8 Affordability Gap Widens as Median Home Price Hits $620,000 in Salt Lake County
Matthew Clewett
12 With Individual Home Buyers on the Sidelines, Investors Swoop into the Market
Rebecca Picciotto, The Wall Street Journal
16 More Homes Hit the Market, But Buyers Aren’t Rushing In—Yet
Melissa Dittmann Tracey
Salt Lake Realtors® Help Make Life-Saving Vests for the Homeless
NAR Applauds Senate Committee Passage of Landmark Housing Bill
Michael Rauber 24 Home Sellers Hope for a Hot End to a Cool Summer Market Joy Dumandan
26 Courts Dismiss Three Antitrust Lawsuits Against NAR
Eliana Block and Stacey Moncrieff
5 The Right Time Rarely Comes — Take the Shot Now Claire Larson – President’s
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REALTOR
President Claire Larson Woodside Homes of Utah LLC
First Vice President
J. Scott Colemere Colemere Realty Assoc.
Second Vice President Morelza Boratzuk RealtyPath (South Valley)
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Jenni Barber Berkshire Hathaway (North SL)
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Dawn Stevens Real Broker, LLC (Canyons Luxury)
CEO Curtis Bullock
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Summit Sotheby's Int'l Realty
Janice Smith
CB Realty (Union Heights)
Eric Santistevan Engel & Volkers (Holladay)
Kristel Gough Summit Sotheby's (Draper)
Lori Khodadad
CB Realty (Union Heights)
Kim Farber Eleven11 Real Estate LLC
Russ Orchard Century 21 Everest
Donna Pozzuoli BHHS UP (N. Salt Lake)
Mo Aller Equity RE (Advantage)
Linda Mascher Realtypath LLC (Advisors)
Sheri Linn Ramsay Real Broker, LLC
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The Right Time Rarely Comes — Take the Shot Now
Does anyone else feel like this year is flying by? Personally, I love summer—and I hate to see it speed past. I hope you’ve been able to soak up time with your loved ones while also helping more families achieve the dream of homeownership.
This summer, I was fortunate enough to experience two “oncein-a-lifetime” adventures. First, I stayed at the Grand Canyon’s North Rim Lodge and hiked 14 miles down to Phantom Ranch— then back up again. Second, I trekked to the historic Sperry Chalet in Glacier National Park. These aren’t luxury getaways; they’re legacies, made possible only through a highly competitive lottery system that thousands enter every January. I had plenty of reasons not to go. As Broker and VP of Sales and Marketing for Woodside Homes, I juggle a lot—and both trips overlapped with the rollout of critical technology systems in our company. But I’d committed months earlier, and I decided to honor that promise to myself.
And I’m so grateful I did. The North Rim Lodge has since burned down. Had I delayed, I never would’ve seen it in its historic beauty. That experience reminded me: opportunities don’t always wait.
As the saying goes, “You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.” Wayne Gretzky said it about hockey, but it applies everywhere. That deal you’re hesitant to chase? The committee you’re unsure about joining? The vacation you’re tempted to postpone because work feels overwhelming? Too often, we wait for “the right time” and find that time never comes. Some shots—like the North Rim—are one-time chances.
Looking ahead, here’s one shot worth taking: on Aug. 20th, the Salt Lake Board of Realtors® will host its annual business meeting. Sixteen directors make up the board, including three appointed by the largest brokerages. This meeting is your chance to meet the vetted candidates up for election, stay informed on proposed bylaw updates, and even explore the idea of serving yourself someday. Engagement builds influence—and sometimes opens doors you didn’t know existed. So, here’s my challenge: Take the vacation.
Take the chance to serve.
Chase the listing that matters.
You are capable of more than you know—and sometimes, the shot won’t come around again. See you soon.
Claire Larson President
The Salt Lake Board of REALTORS® is pledged to the letter and spirit of U.S. policy for the achievement of equal housing opportunity throughout the nation. We encourage and support the affirmative advertising and marketing program in which there are no barriers to
Happenings
Active Listings Surge in Utah and U.S.
