I’ve been looking forward to writing this month’s SLC Homes News, because I wanted to know, as much you want to know, what happened to the value of Salt Lake homes, condos and townhomes during the second quarter of 2016. It was a quarter of multiple offers and sale prices over asking price for many reasonably priced homes under $600,000. The biggest issue was getting appraisals that were equal to or greater than what buyer’s were willing to pay. So here it is:
The median sold price of a single family home in Salt Lake County increased from $275,000 to $300,000 from the first to the second quarter of 2016, a 9.1% increase. That’s huge and it’s the first time we’ve hit $300,000! If you compare the second quarter of 2015 to the second quarter of 2016, the median price increased from $277,000 to $300,000, a 8.3% increase.
If you look at the big picture and compare the first quarter of 2012, which was the point where our market started recovering from the great recession, to the second quarter of 2016, the median sold price has increased from $190,000 to $300,000, a 57.9% increase. Keep in mind that some of the increase in the median sold price can be attributed to homes in the higher price ranges selling in greater quantity than they were at the end of the recession.
The median sold price of a single family home in Salt Lake City increased from $265,000 to $307,000 from the first and second quarter of 2016, 15.8% increase. That’s Super Huge! I can’t recall a time when the market has ever appreciated at this rate in one quarter in SLC. If you compare the second quarter of 2015 to the second quarter of 2016, the sold price went from $281,000 to $307,000, a 9.3% increase. If you compare the first quarter of 2012 to the second quarter of 2016, the median sold price for a single family home has increased from $167,000 to $307,000, a 83.8% increase.
The median sold price for a condo/townhouse in Salt Lake County increased from $190,000 to $205,000 from the first to the second quarter of 2016, a 7.9% increase. If you compare the second quarter of 2015 to the second quarter of 2016, the price went from $189,000 to $205,000, a 8.5% increase. If you compare the first quarter of 2012 to the second quarter of 2016, the median sold price for a condo/townhouse has increased from $142,000 to $205,000, a 44.4% increase.
The median price for a condo/townhouse in Salt Lake City increased from $191,000 to $200,000 from the first to the second quarter of 2016, a 4.7% increase. If you compare the second quarter of 2015 to the second quarter of 2016, the median sold price went from $183,000 to $200,000, a 9.3% increase. If you compare the first quarter of 2012 to the second quarter of 2016, the median sold price for a condo/townhouse has increased from $134,000 to $200,000, a 49.3% increase.
Keep in mind that the second quarter is the spring selling season and is typically where most of the appreciation happens for our local housing market nearly every year, and this rate of appreciation is not sustainable long term. You’ll see that when you look at the charts above. In four of the last five years, 2012, 2013, 2015 and 2016, the majority of the appreciation for each year happened during the spring selling season, from the first to the second quarter of each year.
I’ve recently had a few people ask me if a bubble is forming in the Salt Lake County real estate market. If you look at single family housing inventory in Salt Lake County, it is still very low with just over one month of inventory in Salt Lake County across all price ranges. Also, when you compare the “Total Number of Homes Listed” to the “Total Number of Homes Sold” in each of the graphs above, you’ll see that those numbers are tracking well together and that the lines on the graph are moving in the same direction. When the “homes listed” have gone up, so have the “homes sold”.
Interest rates are at historical lows again with the 30-year conventional mortgage rate averaging 3.5% and the 15-year at 2.7% which helps. Also, rents have increased significantly over the last five years and in some cases, it’s cheaper to buy a home than it is to rent it, especially with homes under $300,000. So for now, my opinion is this market still has upside potential. There are a lot of buyers looking for homes and housing inventory remains tight.
If you’re wondering how our recent appreciation has effected the value of your home, please contact me and I’ll run the numbers for you. Also, if you have any questions about buying or selling real estate in and around Salt Lake County, give me a call.
Thank you!
Kevin Coyle
Realtor Broker MBA CRS
SLC Homes
M: (801) 243-0699
Kevin@SLCHomeBuyer.com
