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Amy Frisella
  • New to Real Estate
  • Salt Lake City, UT
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Moving to Salt Lake Looking for advice!

Amy Frisella
  • New to Real Estate
  • Salt Lake City, UT
Posted Sep 19 2022, 11:43

I'm moving to salt lake city or Provo in january and am looking for suggestions on how to start out! I'm movng accross the country alone from missouri and want to use this move as my first step in real estate. the housing markey is 150% higher than missouri and a couple months ago after almost purchasing my first property in st louis, i was onlty able to qualify for a $125,000 FHA loan with my brother (using both of our FHAs) . With this being said, it doesnt appear i'll be able to afford a house in the area without creative finacing or a partner.

Alternatively, I've considered renting and attempting to rent from an apartment that is STR friendly so that when i go out of town or decide to move, I'm able to rent it out. I work as an interior/architectural designer and project manager so setting up airbnbs is something i have experince with.

let me know your thoughts! I'll take any advice or pointers!

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Logan McKay Zylstra
  • Realtor
  • Salt Lake City, UT
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Logan McKay Zylstra
  • Realtor
  • Salt Lake City, UT
Replied Sep 19 2022, 12:49

Amy, exciting stuff. Yeah, prices here have increased rather dramatically over the past 3 years. One thing to remember is that you can use 75% of rents in a 2-4 unit to qualify for the mortgage which would bring up what you are able to qualify for. With that being said, I don't think you would be able to qualify without a cosigner.

I know of a few pretty cheap apartment buildings in SLC where you could probably come pretty close to breaking even after renting out individual rooms. Just so you know, STRs are banned in SLC, (but it still goes on because of a few reasons).

Quick tip:

Provo and SLC are pretty far apart looking at mileage. While traffic isn't that bad definitely something to consider (coming from a native Californian). Places like Draper or Lehi are great middle ground if you want to be closer to the city, but working in the Provo area. Orem/Vineyard are awesome areas for young people as well.

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Andrew West
  • Investor
  • Salt Lake City
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Andrew West
  • Investor
  • Salt Lake City
Replied Sep 19 2022, 16:11

Welcome to SLC, Amy! Without knowing too much about your specific situation or goals, here are some quick thoughts:

1) It's okay to start out renting. Especially if you're new to town. This will help you learn the neighborhoods and study the market. 

2) Look into Non QM loans. DISCLAIMER: I'm not a broker or lender, but there are a lot of great loan products out there that aren't bound by the regular standards (for income, credit history, etc.). I've been working with David Greene's ONE Brokerage on an Non-QM refinance lately and they are ROCKSTARS!

3) If you do the rental arbitrage thing (renting and apartment/subletting on Airbnb), study up and do it "by the book", which will include being clear in your lease that these are your intentions. You don't want to get in any sort of trouble for doing this. 

Hope that's helpful! Best of Luck!

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Nathan Gesner
  • Real Estate Broker
  • Cody, WY
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Nathan Gesner
  • Real Estate Broker
  • Cody, WY
ModeratorReplied Sep 20 2022, 04:41
Quote from @Amy Frisella:

The average price of a home is $475 in Provo and $575 in Salt Lake. If you only qualified for $125,000 when partnering with your brother, then you won't be able to qualify for anything in this new market. And if you are switching jobs/careers, that can upset your ability to qualify because lenders want to see two years of work history.

Don't give up, but keep working on your financial situation.

  • Property Manager Wyoming (#12599)

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Zachariah Torres
  • Lender
  • Saratoga Springs, UT
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Zachariah Torres
  • Lender
  • Saratoga Springs, UT
Replied Dec 15 2022, 10:45

@Amy Frisella Making an effort to invest is always the most important step! I wouldn't get discouraged with home prices or difficulties with income history. There is almost always another way. I was making a quarter of my current income when I first started investing so, I just had to get creative. I'm a Mortgage Broker out here in Utah and there are plenty of things you could do to secure your first property. DSCR loans could be a good step. We can use an analysis of the projected rents and use that cash flow to qualify you for that property. No need to use your personal income. I'd be happy to go into more detail if you'd like to set up a call. My contact info is in my profile!

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Leo R.
  • Investor
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Leo R.
  • Investor
Replied Dec 17 2022, 13:48

@Amy Frisella welcome to Utah! As you probably know, Provo and SLC are very different in many ways. You mentioned STRs--STRs are illegal in many parts of SLC (but I don't know about their status in Provo), and it's probably pretty likely that most apartment complexes have anti-STR arbitrage clauses in their leases (though, that's just an assumption).

I'd suggest connecting with an experienced investor-friendly agent who knows the market, and also a good mortgage broker who can advise you on your financing options (I work with an excellent agent & mortgage broker in SLC--DM me if you'd like their contact info).

IMO, house hacking is the best way for new investors to get their start for a long list of reasons. I've done many HH's in SLC; happy to share my experience if you're interested.

Good luck!

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Blake Bratcher
  • Realtor
  • Salt Lake City, UT
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Blake Bratcher
  • Realtor
  • Salt Lake City, UT
Replied Dec 19 2022, 12:37

Hi @Amy Frisella! Congrats on looking into an exciting move - hope you like the cold and snow!

Relocating myself in 2016 from Arkansas, the midwest is a totally difference landscape than SLC/Provo. I highly, highly advise on renting when you get here, at least for 6 months. Each neighborhood and area of the valley are going to have a different feel, different personality. I'm a licensed Realtor and often work with relo clients and it is about a 50/50 mix between them renting to start out, or doing multiple virtual showings in different areas. I lived in 3 different neighborhoods, purchasing my first investment property in one and now permanently residing in another on the other side of town.

Like others have mentioned (and in my own opinion), SLC and Provo will feel distinctly different and be unique in their own ways. Both have solid markets, despite the slow down in the recent months. Multi-family inventory is significantly lower than SFH, though with both areas having close proximity to large universities, you cannot go wrong with LTRs. You will also have a big pool of traveling nurses and doctors for the local hospitals that will be prime candidates for rentals.

If on the search for STRs (30 days or less), Salt Lake County and Utah County (Provo) are becoming more strict on those. And for long-term rentals, Salt Lake has a restriction that no more than 3 unrelated individuals can live at the same address. Always have to do it by the book, though!

If I had to do it over again as a first-time homebuyer (which are a ton of fun to work for) I'd look at duplexes with the intent to live in one side and rent the other. There IS a house out there for you and a small condo of some sort would be a great building block. If you need any help at all, or a good restaurant recommendation, please don't hesitate!