Utah
Finance
Rent vs Buy
The Wasatch Front isn’t one market. Salt Lake urban cores, Silicon Slopes (Lehi/Draper), and Ogden value plays have different rent-to-price ratios, taxes, and maintenance realities. Here’s how I frame the decision for locals.
Key Inputs (Utah-Specific)
- Property tax reset after sale; check county rates by city.
- Snow/ice wear on roofs/pavement; budget maintenance at 1–1.5%/yr.
- Transit + schools drive rent premiums (FrontRunner, I-15 exits, school clusters).
Compare These Ratios
- Rent-to-price: SLC urban often ~0.4–0.5%; Ogden can be higher.
- Payment-to-income: keep total housing ≤ 30–35% gross.
- Equity velocity: amortization + conservative appreciation (3–4%) vs alt return.
Scenario Grid
SLC urban: higher price, lower rent yield; pay for proximity + transit. Lehi/Draper: tech wage anchor; appreciation leaning, watch HOA/amenities. Ogden: value/cashflow; stress-test vacancy and older-building CapEx. Provo/Orem: student/education anchor; seasonality + parking constraints.
House Hack Angle
Basement ADUs and duplexes along the corridor can tilt math toward owning if you underwrite vacancy and CapEx conservatively.
Developer’s Toolkit
- Build a simple simulator: inputs above + rent growth 2–3%, appreciation 3–4%.
- Run sensitivity: +1% rates, +10% expenses, 0–2% appreciation.
- Track by city; don’t apply a single Utah average to all submarkets.
Takeaway
Utah rent vs buy is corridor-specific. Model taxes, transit, school-driven rent spreads, and maintenance. Let the numbers—plus your time horizon—decide.