Utah Real Estate FAQ

Straight answers to the questions Utah buyers and sellers ask most. Every answer below reflects how deals actually work in Salt Lake County and the wider Wasatch Front in 2026, not national averages. Each section links to the full guide where a short answer is not enough. If your question is not here, call 801-999-8005 or send a message.

Working with Kris

How long has Kris Bowen been a Utah real estate broker?

Kris has been a licensed Utah real estate broker since February 2003, which is 23 years. He founded Kris Bowen Real Estate Group, headquartered in Holladay and licensed with LPT Realty. He and his team have closed more than 1,000 Utah transactions. See the full bio and team or the media and credentials page.

What areas of Utah does Kris Bowen serve?

The team covers the entire Wasatch Front, with the deepest specialization in Salt Lake County: South Jordan, Sandy, Draper, Holladay, Cottonwood Heights, Daybreak, West Jordan, Riverton, Herriman, Sugar House, Millcreek, Murray, Midvale, Taylorsville, and Salt Lake City. They also work regularly in Davis, Utah, Weber, and Summit counties, including Bountiful, Lehi, and Park City. Browse the area guides for neighborhood detail, pricing, and schools.

Does Kris Bowen only work with luxury homes?

No, and this is worth saying plainly. Kris lists starter homes in the $350,000 range and multimillion dollar estates, often in the same month. The same photography, marketing, pricing discipline, and negotiation go into every listing. Luxury properties get additional distribution to high net worth buyer networks, but no client is too small and no question is too basic.

Do you charge for a home value estimate?

No. A home value report is free and carries no obligation. It includes a comparable sales analysis, a market positioning recommendation, and an estimated net sheet, and it is delivered within 24 hours. Automated estimates from national websites routinely miss Utah neighborhoods by tens of thousands of dollars in either direction, so a broker-reviewed number is worth having before you plan a move, a refinance, or a remodel.

What is the 163-Step Home Selling Process?

It is the written checklist the team runs on every listing: 163 specific actions across pre-listing preparation, pricing strategy, photography and marketing, showings, negotiation, and closing. Every step is tracked, so nothing depends on memory, and sellers can see exactly what is being done to maximize sale price and shorten days on market. Read the full breakdown of the process.

How do I get in touch with Kris Bowen?

Call or text 801-999-8005, email hello@krisbowen.com, or use the contact form. Initial consultations are free and there is no pressure attached, whether you are 30 days from listing or a year out from buying.

Buying in Utah

Do you work with first-time home buyers?

Yes, and it is a large part of the business. First-time buyers get walked through lender selection, neighborhood comparison, showings, inspections, negotiation, and closing, at whatever pace they need. Many sellers choose to contribute toward buyer-agent compensation, though it is negotiated in each transaction and never guaranteed. We put the fee in writing up front and tell you exactly what happens if a particular seller declines to contribute. Start with the Utah home buyer guide.

How much do I need for a down payment in Utah?

Less than most people assume. Conventional loans start at 3 percent down, FHA at 3.5 percent, and VA and USDA loans allow 0 percent down for buyers who qualify. On a $500,000 Utah home that is $15,000 to $17,500, not $100,000. Anything under 20 percent down adds mortgage insurance to the monthly payment, and closing costs are a separate line from the down payment. See loans and financing for program comparisons and lender referrals.

Can I see homes before they hit the MLS in Utah?

Sometimes, yes. Pre-MLS and coming-soon opportunities surface through agent networks, builder relationships, and direct outreach to owners in the neighborhoods a buyer is targeting. It is not a guarantee of off-market inventory, and any agent promising a steady stream of it is overselling. But in a tight Wasatch Front market, a few days of lead time is often the difference between writing an offer and losing the house.

How much earnest money do Utah buyers put down?

Typically $5,000 to $15,000 on a Utah residential purchase, and more on higher-priced homes. There is no legal minimum; the amount is negotiated in the REPC and held in trust by a brokerage or title company. Earnest money is not an added cost, because it is credited toward your down payment and closing costs at closing. The REPC guide covers exactly when it is refundable.

How long does it take to buy a home in Utah?

Plan on about 30 to 45 days from an accepted offer to closing on a financed purchase, and roughly two weeks on a cash purchase. The house hunt itself is the variable part and often runs from a few weeks to a few months depending on price range and how specific your criteria are. Getting fully pre-approved before you shop, rather than pre-qualified, is what keeps the contract timeline from slipping.

Can a Utah buyer back out of a contract?

Yes, if you cancel in writing before the right deadline. The Utah REPC gives buyers a Due Diligence Deadline to walk away for any reason with earnest money returned, and a Financing and Appraisal Deadline that covers loan and appraisal failures. After those deadlines pass, the earnest money is generally at risk. The deadlines run on calendar days and do not pause for weekends or holidays, which is why they are calendared the day a contract is signed. The page-by-page REPC guide walks through each one.

What is changing in the new 2027 Utah REPC?

Utah has approved a new Real Estate Purchase Contract that becomes mandatory January 1, 2027. It is a modernization of the current form rather than a rewrite, and a lot of the commentary circulating online overstates it. The real changes: smart home devices and EV chargers now convey with the house, the HOA reserve study must be disclosed, a seller’s service contracts no longer pass to the buyer, a seller who holds over past possession owes a daily fee, and if a buyer keeps the financing condition, cancelling for financing reasons releases a percentage of the earnest money to the seller, defaulting to 50 percent.

