single-family home sales decline at 18%, followed by Davis with 16%. Salt Lake has the smallest change at only 1%. While single-family home sales are down, sales of condominiums, townhomes and twin homes increased in two of the five counties. In Weber County sales of condos and townhomes reached a 52% growth totaling 199 units.
