There's a contradiction in March’s housing numbers that's worth unpacking, because it's the kind of thing that confuses people who only read headlines.

Homes in Utah are taking longer to sell than they did a year ago. Noticeably longer. In Salt Lake County, the average home sat 63 days before closing in March, up from 54 last year. In Utah County, it was 73 days, up from 58. That's a 26% jump year over year in Utah County alone.

And yet, in that same month, pending sales jumped 16.8% in Salt Lake County and 11.1% in Utah County compared to last March. Buyers are back at the table in big numbers.

So what's actually happening?

Rates settled down. Buyers who spent most of last year waiting for some major interest rate cut finally realized it wasn't coming, and the ones who needed to move stopped holding their breath. At the same time, sellers are getting more realistic about pricing, and builders are still offering aggressive incentives. The combination is pulling real transactions back into the market.

Prices are still climbing, just at a sane pace. Salt Lake County is up 3.8% year over year. Utah County is up 5.8%

**Although, it’s worth noting that these are year-over-year numbers looking at March 2025 vs March 2026. Monthly year over year numbers tend fluctuate throughout the year. But if we look at the 12-month average, the the median sales price in Utah County is still up 2% and 2.1% for Salt Lake County.

That's normal, healthy appreciation. Not a massive boom, but also not a crash.

The window you've been waiting for is the one you're in right now.

You have real inventory to choose from and real negotiating room. Sellers are accepting offers under list price, or offering to pay closing costs. And builder incentives are still putting my clients into effective rates well under what you see advertised.

The risk isn't that the market crashes. The risk is that the pending sales jump we saw in March continues. More buyers in the pool means less leverage for you. The people who were "waiting" in January are the ones writing offers this week.

Thinking about buying but not sure where to start? Reply to this email with what you're looking for, and I'll send you a no-pressure rundown of what's realistic in your price range and target area. Just data, your options, and what the numbers actually mean.

Here's what the March data is really telling sellers: the buyers are there. But they're patient, they're picky, and they'll skip right over anything that's overpriced.

73 days on market in Utah County. 63 in Salt Lake. Historically, that’s not terrible, but it’s also much longer than we experienced in recent years. What matters is this: homes that are priced right still move. Homes that are priced 5% too high sit. And when they sit, they get price reductions, buyers wonder what's wrong with them, and the final sale price ends up lower than if they'd just been priced correctly from day one.

In fact, A buyer client of mine just went under contract this week on a home that was priced aggressively, leading to 3 offers within 1 day of being on the market, and accepted our offer on day 2 of being on the market. Homes that are priced well sell quickly and often above asking price.

This is the part of the market where I do some of my best work. A large portion of my listings come from sellers whose first agent missed on pricing or strategy. The pattern is almost always the same, and it's avoidable if you set up the listing right the first time.

Your equity is real. Median prices are still rising in both counties. Buyers are back. All the pieces are there. The strategy is just more disciplined now than it was during the pandemic boom.

If you're considering selling this spring, let's talk before you pick a list price. I'll pull comps for your exact neighborhood, show you what's moving versus what's sitting, and give you a straight recommendation on where to start. No pitch, just a real plan built on your home and your timeline.

Here to serve,

P.S. If the pending sales number keeps climbing through April like it did in March, buyer leverage starts to shrink. Forward this to anyone on the fence, because the window that's open right now doesn't stay open forever.