Home Sales Trends for Utah | Home Sales Statistics for all Utah Counties | 2008 Utah Real Estate Facts - Figures
Number of homes sold, average sales price for single family homes, condos sold, days on market, price increases.

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    Home > > Utah Real Estate News & Trends > > April 2008 Real Estate Trends

Is It A Good Time To Sell A Home? It Depends….

April 7, 2008 

 

Many people have been asking me lately if it is a good time to sell their home or should they wait until the market is better. Timing the real estate market is a daunting task since the market is somewhat unpredictable. What is predictable is that the real estate market, like the economy; move up and down in cycles. Our current cycle as a nation is a downward trend. The current national downtrend is affecting Utah, but not to the same extent as many other states. Using the words of Utah’s economic advisor to the governor, “our state’s increase is starting to decrease.” That means we are still showing economic increases in the state as well as in real estate prices, but our increase is slowing.

 

Real estate often has regional factors and local factors that influence the market. For instance, our state’s unemployment rate is among the lowest in the nation. Our economy in Utah is still very strong. That is why Utah did not have a home price decrease in 2007 like most of the nation. In fact, the only county suffering a price decrease in Utah was Washington County. In this county, Saint George experienced explosive growth over the past decade. This explosive growth is now correcting itself.

 

Utah’s current real estate market favors buyers. There is a lot of inventory, interest rates are low and Sellers are willing to negotiate. This combination favors home buyers. Buyers waiting for better market conditions will likely be disappointed in the months ahead. Government actions to spur the economy will eventually take effect and as market conditions improve, home prices will increase.

 

Sellers may also feel they should wait until the market improves. However, it could be a mistake for Sellers to wait if they plan to purchase another home to replace the one they are selling. Waiting for the market to transition into a “Sellers Market” will help you increase your equity for your home, but it will also increase the cost of your replacement home. Any gain on the selling side will likely be adjusted upon purchasing a new property. Buyers who plan to upgrade their existing homes for a larger, modern home will likely find themselves paying a lot more later than if they purchased now.

 

In summary, home prices in Utah have been stable while the rest of the nation has had a pretty tough time. Below is a month-to-month trend report for Utah covering the past 12 years. As you can see, average home prices fluctuate from month to month but show a steady increase from year to year. The number of homes sold has decreased significantly over the past few months. The average home sold for $233,211 in 2006. In 2007 the average climbed to $255,880. The year-to-date 2008 average sold home price is $254,333. That is a good price trend, considering the winter months are traditionally the poorest months of the year for home sales.

 

All Utah Counties Sales by Month

Report Date: Monday, April 7, 2008
Area(s): ALL

 

Month

Count

Volume

*List $

*Sale $

*S to L

*sq. ft.