Utah’s housing inventory has more than doubled since 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic began, with active listings continuing to rise for the fourth consecutive year. As of June 30, there were 13,441 homes on the market statewide, a 33 percent increase from 10,138 listings at the same time last year, according to UtahRealEstate.com. The state currently has roughly a six-month supply of housing inventory. Industry benchmarks suggest that seven months or more of inventory typically signals a buyer’s market, putting Utah just below that threshold.
Higher Rates, Lower Sales
The trend mirrors conditions nationally, where the number of sellers now outpaces buyers by approximately 500,000, according to The Wall Street Journal.
In
the News
Moody’s Chief Economist Mark Zandi has issued a warning about the U.S. housing market, citing rising mortgage rates, weakening home sales, and slowing builder activity as signs of potential decline, according to Inman News.
Zandi stated that without a significant drop in mortgage rates, currently near 7%, home sales, construction, and prices are likely to fall. The average 30year fixed mortgage rate was 6.74% as of July 24, according to Freddie Mac. Analysts attribute the increases partly to uncertainty surrounding the Trump Administration’s shifting tariff policies, which have prompted concerns about inflation and slowed the Federal Reserve’s pace of interest rate cuts.
Home sales in Salt Lake County dropped in the first half of 2025, falling 5% year-over-year to 5,852 sales (all housing types), compared to 6,140 sales during the same period in 2024. This slowdown can be traced back to early 2022, when the Federal Reserve began raising interest rates to combat inflation. That year, 30-year mortgage rates surged from about 3.22% in January to a peak of 7.08% by October, dramatically reducing buyer affordability. As a result, Utah’s redhot housing market cooled rapidly. In fact, there were roughly 2,500 fewer homes sold in the first half of 2025 compared to the years before the rate hikes began.
Homebuilders, who have supported sales through mortgage rate buydowns, are beginning to scale back these incentives due to their cost. Many are delaying land acquisitions, suggesting that new home sales, housing starts, and completions may soon decrease.
Additional indicators also point to cooling conditions. Pending and existing-home sales showed modest monthover-month gains in May, at 1.8 percent and 0.8 percent, respectively, but home price growth has stalled, listings are increasing, and demographic and job-related mobility needs may push more homeowners to sell, potentially adding supply.
Zandi noted that these factors could make housing a drag on economic growth in late 2025 and early 2026, raising concerns about the broader economic outlook.
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Affordability Gap Widens as Median Home Price Hits
$620,000 in Salt Lake County
A household must earn at least $176,603 annually to afford the median-priced single-family home in Salt Lake County.
By Matthew Clewett
In the second quarter of 2025, housing affordability in Salt Lake County remained one of the most pressing issues for the region’s real estate professionals. The Salt Lake Board of Realtors®’ latest Municipal Affordability Tracking Report reveals a continued pattern of price stagnation and income-pressure divergence, underscoring a familiar reality: housing in Salt Lake County is still out of reach for the average family. For Realtors®, the challenge is twofold. On one hand, they are tasked with helping clients achieve the dream
of homeownership. On the other, they must advocate for local policies that enable that dream to remain viable. This quarter’s data delivers key insights into shifting affordability thresholds, municipal disparities, and the policy levers available to local decision-makers.
Countywide Trends: Prices Rebound Modestly, Affordability Slips Further
After a relatively flat Q1, the median sales price for single-family homes in Salt Lake County rose to
$620,000 in Q2—an increase of 3.86% over the previous quarter but a 0.8% decrease compared to the same time last year. While year-over-year comparisons reflect longer-term price softening, the recent uptick in Q2 signals a return of seasonal buyer activity.
Multi-family homes saw minimal movement, with the median price increasing by just $65 from Q1 to Q2 (0.01%), effectively flat when viewed through a quarterly lens. This stability in pricing, however, does little to offset the affordability burden caused by persistent high interest rates and inflationary pressures.
