This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2014, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Home sales continued to slow along much of the Wasatch Front as rising prices, tighter lending and a lack of housing inventory pushed many would-be buyers to the sidelines.
Sales of single-family homes in Salt Lake County dropped by 9 percent in the second quarter of 2014, compared with the same quarter last year, according to a new report. Home sales also fell in Davis and Utah counties, while Tooele and Weber counties posted modest gains.
With sizable numbers of yearly home closings typically registered in April, May and June, second-quarter sales are considered a wider indicator of residential real-estate trends.
The latest report from the Salt Lake Board of Realtors marks the third consecutive quarter of home-sale declines for Utah's most populous county — a slowdown that has persisted since the sizzling housing market in the summer of 2013 began to cool off.
Sales in Salt Lake County are down 7 percent for the first six months of this year from the first half of 2013. Across the five-county region, 6,988 homes sold in the second quarter of 2014 versus 7,476 during the same three months last year.
The numbers led board officials to highlight what they called "affordability concerns" in residential markets as prices inched upward in many locales.
"Less inventory and rising home prices have caused some homebuyers to pull back or not qualify for a mortgage," said Angie Domichel Nelden, board president.
The median home price in Salt Lake County rose to $254,000, up 2 percent from the median of $249,000 for the same period last year. Regionally, the median home price in Weber County was the most affordable, at $160,000, and in Tooele County, at $168,250.
Some Wasatch Front ZIP codes logged notable price gains.
Homes in Salt Lake City's 84103 — essentially north of South Temple — shot up by 19 percent, to $435,000, while houses in South Salt Lake's 84115 jumped 14.1 percent to $194,000.
Farmington and Kaysville led in Davis County, with price rises of 25.8 percent and 22.2 percent, respectively.
Price gains in Provo, Mona, Salem and Lindon exceeded other areas in Utah County, while Huntsville, Eden and North Ogden were the hot spots in Weber County.
At the other end of Salt Lake County's value scale, Holladay's 84117 ZIP code saw median home prices slip by 25.2 percent, to $310,500, while Draper's 84020 drooped by 10.2 percent, to $372,825.
Home sales fell furthest in many suburban Salt Lake County neighborhoods that have seen rapid population and housing growth, including Herriman, down 21.4 percent; areas of Sandy, off 16.8 percent; Magna, off 15.5 percent; Draper, off 14 percent; and South Jordan, down 12.1 percent.
In Utah County, Cedar Valley, Alpine and Salem saw the biggest second-quarter drop in sales year over year.
Sales of condominiums in Salt Lake County, meanwhile, continued to swell, with 827 units sold in the second quarter, up 3 percent from the same time last year. The county's median condo price has now reached $174,900.
Twitter: @Tony_Semerad —
Home prices by ZIP code
Check out the latest housing price trends for ZIP codes along the Wasatch Front by visiting http://bit.ly/1u0twn3. —
Park City home sales down
Sales of single-family homes in Park City lagged in the second quarter of 2014, down 29 percent compared with the same three months a year ago.
Experts point to a lack of inventory and rising home prices, which are trending upward across most key residential areas of Summit County. The median home price within Park City's boundaries has reached $1,675,000, more than a third higher than the same time last year, according to the Park City Board of Realtors.
Home prices in the Jordanelle area jumped by a more dramatic 48 percent, while prices in Snyderville rose by 8 percent and those in the Heber and Kamas valleys held steady by comparison.