Salt Lake City - 3rd Best Place to SELL a home

Last week Forbes.com put out a picture story about the best places in the United States to SELL your home.

Here's what they said:

The story makes a few interesting statements about Salt Lake's ecoonomy that I thought should be considered by anyone considering a move to the area, as well as by those of us who live, work, and own homes here.

Here they are, paraphrased by me:

1."Salt Lake's growing economy was not housing reliant"

2. "Salt Lake has a 3% annual job growth rate"

3. "Salt Lake has declining home inventory" 

4. "Salt Lake has one of the nation's sharpest declines in construction"

5. "Salt Lake didn't (doesn't?) have an overwhelming inventory glut" 

Unfortunately, they didn't provide links to the data to back up these claims, so, although it is "Forbes", be cautious.

Here is what I would say relating to these points:

1."Salt Lake's growing economy was not entirely housing reliant, like some other areas that experienced a lot of growth over the last few years"

2. "Salt Lake has a 3% annual job growth rate" - I cannot speak for that figure, but I don't personally know many people who are out of work right now. In fact, I still have many clients who are relocating here for jobs from such places as: Hawaii, Illinois, Colorado, Idaho, Minnesota, Florida, and New Jersey.

3. "Salt Lake has declining home inventory" - I would say that Salt Lake doesn't show an extreme rise in home inventory. This isn't to say that Forbes is wrong, but here is what I see from trulia:

4. "Salt Lake has one of the nation's sharpest declines in construction" - Again, I don't have actual numbers here but I can definitely say that home building has slowed. Still, I have clients who are currently purchasing new construction and I can say that builder's incentives are weaker than they were 6 months ago, with some builders so confident that they aren't even offering any real incentives.

5. "Salt Lake didn't (doesn't?) have an overwhelming inventory glut" - This is probably true to a point. If you are realistic about the market value of your home, and price it accordingly, your home will probably sell within 60 days. If you price your home at $30,000, $50,000 or $80,000 above market value, you are wasting everybody's time, including your own. I DO still see new listings that are extremely overpriced.
 

I would also suggest that it is probably safer to buy a home in an area where the market is good for selling a home. Still, because of the amount of inventory that is overpriced in Salt Lake's market today...

If you are thinking about moving to the Salt Lake City area, make sure you get an Agent on YOUR side! 

Homebuyer Representation, Inc. is the only Real Estate Brokerage representing Buyers ONLY in Salt Lake City and the Surrounding Area. We do not list any homes. We never represent Sellers.

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