Most telling is the income now required to purchase the median-priced home in Salt Lake County. For a single-family home, a household must earn at least $176,603—a 3.14% increase from Q1 2025. The multifamily threshold sits at $129,621, representing a modest 0.25% decline from Q1. When benchmarked against the county’s median household income of $94,658, it’s clear that a six-figure income is now the baseline for entry
into homeownership across nearly every city in the region.
Mortgage Realities: The True Cost of Ownership
Realtors® on the frontlines of the market know that list price is only part of the story. This quarter, the estimated monthly cost (mortgage and utilities, excluding PMI and HOA fees) for a median-priced single-family home reached $4,415. For multi-family units, that figure was $3,241. Based on standard affordability metrics—defined as spending no more than 30% of gross income on housing—a household would need to earn nearly $147,000 annually just to afford the monthly cost of a median multi-family unit.
Unfortunately, the average Salt Lake County household falls far short of this benchmark. As a result, affordability continues to deteriorate, even as price growth remains relatively stable. The gap between what families earn and what they need to earn to buy remains the core issue, and it’s one that requires structural, policy-level change—not just market patience.
Municipal Highlights: Where the Data Tells the Strongest Story
Several municipalities continue to stand out—both as affordability flashpoints and as indicators of countywide trends.
· Holladay remains the most expensive city in Salt Lake County. A household must now earn $326,489 to afford a median-priced single-family home, up from $268,715 just last quarter. That’s a staggering 21.5% increase in income requirement in a single quarter. Its price-to-income ratio for single-family homes is now 10.77—the highest in the county.
· Salt Lake City recorded a price-to-income ratio of 8.34 for single-family homes, up from 7.77 last quarter. The income required to buy a medianpriced home there is now $167,516, while the city’s median income is just $74,925—a 124% affordability gap.
· Cottonwood Heights, despite relatively high home prices, stands out for one rare affordability bright spot: its price-to-income ratio for multifamily housing is just 2.56, making it the only city in the county where a six-figure income isn’t needed to purchase a median-priced condo or townhome during the 2nd Quarter of 2025. However, longterm data suggests this blip is most likely the result of low-priced outliers which will not follow in subsequent quarters.
· West Jordan—often seen as a working-class alternative to higher-priced suburbs—still presents a steep challenge. A single-family home there now requires $159,580 in income, up from $103,960
median earnings. The price-to-income ratio is 5.43—slightly below the county average of 6.55, but still well above historical norms.
Historical Benchmarks: A Market Redefined
Historically, Salt Lake County’s housing market operated within a price-to-income ratio between the low 2s and low 3s—a range considered “affordable” to “moderately unaffordable” by economists. Today, every municipality in the county has exceeded a ratio of 5.0 for singlefamily homes, with several approaching or surpassing 7.0. These are not isolated outliers; they reflect a systemic shift in what homeownership looks like in Utah’s largest urban area.
Multi-family homes—once the “affordable” alternative— are no longer within reach either. Every city in the county now requires a six-figure income to afford a medianpriced condo or townhome, with the sole exception of Cottonwood Heights. Cities like Sandy ($143,196) and Midvale ($129,188) further emphasize that the affordability crisis is not limited to single-family buyers.
Policy Levers: What Can Be Done?
While federal interest rates and macroeconomic headwinds remain outside of local control, municipal policymakers do have influence over two crucial components of affordability: housing supply and regulation. According to national studies, regulatory costs account for 23.8% of the final sale price of a single-family home and an even more staggering 40.6% for multi-family developments.
The Housing Supply Accelerator Playbook, developed
by national real estate and housing associations, offers more than 40 actionable strategies for local leaders. From modernizing zoning codes to encouraging missing-middle housing, these tools are available—and they’re needed now more than ever.
