December 2006 - Salt Lake City Home Values
Salt Lake Home Values:
The fourth quarter numbers are in and the market is up again! Here's an update on the value of Salt Lake City Homes.
The Blue line is the average price of homes Sold in Salt Lake County
The Green line is the number of homes Listed in Salt Lake County
The Red line is the number of homes Sold in Salt Lake County
The prices of homes in Salt Lake County continue to rise. The average home sale in Salt Lake County went from $214,500 to $222,000 between the 3rd and 4th quarters of 2005. The average home sale from 4th quarter 2004 to 4th Quarter 2005 went from $190,900 to $222,000, a 16% increase. Keep in mind that this is the average and your home value may have gone up more or less than this.
Another interesting observation you can make on this graph is the gap between the number of homes listed vs. the number of homes sold in Salt Lake County (the difference between the red and green line). In 4th quarter 2004 the gap was 1,736 more homes listed than sold. In 4th quarter 2005 there were only 763 more homes listed than homes sold.
2006 Expectation for Salt Lake County Real Estate
I’ve seen a lot of press lately about the National Real Estate market and the possibility of decreasing values to come. Most of these articles say that the areas on the West and East Coasts that have seen major appreciation for the last 5 years will likely cool off based on the fact that existing home sales and new construction housing starts for the last 3 months of 2005 are down significantly from previous years.
So what about Salt Lake City?
Salt Lake City’s economic outlook and real estate market appear strong for many reason:
Homes are selling and going up in value.
- The difference between the number of homes sold vs. the number homes listed is getting smaller compared to last year so inventory is tight.
- The Utah economy is bucking the National trend and went from a 4.6% Unemployment rate in June 2005 down to 3.9% in December 2005.
- The National Unemployment rate was at 4.9% for December 2005.
- Employment in Utah increased in all sectors, high wages and low. (Construction, Manufacturing, Health, Education, Finance, Government…)
- Net Migration was over 20,000 more people coming in than leaving Salt Lake County and over 40,000 in Utah
- Net Migration into Utah is projected to be at about 35,000 for 2006 and 30,000 for 2007
- There is a National trend of people moving to the Western states
- Interest Rates have remained stable with a 30 year mortgage still around 6%
- The traffic to my web site is at or above where it was last year at this time
No one can say for sure that values will increase again this year, but the situation appears to be positive and it seems very likely.
Other Good Stuff:
Salt Lake Condos are selling. Due to the increase in home prices, many first time buyers are buying condos and many condos have been increasing in value for the first time in many years.
Salt Lake apartment vacancy rates have been falling. Vacancy rates on apartments in Salt Lake County spiked up to 10.9% in 2002 after the Olympics left. Since then they have fallen a little bit every year and were at 7.3% in 2005, with some neighborhoods, such as the Avenues, as low as 5.5%.
Rents have been relatively flat since the late 1990s. I expect that rents will increase as the vacancy rate decreases which should start in the next year or two. So, if you have friends that rent, let them know that now might be a good time to buy before both home values and rents increase.
If you or someone you know is getting ready to buy real estate in Salt Lake, consider working with me! If you’re wondering how I’m different from other agents, I educate my clients. As you can see from my web site I want all of my clients to know the market so they can make an informed decision.
Take care and talk to you soon!
Sincerely,
Kevin Coyle
GRI, MBA, Associate Broker
http://www.SLCHomeBuyer.com
Kevin@SLCHomeBuyer.com
Mobile: 801-243-0699
Office: 801-466-8977
Stonebrook Real Estate
6375 South Highland Drive
SLC, UT 84121
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