More good news for physicians who are wanting to move up in the home buying process in Utah or are thinking of buying their first home.
At an hourlong housing forecast presented by the Salt Lake Board of Realtors speakers presented facts showing:
- The housing market began a slow recovery late in 2011.
- The housing market picked up speed last year and today is poised for the best year since 2007, thanks to Utah’s strong economy.
- There has been a a 15 percent increase in home sales that touched every city in the county last year.
- There’s been a 6 percent increase in the median sales price of homes.
- We have record low interest rates.
- We have the smallest number of active home listings in four years.
James Wood, director of the University of Utah’s Bureau of Economic and Business Research said that sales of new and existing homes are likely to rise 15 percent to 20 percent over 2012, reaching as high as 13,000 units.
A combination of factors points to demand exceeding supply, from high affordability rates — a median-income household could afford 80 percent of the homes that were sold in the county last year — to improving job numbers, historically low mortgage rates and a growing population (50,000 households were created during the recession). That will put upward pressure on prices, Wood said, who thinks they probably will rise 10 percent to 12 percent this year.
Kurt Badenhausen, a Forbes magazine senior editor said, “Utah was incredibly resilient during the recession and emerged from it [faster] and in better shape than any other state. By Forbes’ count, Utah has the best business climate in the country.”
Utah is a great place for doctors to relocate to and to make a home. Our economy is strong and all indications point to even more improvement.
Thanks to the Salt Lake Tribune for the information in this post.