The Realtor® Opportunity
For Realtors®, this data is more than a report card—it’s a call to action. Understanding these affordability metrics not only sharpens your market knowledge but also strengthens your ability to advocate for meaningful solutions. Whether it’s helping clients navigate financing, educating first-time buyers, or engaging with your city council, your voice carries weight in the policy space.
In a market where affordability challenges are the norm, not the exception, informed advocacy is a professional responsibility. As the Salt Lake Board of Realtors® continues to release these quarterly reports, we invite our members to read deeply, share widely, and engage constructively.
Homeownership in Utah is not a lost cause—but preserving it will take every tool at our disposal.
Matthew Clewett is the Vice President of Public Policy & Advocacy at the Salt Lake Board of Realtors®. He is a chief advocate for private property rights and housing-related issues throughout Salt Lake County. He holds a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Utah and has previously worked at the Utah State Senate and US House of Representatives. You can contact Matthew at matt@slrealtors.com
With Individual Home Buyers on the Sidelines, Investors Swoop into the Market
High interest rates and prices aren’t deterring firms from snapping up single-family properties.
By Rebecca Picciotto The Wall Street Journal
Individual home buyers are largely locked out of the housing market as home prices continue to climb and interest rates remain stuck. But investors are buying, and dominating the market.
So far in 2025, investors who buy homes to flip or rent out have made up about 30% of purchases of both existing and newly built single-family homes, the highest share on record, according to property analytics firm Cotality, which started tracking the sales 14 years ago.
large investors and traditional home buyers have slowed down while small investors are holding steady.
Small investors, who own fewer than 100 homes, are securing more discounts and financial incentives from sellers eager to close deals quickly as inventory piles up and traditional home buyers sit on the sidelines, waiting for stubbornly high prices to fall.
Due to limited rights, this story is only available in the print issue of the Salt Lake Realtor® magazine. A copy of this article is available on the Wall Street Journal website but charges may apply.
There is also a change in the makeup of single-family residential investors, who have become a powerful force in the U.S. housing market. This buying group was once flooded with large private-equity firms such as Blackstone and Starwood Capital Group.
But in the first half of this year, small investors made up about 25% of these home purchases while large investors accounted for about 5% on average, according to Cotality’s data. This shift happened mostly because
“It’s not just the Blackstones of the world anymore,” said Rajan Bhatt, president of Strand Capital, which has purchased about 100 homes in markets including Chattanooga, Tenn., and Indianapolis.
Home investors, of course, also are sensitive to the high prices and interest rates that have made this year’s selling season a dud. Some large buyers that pioneered the real-estate investment business after the global financial crisis are slowing down their acquisitions as costs surge.
Local and federal regulators also have been cracking down on investors buying up homes, which they claim
makes it harder for regular buyers to compete and drives up prices even further.
Big investors Invitation Homes, Progress Residential and Amherst are all disposing of more homes than they are buying so far this quarter, according to data from realestate analytics firm Parcl Labs.
“We’re acquiring at a fraction of what we were several years ago,” partly because of high interest rates, said Chris Avallone, chief financial officer of Amherst, which owns about 46,000 homes.
So why are smaller investors more active? For starters, even with prices and interest rates high, they still see a solid business in buying, fixing up and renting out single family homes.
Strand Capital, the small real-estate private-equity firm, targets single-family homes within the $250,000 price range. It will make about a $75,000 down payment and invest up to $15,000 in light renovations. It will then charge $2,000 to $2,200 a month in rent, with the expectation that the home price will appreciate 5% each year. After three years, Strand will try to sell the home at a profit.
Due to limited rights, this story is only available in the print issue of the Salt Lake Realtor® magazine. A copy of this article is available on the Wall Street Journal website but charges may apply.
Smaller firms say they can take more risk than big institutions because they don’t have to report to pension funds or other outside stakeholders. They are
also benefiting because they are competing against fewer traditional home buyers who have checked out of the market because of higher prices. They might offer all-cash bids, avoiding high interest rates, and can close in a matter of weeks rather than months.
