July Real Estate Sales Dismal for Utah County

Home prices for July in Utah County were down 14.5% compared with July of 2007. Home sales were down nearly 23%, and Condo sales were down by more than 40%. The Utah County real estate market continues to struggle after appreciating too fast the past few years.

My unofficial numbers for July show that there were 337 single family homes sold and 79 condos sold in Utah County. In total residential home sales were down 27% compared too 2007. On the positive, this number is up from June sales where home sales were down 29%.

Utah County Real Estate Market Conditions

Real estate in Utah County seems to be the least healthy in Utah. Compared to the second quarter numbers, Utah County has the most inventory 4,548 active listings (13.4 months), and the second largest disparity between list price and sold price. For Q2 2008, Utah county homes sold for 22% less than the median sales price and 32% less than the average sales price.

The average price of 968 Utah County single family homes sold during the second quarter of 2008 was $270,234. The average price of 228 Utah County Condos was $168,500. Single family home sales were down 29.7% for 2007’s Q2 numbers, and the average sold price was down by an 9.5%.

For June home sales in Utah County were down 27.8% compared to 2007. The average price is also down 8.75% to a June average sold price of $276,477. Condo sales were less than half of what they were last year. Only 61 condos were sold in Utah County this year at an average price of $166,632.

These numbers are not official.

May Real Estate Stats for Utah County

Despite the fact that Utah County had price appreciation for the first quarter of 2008, the housing market is looking a little scary in the Provo/Orem metro. Unofficial numbers for May show that there were only 321 single family homes sold in Utah County.  Last year there were 484 homes sold in the same month. Home sales were down nearly 33%. In addition, the average price of sold homes was down 9% over the 2007 numbers.  

There are currently 4,561 active Provo Utah area houses for sale. The average price of these single family listings is $405,167, and the median price is nearly $100,000 less than that at $309,000.  These numbers are substantially more than the average May sold price of $266,573 and median sold price at $232,000. The average Utah County house on the market has been listed for 94 days.

The condo/townhouse market in Utah County seems to be pretty healthy. There are also 183 active condo listings in Utah County. The average asking price of condominiums is $178,558. In May there were about 80 condos sold at an average sold price of about $170,000. With most homes priced to high for the average Utah County buyer, condos become the affordable alternative.

My advise is that if you don’t need to sell your home, take it off your market. If you do, the only way you’ll be able to sell is if it is priced right, (right meaning one of the best priced of comparable home listings.) To buyers, it doesn’t matter what the house appraised at a year ago. What matters is that it is the best deal for them.

If you are looking to buy real estate in Utah county, there are plenty of homes on the market. Take your time, and don’t feel bad about making low offers.

Utah County Home Sales Numbers includes: Homes for Sale in Alpine, American Fork, Eagle Mountain, Highland, Lehi, Lindon, Mapleton, Orem, Payson, Pleasant Grove, Provo, Salem, Santaquin, Saratoga Springs, Springville, Spanish Fork, and Woodland Hills Utah.

Utah 10 Year Home Appreciation

 

What is a healthy appreciation rate for real estate? It has to be more than the rate of inflation because more real estate cannot be created. It becomes more and more scarce as the population grows, and the population of Utah is growing. To make math simple, I picked 5% as an easy to figure out appreciation rate and ran a few numbers comparing the actual real estate appreciation rate to the 5% amount for the past 10 years for the major Utah Counties.

If 5% appreciation is an accurate and healthy rate for real estate appreciation, then compared to the 1998 average home value, Salt Lake and Utah Counties are overvalued while Davis County is almost right on, and Cache and Weber County’s real estate is undervalued.

 

Provo/Orem February Home Sales

Homes sales were down in Utah County  45% compared to February of last year. According to unofficial statistics reported by the WFRMLS, there were only 256 single family homes sold in Utah Compared to 468 sold in 2007.

Compared to last February, the average sold price is also down. The average sold price in the Provo/Orem metro in ‘07 was $249,512, the average sold price this year was just $234,132. Homes sold at an average of $103 per square foot.  At the end of February there were 3,733 active residential listings in Utah County on the MLS.  Home sales in the Orem Provo area should pick up as they do seasonally when spring comes. If they didn’t pick up, at February’s home sales rate, it would take 14 and a half months to exhaust the current supply of Utah County home listings. It looks like rough times are ahead for the housing market in Utah Valley, especially for high end homes. The median price of listed homes is $320,000. The average list price is almost $412,000. Prices appreciated too fast, and will likely come down to a more realistic value.

It’s definitely a buyers market in Happy Valley. Click the link below to search active Utah County MLS listings. Search for Homes in Utah County Alpine MLSCedar Hills MLSElk Ridge Homes

Lindon Houses