I get asked often about market conditions here in Salt Lake. Starting today I will compile some market data for you here on a regular basis. I get lots of reports and numbers thrown at me on a regular basis. I will do my best to pull out the relevant info and share it with you here. I am planning on doing this on a monthly basis. If you'd like further clarification or have questions about anything, let me know. I will do my best to decipher the greek - er, statistics- for you.

I will be pulling most of my information in this post from the Realtors Confidence Index July 2015 Survey from the National Association of Realtors and also the Wasatch Front Regional MLS. 

Most of this year has been what we in the business call a "Sellers' Market." This is determined by a fancy thing called an Absorption Rate. The Absorption Rate shows that, if the number of homes on the market stayed the same, how many months of inventory there would be before they sold out (to simplify it greatly). If there are 6-9 months of inventory it's is a stable market with very little price increases or decreases. Less than 6 months is considered a Seller's Market and can cause prices to increase. More than 9 months is a buyer's market and it can cause prices to decrease. I'll put a graph down below to help explain too. 

According to the Wasatch Front Regional MLS there is currently just under 4 months of inventory on the market. That puts us right in the Normal Sellers' Market range. It means it's a great time for Sellers to list their homes. For Buyers, it means that you will pay closer to list price on many of the homes. You may also have to compete for homes with other buyers. 

The Confidence Index put out by the National Association of Realtors (NAR) also shows that 2015 has been a great year for Sellers. In July the average days on the market for the country was 42 days. We beat that in Utah as 43% of our listings sold in less than a month.

As days on the market have decreased, prices have gone up over last year too. The table below from the Wasatch Front Regional MLS shows that houses are on the market 39% less time than last year and sold at a price 9% higher than last year. This info is comparing last year's second quarter to this year's. Once we average the entire year out those numbers will change a bit. It's is still an encouraging number for sellers. 

It's a great time for buyers to buy too as rents are rising at a faster rate than mortgage payments. Often times you can buy a home and have a payment that's lower than your current rate payment. That's a great incentive to start building some equity. 

The Realtors Confidence Index predicts that home prices will increase 3-4% over the next 12 months. That's considered a healthy rate of growth in the housing market. 

If you would like me to list your home or help you find a new one, please give me a call. Now really is a great time for home ownership!