Home builders have often cut big deals with the large single-family residential companies such as Invitation Homes. Until recently, small investors had to fight harder for those same discounts.
That changed this year because builders are confronting a glut of supply in certain markets such as Texas and Florida. They are now rushing to clear their inventory and free up cash on their balance sheets.
Due to limited rights, this story is only available in the print issue of the Salt Lake Realtor® magazine. A copy of this article is available on the Wall Street Journal website but charges may apply.
Builders including Lennar and D.R. Horton are offering more discounts and other incentives to help work off inventory. In July, 38% of builders reported lowering prices on their deals, the most since 2022, according to the National Association of Home Builders. Those deals are bringing new investors to the market.
Casey Sherman, a senior director at JLL’s capital markets branch in Charlotte, N.C., said he has helped about
a dozen clients break into the single-family home investment sector over the past year and a half. Some of these new clients are small funds representing wealthy individuals who had previously invested in industrial or office real estate. Others are multifamily investors looking to expand.
Bruce McNeilage, who first started investing in singlefamily properties two decades ago, is eyeing these new players as they enter the arena. He focuses on Southeastern markets including Tennessee, Georgia and South Carolina—growing hot spots for single-family investment.
“New companies are getting into the market, it seems like every week,” said McNeilage. “Some are dipping their toes in the water. Some are starting to put their whole foot in.”
More Homes Hit the Market, But Buyers Aren’t Rushing In—Yet
Buyers are getting more options than they’ve had in years— housing inventories were up 16% annually in June.
By Melissa Dittmann Tracey
Pending home sales continue to lag, but growing inventory and pent-up buyer demand may not stay bottled up for much longer, economists say.
Pending home sales—a forward-looking indicator based on contract signings—fell 0.8% in June and are down 2.8% compared to a year ago, the National Association of Realtors® reported Wednesday.
“The data shows a continuation of small declines in contract signings despite inventory in the market
increasing,” said Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist. Indeed, buyers are getting more options than they’ve had in years—housing inventories were up 16% annually in June. But so far, that hasn’t been enough enticement for buyers to rush under contract for a home.
What
Could Turn Sales Around
The Realtors® Confidence Index report—based on responses from more than 1,500 real estate
professionals about their most recent transactions— shows real estate professionals are optimistic that home buying and selling activity will increase. “That confidence is supported by the fact that mortgage applications have been rising,” Yun said.
Over recent weeks, mortgage applications for home purchases—a gauge for future buying activity—have consistently been 20% or more above the level of one year ago, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s seasonally adjusted index.
“These are serious, potential buyers,” Yun said at the July 16 Real Estate Forecast Summit. “It shows a desire to enter the market has turned positive.”
The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage mostly held flat last week, offering a silver lining for home buyers: Predictability.
“While it’s hard to see the positive in flat mortgage interest rates for 27 weeks, at the very least, home buyers can plan, shop and buy without surprises,” said
Jessica Lautz, deputy chief economist at the National Association of Realtors®. “Home buyers can forget the FOMO of not locking in the lowest rates possible, as rates are steady.”
“Buyers have been pushed to the sidelines for two and a half years, waiting for a reprieve in affordability,” Lautz said.
Pent-up buyer demand is also fueled by job growth and rising wages, Yun noted at the summit. Since COVID, the U.S. economy has added 7 million jobs, yet home sales remain at 30-year lows. “There is huge potential demand for the housing market,” Yun said at the summit. “Once mortgage rates go down to make it more affordable to get into the market, [sales] can quickly change.”
As home buyers debate when to jump in, current homeowners remain the housing market’s clear winners. Even as sales have slowed, the median existing-home price is rising, and homeowners have seen record-high equity gains. In June, prices climbed 2% compared to a year ago, reaching $435,300—the highest ever recorded for the month of June, NAR’s data shows.
Over the last five years, the average homeowner’s wealth has increased by $140,900, Yun said.
