Median selling prices in Salt Lake County rose 20.8 percent in the second quarter to $220,000 from the same period last year, according to data released Thursday by the Salt Lake Board of Realtors. Utah County was up 20.4 percent, with Davis County increasing by 13.4 percent.
The price increases occurring in some cities are tremendous. Median selling prices for homes in the Holladay Zip Code area of 84117, for example, were up 47.7 percent to $357,077 from the second quarter of 2005. Selling prices in North Salt Lake rose by an even larger margin - 63.3 percent - to $309,000.
"Half the time you can't get a home in the neighborhood you want because there are five other people making an offer on the same place," said Bryan Kohler, CEO of the Salt Lake Board of Realtors. "Some homes are sold even before the sign goes up."
And many buyers are willing to pay above the asking price, which makes home-buying especially challenging for people in lower price ranges.
Apartment dweller Lajuana Burbidge of Sandy, for example, wants to move into a townhome or condominium of her own. She has a down payment and qualified for a home loan, but her mortgage company told her she has to stay in the $170,000 price range.
"There are some townhomes out there in my price range but they are under contract even before I get off work and drive out to take a look," she said. "It's kind of sad because I would like to have my own home. But I'm going to keep trying."
Kohler of the Salt Lake Board of Realtors said the market for homes priced up to $300,000 is the most active, although the market has heated up for homes in all price ranges - even those priced above $1 million.
"It's amazing to see how much prices are increasing," he said. "We're finally catching up with the rest of the country."
The Wasatch Front's residential real estate market began to take off in early 2005, years after housing markets in other states such as Arizona, Nevada and California began to heat up. Those markets have now begun to cool while Utah, fueled by strong employment and population growth, is booming.
Many Utahns are doing whatever they can to buy now. Some are taking out adjustable rate mortgages with low introductory rates or interest-only loans in which monthly payments are kept artificially low because borrowers are paying nothing toward the principal value of their loan.
Others are accepting smaller homes with fewer amenities or buying farther out in the suburbs or on the west side, where prices are more moderate.
"There's definitely a feeling among buyers that they need to make a move now before prices and mortgage rates increase even further," said Salt Lake City Realtor Troy Burnett. "There's some concern, especially among first-time buyers, that they will be priced out of the market if they wait" to buy.
It is a valid concern, economists say. Utah's real estate market is at little risk for a housing "bubble," according to a recent report by National City Corp., which analyzes real estate markets in metropolitan areas nationwide.
The report found that while the St. George market is leveling off, the Wasatch Front is likely to experience home-price increases for some time due to the state's high rate of job and population growth.
The strong appreciation of the past year - and the expectation of continued increases - is prompting many Utahns to invest in real estate.
Realtor Bill Heiner, for example, helps people buy and sell homes for a living. But he couldn't help but buy an investment property in Midvale in November for $175,000.
Heiner, who recently listed the property for sale, expects to make a profit of at least 20 percent or 25 percent in less than one year. He plans to plow the proceeds from that property into another home or lot
Like others, he is counting on seeing the real estate market thrive for some time. "Even though prices have already increased a lot," Heiner said, "I don't think it will be that hard to find something else at a good value I could buy and sell again in a year and make a profit."
lesley@sltrib.com
