Wider Choices Greet Utah First-Time Home Buyers
The concept of “starter homes” cropped up after the end of the
Second World War, when millions of young families took advantage of low-cost
new developments to gain a foothold in homeownership: the emblematic first step
in fulfilling the American Dream.
Today’s first-time Utah home buyers are a lot less predictable—just as
the market itself is altogether different. As we recover from the previous
years’ economic declines, which temporarily suppressed the number of Salt Lake City and Beyond home buyers, the
combination of low interest rates and historically affordable home prices
allows many to aim for bigger and more accommodating housing— skipping the
starter home altogether.
For sure, the market hasn’t completely abandoned the starter home
idea—especially if you include Utah REO and foreclosure fixer-uppers as financially rewarding targets
for handy young householders. The FHA 203(k) loan, which includes a built-in
“limited repair” budget, can enable that route. But new home buyers also find
other prospects can be newly within reach— among them, larger older homes and
newer Salt Lake City and Beyond condominium and townhome choices.
If the combination of bargain prices and low mortgage rates isn’t
enough to call prospects to action, the clear trend toward rising prices may do
the trick. As inventories of the best bargains begin to shrink and mortgage
rate rises look more and more inevitable, Utah home buyers could well
imagine a ‘tick-tock’ sound growing louder. For area sellers waiting to make a
move upward on the housing ladder, the same conditions could well make this spring’s real estate
market the one they’ve been waiting for.
It all means that prospective home buyers in Salt Lake City and Beyond stand to be rewarded
by keeping an open mind about the variety of properties they may now find
within reach. By seeking the help of an experienced agent, the widest choice of
possibilities will be open for consideration.
If you are looking for Salt Lake City and Beyond's
most up-to-date market advice, I’m here to make sure you have access to the
tools you need to make the right decision—the first time around, and every time
after!