With Sales, National Averages Don’t Tell the Whole Story
Real estate is all about location—and that’s grown even clearer in the latest housing data. While contract signings dropped nationwide in June, one region bucked the trend.
“Pending sales in the Northeast edged up, despite the region seeing the strongest home price growth in the country,” said Yun.
The Northeast was the only major U.S. region to see an increase in contract signings last month, rising 2.1% in June compared to May. That growth coincided with a 4.2% year-over-year jump in median prices last month, reaching $543,300.
Elsewhere, contract signings fell in June, down 3.9% in the West, 0.8% in the Midwest and by 0.7% in the South, according to NAR’s Pending Home Sales Index.
Reprinted from Realtor® Magazine Online, July 2025, with permission of the National Association of Realtors®. Copyright 2025. All rights reserved. Melissa Dittmann Tracey is a contributing editor for Realtor® Magazine and editor of the Styled, Staged & Sold blog.
Salt Lake Realtors® Help Make Life-Saving Vests for the Homeless
Members of the Salt Lake Board of Realtors® recently came together to help create survival winter vests for individuals experiencing homelessness along the Wasatch Front. The effort was part of the Turtle Shelter Project, a nonprofit organization founded by Jen Spencer, who once faced homelessness and a years-long battle with meth addiction. “It was a brutal winter that brought me to my knees and made me realize I couldn’t go on living the way I was anymore—the pain was just too great,” Spencer said. Today, Spencer has been clean and sober for more than a decade, living in stable housing and surrounded by a supportive community. Her ongoing service—helping people who are in the place she once was—is what she says keeps her grounded.
The vests, designed as a base layer of clothing, are made from open-cell polyurethane foam, providing lightweight insulation for those braving harsh winter conditions. Since its founding in April 2017, the Turtle Shelter Project—a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit—has produced and distributed over 6,000 vests to those in need. “Her life experience is eye-opening and humbling,” said Jamie Sacks, a Realtor® with Coldwell Banker. “The real estate community came together to support this incredibly worthy project.” To donate or volunteer, visit turtleshelterproject.org or scan the QR code.
Photos: Dave Anderton
NAR Secures Win for Veterans
A previous longstanding VA Home Loan Guaranty rule prohibited veterans from paying their own buyerbroker or real estate agent commission.
By The National Association of Realtors®
On July 30th, President Trump signed H.R. 1815, the VA Home Loan Reform Act, into law, which aims to make permanent the VA’s temporary policy allowing veterans to directly compensate their real estate agents, ensuring they can participate in the housing market on equal footing with other homebuyers.
The previous policy in question was the long-standing VA Home Loan Guaranty rule that prohibited veterans (and other VA borrowers) from paying their own buyer-broker or real estate agent commission. Under the policy as laid out in the VA Lenders Handbook (see Chapter 8), VA-loan borrowers were not allowed, under any circumstances, to be charged a brokerage fee or commission for services of a buyer’s agent—that cost had to be fully covered by the seller.
This restriction effectively barred veterans from paying
for—or hiring an agent that required compensation from the buyer’s side, offering them representation only if the seller agreed to pay. That often left VA borrowers at a disadvantage if sellers declined to cover a buyer’s agent fee.
NAR has championed efforts to ensure veterans can access professional real estate representation, securing a 2024 temporary suspension of a VA policy that barred them from paying for such services. Since then, NAR has worked with the VA and Congress to permanently eliminate the outdated rule that had blocked veterans from having representation in transactions involving seller-paid commissions.
“Veterans deserve the same shot at homeownership as every other buyer, and NAR is grateful that the president has signed this measure into law,” said
Shannon McGahn, NAR executive vice president and chief advocacy officer. “NAR has maintained unwavering support for this bill, giving veterans equal footing in the housing market and allowing veterans and active-duty service members the same advantages as other buyers in a competitive real estate market. NAR remains committed to supporting our veterans and the brave men and women who serve this country in the armed forces, ensuring they are given equal opportunities to achieve the American Dream of homeownership.”
