Is it good to be landlord in Utah?

You can hear often that all real estate is a local issue. Certainly, we are not completed isolated from national credit issues, but we are better off than most states. One indicator that demonstrates this is rents.

In the most bubblicious parts of the country rents have declined as unsold homes flood the rental market and condo towers are converted to apartments.Despite a rise in the number of new homes for sale in Salt Lake, rents in 2007 increased 8.8%. Vacancy rates declined significantly as well, meaning real estate investors in Utah should be doing quite well.
Rents are expected to rise again this year.Vacancies in Salt Lake County fell from a high of 10.9 percent in December 2002 to 4.5 percent at the end of last year, the lowest in more than 10 years.The apartment market is considered fully rented when the vacancy rate is 5 percent.

Even though higher rents are good for investors and they can also push home buying fence sitters into making a purchase, we are still on the fifth place 10 least expensive market to rent. Read more on http://money.cnn.com/2007/02/07/real_estate/most_expensive_rental_markets/index.htm

Lower interest rates and a softer housing market will help as well despite the stricter credit requirements.

Even though the situation looks solid now, I think we willsee stable rental and faster buying/selling activity in the second part of this year.

Only one suggestion I can give to both renters and landlords, both parties should check each other's credit history. Tenants were always subject to such inspection. Why landlords?

As more inventory comes on the market here, it would be wise for renters to run a credit check on their landlords when renting a private home. We may have, like other states now, number of landlords who collect rent, but behind on house payment. If their house gets foreclosed, the tenant may loose not only the place to live, but all the deposit.

This advice does not apply to corporate owned apartment buildings. Renters should screen their landlords as much as landlords screen renters. This is also true of those considering lease option deals.

The rental landscape in troubled areas of the country is far different than it is in Utah, which indicates to me we're still in pretty good shape. The mortgage crisis is far from being resolved, so we may have more problems surface here; however, we are in stable condition to deal with them. For now, it's a good time to be a landlord.

Reasons to Buy Real Estate in Utah

Reasons to Buy Real Estate in Utah
1. Tax Savings: You can write off the interest paid on the home loan and real estate property taxes if the home is your primary residence. You can write off mortgage insurance!
2. Fixed payment: Rent keeps going up. If you buy, with a fixed rate mortgage, your monthly payment only increases as property taxes and home owner’s insurance increase.
3. No Landlord. When you rent, you write a check and the money's gone forever. Why make your landlord rich?
4. Do it your way with your style. Plant a Garden, tile the floor, help your kid build a tree house, paint your kitchen green. When it's yours, you can do it your way and increase the value of your home.
5. Be part of a neighborhood!
6. Create stability: Moving sucks, nobody likes it and besides that, its nice to find an area you like and put some roots down.
7. Build Equity as the overall market increases & as you pay off your mortgage. A home is the biggest purchase most people make and for many their biggest investment.
8. Your equity can add up over time and be used to purchase a bigger home, an investment property or cover other big expenses if you need it.
9. Forced Savings.
10. Retirement: It may be a long way off, but owning your home free & clear is a major step toward retiring. Especially if your want to retire early.