Let’s look at the housing market numbers for Salt Lake City during the second quarter of this year! Plenty of people were curious about what the second quarter would show with the COVID-19 pandemic being in full force from April to June. The stats tell quite a story.

The truth is that demand is still very high, despite the pandemic. The market may have been a little quieter for two or three weeks, but people are definitely still out buying homes, and sellers are still seeing multiple offers on their homes. Truth be told, not a whole lot has changed when it comes to the Salt Lake real estate market.

Median Price Sales Price

The median sold price for Salt Lake City homes was $368,700 during the second quarter (a steady rise from $362,000 during the first quarter of this year). That price just keeps going up and up and up, which is great news for homeowners who are just seeing their equity continue to increase.

In 2019, the median sales price was $345,000 for the second quarter and in 2018, $320,000 during the second quarter. That’s nearly $49,000 in equity gained in just two years. Wow!

But even though home prices are still rising, they are not skyrocketing as quickly as was initially expected for 2020 (this is due to the pandemic). Initially, the median sales price in the Salt Lake area was projected to hit the $400,000 mark for the first time ever this year. While this will likely still happen, it’s not happening as quickly as the experts thought it would.

Number of Homes Sold

Homes sales were decidedly down during the second quarter. This is because the pandemic affected inventory and showings, so there have been fewer sales. 4,416 homes sold this quarter, compared to 5,263 during the second quarter of last year and 5,172 the year before that.

The dearth of homes available for sale will continue to put pressure on sales prices. In part, this is because home construction has declined 10% to 12% due to issues with supplies and construction since the pandemic started. Less new construction just exacerbates the existing inventory problem.

Median Days on the Market

Salt Lake City homes took a median 14 days to sell during this past quarter, down from 15 days last year and up only 4 days from 2018. Homes are still selling lightning fast in Salt Lake City, and like I mentioned earlier, many of them are still attracting multiple offers! If you find the home you want, you’ll need to be ready to jump on it.

Interest Rates

It wouldn’t be a market update without a word about interest rates. Rates are still sitting at historic lows—the lowest rates ever recorded in recent weeks.  Rates are expected to stay low for the foreseeable future—according to a recent forecast, throughout the rest of the year and possibly even into 2021.

This means that if you’re thinking of buying a home in the near future, you have more purchasing power because the cost of borrowing money is lower. Also, if you haven’t talked to your lender about refinancing, it’s time to ask if it’s worth doing!

If you’re needing any help buying or selling in this crazy market, give me a call! I’m here to to make it happen for you.