NAR previously sent a letter of support to House leadership and published stories following House and Senate passage.
About the National Association of Realtors®
The National Association of Realtors® is involved in all aspects of residential and commercial real estate. The term Realtor® is a registered collective membership mark that identifies a real estate professional who is a member of the National Association of Realtors® and subscribes to its strict Code of Ethics. For free consumer guides about navigating the homebuying and selling transaction processes – from written buyer agreements to negotiating compensation –visit facts.realtor.
NAR Applauds Senate Committee Passage of Landmark Housing Bill
The bill addresses housing supply and affordability barriers and supports innovation and disaster recovery efforts.
By Michael Rauber
The Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs took a major step toward addressing America’s housing affordability challenges in July, unanimously passing the bipartisan Renewing Opportunity in the American Dream to Housing Act of 2025. The legislation represents a comprehensive federal response to housing challenges, targeting barriers that have made it increasingly difficult for families to achieve the American dream of homeownership.
In a letter to committee chair Tim Scott (R–S.C.) and ranking member Elizabeth Warren (D–Mass.), the National Association of Realtors® expressed its strong support for the bill.
“We commend your leadership in crafting this landmark, comprehensive piece of legislation that addresses the full spectrum of housing needs while prioritizing pathways to homeownership for American families,” the letter stated. “NAR previously endorsed many of these provisions as standalone measures, and we appreciate this collaborative approach to addressing our nation’s housing challenges.”
With housing costs consuming an ever-larger share of family budgets nationwide, the bill offers a multipronged approach to increasing supply, reducing barriers to development and creating new pathways to homeownership.
The ROAD to Housing Act includes many provisions designed to meet America’s diverse housing needs:
• Building More Homes and Cutting Red Tape: Helps communities overcome zoning and other barriers, streamlines environmental reviews for housing projects, and creates grants for communities that build more homes.
• Opening Doors to Homeownership: Removes barriers that make it harder to get smaller mortgages, improves the home appraisal process, helps families save for homes, and ensures veterans know about their home loan benefits.
• Supporting Housing Innovation: Updates rules and financing for manufactured and modular homes and encourages new building technologies that make housing more affordable.
• Helping Communities Recover from Disasters: Permanently authorizes disaster recovery efforts to help communities rebuild while incorporating resilience measures to reduce repetitive losses and maintain insurability.
“NAR strongly supports this bipartisan legislation that addresses housing supply, affordability and homeownership pathways,” said Shannon McGahn, executive vice president and chief advocacy officer for the National Association of Realtors®. “At a time when homeownership increasingly feels out of reach, this legislation offers meaningful, pragmatic solutions to restore opportunity for millions of American families. We commend chair Tim Scott and ranking member Elizabeth Warren for their bipartisan leadership on this critical issue and look forward to working with Congress and the administration to enact this vital legislation and help preserve the American dream of homeownership for future generations.”
The bill now moves to the full Senate next, with the unanimous vote sending a clear message: Lawmakers are committed to working together to tackle America’s housing affordability challenges.
Michael Rauber is manager of advocacy communications at the National Association of Realtors®.
Home Sellers Hope for a Hot End to a Cool Summer Market
By Joy Dumandan
The summer selling season has been anything but hot, and sellers are hoping for a boost before the fall. New listings continue to flood the market, adding to the active inventory which climbed 23.7% year over year, according to Realtor.com® Weekly Housing Trends report.
“We are just getting past the peak of the selling season traditionally, and home sales tend to slow through the rest of the year as kids get back to school and families settle in,” explained Joel Berner, senior economist at Realtor.com®.
“That is not to say that there’s no hope for a latesummer or early-fall pickup in activity, but this year’s
peak season has been unusually quiet as the high costs of homeownership keep many out of the market.”
The increase in active inventory reflects the 90th straight week of annual gains, with more than 1.1 million homes for sale. It marks the 12th consecutive week over the million-listing threshold—the highest inventory level since November 2019.