Until January 1 the current form is what gets signed, and any deal written in 2026 stays on the form it started on even if it closes in 2027. The full clause-by-clause comparison is in what actually changed in the 2027 REPC.

Do buyers pay their own agent in Utah now?

Buyers sign a written buyer representation agreement stating their agent’s fee before touring homes, a change that took effect in August 2024. That fee is negotiated between the buyer and their own agent. The buyer may ask the seller to contribute toward it, and the seller can agree, counter, or decline. If the seller declines, the buyer can pay it directly or work it into the offer terms. It is negotiated per transaction rather than posted in the MLS. The commissions guide explains how each side works.

Selling in Utah

How long does it take to sell a house in Utah?

A well-prepared, correctly priced Wasatch Front home usually goes under contract within the first two to four weeks, then takes another 30 to 45 days to close. Overpricing is what stretches that timeline. The most motivated buyers see a listing in its first 10 days, and a price correction made after week three rarely recovers the attention a proper launch would have earned. The Utah home seller guide covers the full sequence.

What should I fix before listing my Utah home?

Focus on what buyers see in the first 10 seconds and what an inspector will flag: paint, flooring, lighting, landscaping, decluttering, and any active leak, roof, or furnace issue. Skip renovations that will not return their cost, such as a full kitchen remodel undertaken purely to sell. A pre-listing walkthrough sorts the work that pays from the work that does not, which is exactly what the Go Market Ready program is built to do, including work that can be paid at closing.

Can I sell my Utah home without listing it on the market?

Yes. Cash and guaranteed offer programs exist for sellers who need certainty, speed, or a closing date they control: an estate sale, a job relocation, a divorce, or a home that needs more work than the owner wants to take on. The trade-off is price, since an off-market offer is usually below what an open-market sale nets. The honest move is to price both paths side by side, then choose with the numbers in front of you.

How do you decide what to list my home for?

Pricing comes from recent closed sales of genuinely comparable homes in your neighborhood, the current active competition, the pace of the local market, and the specific condition and features of your home. Utah pricing is hyperlocal: two homes a mile apart in different school boundaries or with different canyon views can support very different numbers. That is why an automated estimate is a starting point and not an answer. Request a free home value report to see the comps behind the number.

Costs and fees

What is a typical real estate commission in Utah?

Commission is negotiable and always has been, and there is no standard or state-set rate in Utah. A sale involves two separate fees: the listing fee you negotiate with your listing brokerage, and the buyer’s-agent fee agreed in writing between the buyer and their own agent, which you may choose to contribute toward. Every brokerage prices independently, so ask each one you interview to quote their own fee. What that fee buys is the part worth comparing: professional photography, video and drone, MLS optimization, paid distribution, and full transaction coordination. See the Utah commissions guide.

What are closing costs in Utah?

Utah buyers typically pay about 1 to 2 percent of the purchase price in closing costs and prepaid escrow, roughly $6,500 to $12,500 on a $625,000 home, on top of the down payment. For sellers the predictable part is title and settlement, roughly 1 percent of the sale price, and Utah charges no transfer tax. Commission is the other piece, and there is no standard, customary, or state-set rate in Utah, so it is whatever you negotiate with your brokerage. The Utah closing costs breakdown itemizes every line for both sides.

Does Utah have a real estate transfer tax?

No. Utah is one of a small group of states with no real estate transfer or deed tax, so a seller pays $0 in state or county transfer tax no matter the sale price. You still pay a recording fee of roughly $40 to $100 and prorated property taxes through your closing date, but there is no percentage-based transfer tax like Nevada, Washington, and many East Coast states charge.

Who pays for title insurance in Utah?

Under the standard Utah REPC, the seller traditionally pays for the buyer’s owner’s title insurance policy, and the buyer pays for the lender’s policy that the mortgage lender requires. Both are negotiable in the contract, but seller-paid owner’s coverage is the Utah norm. On a cash purchase there is no lender’s policy, and the buyer decides on the owner’s policy independently. Get it.

Market questions

What are property taxes like in Utah?

Utah property taxes are low relative to most of the country. The effective rate runs roughly 0.55 to 0.85 percent of market value depending on the taxing district, so a $625,000 primary residence generally runs about $2,300 to $3,500 a year. Utah gives owner-occupied primary residences a 45 percent exemption, which is why an identical home used as a rental or second home is taxed noticeably higher.

Is now a good time to buy a home in Utah?

It depends far more on your own situation than on the calendar. The questions that actually matter are how long you plan to stay, whether your income is stable, and what the payment looks like at today’s rate. Utah has a structural housing shortage and steady in-migration, which supports long-term values, but a buyer who may need to move within two or three years is usually better off waiting. Run your real numbers, including taxes, insurance, and maintenance, before deciding.

Are Utah home prices going to crash?

A crash requires a large oversupply of homes or a wave of forced sales, and Utah has neither today. Inventory remains below long-term normal, most Utah owners hold substantial equity and low fixed-rate mortgages, and the state keeps adding households faster than it adds housing. Prices can flatten or dip in individual segments and cities, especially in overbuilt condo and new construction pockets, which is a very different thing from a statewide collapse. For the current numbers by city, see the area guides.

Still have a question?

Ask it directly. Call or text 801-999-8005, email hello@krisbowen.com, or send a message. No obligation, no pressure, and no question is too basic.