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Salt Lake County, UT

Rent vs Own in Salt Lake County, Utah

HUD prices a 2-bedroom in Salt Lake County at $1,747/mo while the ownership stack lands near $3,048/mo. That mid-sized gap is large enough that rate or down-payment tweaks usually cannot close it alone. Owner-occupied homes: 281,875.

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Renting is cheaper in Salt Lake County

A 2-bedroom rental here runs $1,747/mo, meaningfully below the $3,048/mo ownership stack on the default assumptions. That is a $1,301/mo difference.

Based on 20% down, 6.5% rate, 30-year mortgage. Adjust below.

What This Data Tells Us About Renting vs Owning in Salt Lake County

Primary driver

Renting wins by a mid-sized monthly gap

Salt Lake County lists a $525,700 median home with $2,836/yr property tax (0.54%). HUD's $1,747/mo 2-bedroom rent undercuts the ~$3,048/mo ownership stack by a mid-range margin of about $1,301/mo. Closing that gap usually takes more than a cosmetic rate tweak, price, tax load, or both.

Decision signal 2

The purchase price is the larger hurdle

Median household income is $97,494, so the 5.4x home-price-to-income ratio is the binding constraint here, even before the 2.9% of income that goes to property tax. Buyers in this band usually need a larger down payment or a longer commute to a cheaper ZIP before the monthly ownership math clears.

Decision signal 3

HUD moved the rent benchmark down

HUD cut its 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent for Salt Lake County from $1,748/mo in FY2025 to $1,747/mo in FY2026: it decreased by $1/mo (-0.1%). A falling benchmark narrows the case for buying here, and it usually reflects HUD re-estimating the local market rather than existing rents being cut.

Decision signal 4

The county sits near the state middle

Using the assumptions above, Salt Lake County ranks 15 of 29 Utah counties for buy-vs-rent value (rank 1 = the best relative deal for buying). It sits ahead of 14 other Utah counties on this measure.

Methodology & disclaimer

This calculator is for informational purposes only and is not tax, legal, or financial advice. Property tax figures come from the U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year Estimates and rent figures come from HUD Fair Market Rents; both describe area medians, not individual transactions. Insurance is estimated at 0.35% of home value annually and closing costs, maintenance, HOA, and PMI are not included. Consult a licensed mortgage, tax, or real-estate professional before making a buy-or-rent decision based on these numbers.

Monthly Cost Breakdown

Estimated Monthly Ownership
$3,048
Mortgage (P&I) $2,658
Property Tax $236
Insurance (est.) $153
Monthly Rent (2-BR FMR)
$1,747
Studio$1,259
1-Bedroom$1,456
2-Bedroom$1,747
3-Bedroom$2,333
4-Bedroom$2,666

Adjust Your Scenario

Affordability Context

Median Household Income
$97,494
$8,125/mo
Home Price / Income
5.4x
Expensive (>5x)
Tax-to-Income Ratio
2.9%
National benchmark: 2-4%

Who actually pays it here

Even with the loan gone, the largest group of Salt Lake County owners still owes $3,000 or more every year - a recurring holding cost of a few hundred dollars a month, which is why "paid off" understates the real cost of keeping property here.

Salt Lake County matches the national pattern: six-figure earners between $100,000 and $200,000 account for more of these write-offs than any other local group.

With ownership already mid-range more expensive than rent month-to-month, that annual bill reinforces why cash-flow renters stay put unless they are deliberately buying for tenure rather than monthly savings.

Bill bands are Census ACS counts of owner-occupied homes without a mortgage. Income brackets are IRS Statistics of Income county data for tax year 2022, counted over FILERS reporting real-estate taxes on Schedule A, which is a smaller group than homeowners: most filers take the standard deduction.

Nearby Counties

Utah County
Home: $538,700 Tax: $2,370/yr
Davis County
Home: $505,500 Tax: $2,665/yr
Weber County
Home: $426,700 Tax: $2,557/yr
Washington County
Home: $510,700 Tax: $2,158/yr
Cache County
Home: $444,400 Tax: $2,011/yr
Tooele County
Home: $431,600 Tax: $2,460/yr

Frequently Asked Questions

Is it cheaper to rent or buy in Salt Lake County, Utah? ▼
Renting the HUD 2-bedroom is the clearer monthly path in Salt Lake County by roughly $1,301/mo under default loan assumptions. Closing a gap this size usually needs a meaningfully lower price or rate, not a cosmetic tweak.
What is the average rent in Salt Lake County? ▼
HUD prices a 2-bedroom unit at $1,747/mo here. Sizing up matters: going from a studio to a 4-bedroom adds about $1,407/mo, so the per-bedroom jump is worth checking against your actual space needs before assuming the 2-BR figure applies to your situation.
How much house can you afford in Salt Lake County? ▼
On the common 3x-income guideline, a $97,494 household here can afford up to $292,482 -- about $233,218 short of this county's $525,700 median home. That gap is typically closed with a larger down payment, dual incomes, or a longer search outside the median price band.
What is the median home price in Salt Lake County? ▼
$525,700, per the Census Bureau's ACS 5-Year Estimates. The property tax on that value works out to roughly 0.54% a year, in line with typical rates for the area.
Is rent going up or down in Salt Lake County? ▼
HUD's 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent figure has fallen 0.1% between the FY2025 and FY2026 publications, the two most recent years tracked here.
How does Salt Lake County compare to other Utah counties for renting vs buying? ▼
Out of 29 Utah counties ranked here on buy-vs-rent value, Salt Lake County lands at spot 15, roughly in the middle of the pack statewide. The <a href="/states/utah">Utah state page</a> lists every peer county's tax bill beside this one.

Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.

Data sourced from the U.S. Census Bureau (American Community Survey). See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainPropertyTax

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Government Finances State and local property tax revenue by jurisdiction · 2025

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