Homes sales in the Salt Lake City area were up in September as compared to September of last year.   Home prices have become more realistic due to the recent real estate slowdown.  The last couple years of increased activity in the real estate market drove the home prices up to a level that the average Salt Lake City resident could not afford to purchase a home.  Now, there is an increased inventory of homes driving home sellers to be more negotiable on the price of their homes.  This flexibility has encouraged more activity from qualifies buyers.  If the trend continues in the coming months, it could signal the Wasatch Front's sagging real estate market may be on the mend.

September's strong real estate sales showing, however, could be only a temporary blip attributable mainly to the elimination of a popular down-payment assistance program. Many buyers rushed to purchase properties in September before the program ended Oct. 1.  Under the program, could provide buyers with most or all of their down payment.  This program has been eliminated due financial crunch of the mortgage system.

Home prices are also showing weakness. The median price of all properties sold in September in Salt Lake County was $220,000, down 2 percent from September 2007 and down almost 10 percent from a peak of $243,000 in June 2007. As mentioned earlier, a little adjustment was needed.  Years of home-price run-ups made homes less affordable to a growing number of Utah families and tighter lending standards put in place last summer in response to the nation's subprime lending crisis made it harder to qualify for home loans.

Nationwide, home sales and prices began to weaken several years ago after years of booming sales and large increases in selling prices. Conversely, Utah has not seen the huge spike of booming sales highly escalated prices.  The housing market along the Wasatch Front, however, started to weaken last summer but it is not anticipated to spiral like the rest of the country.

For more information on the Salt Lake City Real Estate market go to the comprehensive website

Salt Lake City Real Estate Resource Center