*$/ sq ft

*Beds

*Baths

*DOM

Aug 1995

6

$1,088,700

$186,031

$181,450

98%

3,130

$58

4

3

44

Sep 1995

7

$659,627

$95,443

$94,232

99%

2,093

$45

3

2

50

Oct 1995

7

$801,041

$117,106

$114,434

98%

2,218

$52

3

2

93

Nov 1995

733

$94,334,398

$131,292

$128,696

98%

2,109

$61

3

2

53

Dec 1995

1,463

$190,113,271

$132,720

$129,948

98%

2,110

$62

3

2

54

Jan 1996

1,078

$143,064,777

$135,529

$132,713

98%

2,162

$61

3

2

56

Feb 1996

1,236

$159,496,450

$131,254

$129,042

98%

2,070

$62

3

2

67

Mar 1996

1,480

$196,503,652

$135,049

$132,773

98%

2,099

$63

3

2

55

Apr 1996

1,624

$214,988,774

$134,740

$132,382

98%

2,044

$65

3

2

56

May 1996

1,783

$244,181,358

$139,374

$136,950

98%

2,121

$65

3

2

54

Jun 1996

1,619

$225,680,452

$141,803

$139,395

98%

2,131

$65

3

2

56

Jul 1996

1,649

$227,965,634

$140,908

$138,245

98%

2,126

$65

3

2

56

Aug 1996

1,757

$246,359,554

$143,425

$140,216

98%

2,143

$65

3

2

54

Sep 1996

1,787

$242,336,023

$138,245

$135,611

98%

2,079

$65

3

2

55

Oct 1996

1,666

$226,271,635

$138,612

$135,817

98%

2,112

$64

3

2

57

Nov 1996

1,345

$186,867,372

$141,777

$138,935

98%

2,123

$65

3

2

62

Dec 1996

1,408

$196,314,463

$142,238

$139,428

98%

2,149

$65

3

2

66

Jan 1997

1,132

$166,710,416

$150,820

$147,271

98%

2,190

$67

3

2

72

Feb 1997

1,215

$169,530,519

$142,165

$139,531

98%

2,134

$65

3

2

72

Mar 1997

1,575

$219,559,701

$142,190

$139,403

98%

2,106

$66

3

2

66

Apr 1997

1,668

$224,145,904

$136,813

$134,380

98%

2,023

$66

3

2

65

May 1997

1,773

$251,019,629

$144,498

$141,579

98%

2,118

$67

3

2

64

Jun 1997

1,657

$246,548,529

$152,166

$148,792

98%

2,189

$68

3

2

68

Jul 1997

1,792

$264,190,471

$150,462

$147,428

98%

2,165

$68

3

2

74

Aug 1997

1,860

$270,076,081

$147,994

$145,202

98%

2,140

$68

3

2

72

Sep 1997

1,735

$251,144,541

$148,100

$144,752

98%

2,167

$67

3

2

76

Oct 1997

1,678

$240,000,346

$146,152

$143,028

98%

2,156

$66

3

2

71

Nov 1997

1,454

$213,450,197

$150,482

$146,802

98%

2,175

$68

3

2

70

Dec 1997

1,533

$233,685,090

$155,780

$152,436

98%

2,288

$67

3

2

73

Jan 1998

1,130

$166,369,016

$150,614

$147,229

98%

2,177

$68

3

2

81

Feb 1998

1,321

$197,765,862

$153,141

$149,709

98%

2,200

$68

3

2

82

Mar 1998

1,758

$253,288,842

$146,845

$144,078

98%

2,133

$68

3

2

75

Apr 1998

1,743

$262,120,162

$153,139

$150,384

98%

2,158

$70

3

2

76

May 1998

1,552

$238,323,085

$156,714

$153,559

98%

2,226

$69

3

2

72

Jun 1998

1,945

$301,707,652

$158,068

$155,120

98%

2,212

$70

4

2

69

Jul 1998

1,890

$291,718,836

$157,282

$154,349

98%

2,196

$70

3

2

70

Aug 1998

1,936

$295,760,352

$155,682

$152,769

98%

2,194

$70

3

2

69

Sep 1998

1,909

$290,172,019

$155,063

$152,002

98%

2,181

$70

3

2

68

Oct 1998

1,831

$275,046,217

$152,969

$150,216

98%

2,157

$70

3

2

66

Nov 1998

1,491

$225,316,461

$154,025

$151,118

98%

2,180

$69

3

2

68

Dec 1998

1,817

$275,446,942

$154,643

$151,594

98%

2,181

$69

3

2

70

Jan 1999

1,094

$172,056,647

$160,403

$157,273

98%

2,243

$70

3

2

74

Feb 1999

1,313

$197,515,358

$153,608

$150,431

98%

2,160

$70

3

2

71

Mar 1999

1,833

$274,581,793

$152,497

$149,799

98%

2,166

$69

3

2

69

Apr 1999

1,817

$275,361,546

$154,252

$151,547

98%

2,146

$71

3

2

63

May 1999

2,020

$313,346,642