But buyers aren’t budging, despite mortgage rates slightly inching down to 6.72% for the week ending July 31, according to Fannie Mae.
“Falling mortgage rates will be the thing that helps the housing market the most, but without any rate cuts from the Federal Reserve this week, we may not
see better rates for some time,” said Berner. “Sellers obviously don’t want to have to cut prices, but lowering their home price expectations (without giving up altogether) in a broader way may have the effect of stirring up demand as well.”
Listings overload
Realtor.com® economists found that active inventory is growing faster than new listings—which indicates that more homes are sitting on the market longer.
The new listings, which measure the amount of sellers putting homes up for sale, that came on the week of July 31 grew by 5.8% year over year. The good news is that it was a bit lower than the previous week, when new listings grew 7.2% year over year.
With the flood of home listing inventory, homes spent seven days longer on the market than a year ago. Sellers are having to wait longer for their homes to move. This leaves them in a precarious situation: They either lower their list price or delist (take their home off the market).
“Price cuts are a reality of the market even in good
times, but this year so far has seen an increased level of them,” added Berner. “This trend has started to taper off a bit, but the share of homes on the market reducing their prices remains higher than the last several years.”
The report found that price reductions and delistings are both up this summer.
The median list price remained the same—the first week without year over year growth since May. But the median list price per square foot rose 0.5% year over year and has not fallen in nearly two years. This indicates that the mix of homes for sale is starting to favor smaller and less-expensive inventory.
“Price cuts are good for the market—they show that it has some flexibility to move the inventory available to it, which is also up this summer,” explained Berner. “They are unfortunate for sellers, especially those whose expectations are tied to prices from a few years ago that are no longer sustainable.”
Joy Dumandan is an Emmy-winning journalist who is the news editor at Realtor.com®.
Courts Dismiss Three Antitrust Lawsuits Against NAR
The rulings bolster NAR’s legal standing and affirm that its membership and MLS policies comply with antitrust laws.
By Eliana Block and Stacey Moncrieff
The National Association of Realtors® (NAR) has secured a series of significant legal victories, as federal courts have dismissed three separate lawsuits alleging antitrust and related violations—each with prejudice, effectively preventing the claims from being refiled.
Muhammad Case Dismissed in Pennsylvania
In the most recent decision, a U.S. District Judge dismissed claims brought by Maurice Muhammad, a real estate practitioner in Pennsylvania, who accused NAR, the Pennsylvania Association of Realtors®, and the Greater Lehigh Valley Realtors® of violating antitrust, civil rights, due process, and state consumer protection laws. Muhammad’s allegations centered on access to the multiple listing service (MLS), asserting both antitrust violations and discriminatory practices.
In a detailed 50-page opinion issued Thursday, the judge dismissed the case with prejudice, bringing an end to the litigation.
“We are pleased the court has dismissed the case with prejudice,” said NAR General Counsel and Senior Vice President of Legal Affairs Jon Waclawski. “This decision reinforces the National Association of Realtors®’ position that its policies foster competition and are not discriminatory.”
Eytalis Suit Rejected in Texas
Just days earlier, a U.S. District Judge in Texas dismissed similar claims from Luz De Amor Eytalis, a Wichita Falls real estate broker who had alleged that NAR, the Texas Association of Realtors®, and the Wichita Falls Association of Realtors® violated state and federal law by requiring Realtor® membership to access the local MLS.
The judge concurred with a Magistrate Judge’s findings that Eytalis had failed to support her claims with adequate evidence and ordered dismissal of all federal and state claims.
Homie Case Dismissed in Utah
These back-to-back victories follow the July 15 dismissal of a high-profile case brought by Homie Technology, a Utah-based flat-fee real estate brokerage. In that case, Homie alleged that NAR and several major brokerages—Anywhere Real Estate, HomeServices of America, and RE/MAX—engaged in anticompetitive conduct that harmed the company.
However, Judge Dale Kimball of the U.S. District Court for the District of Utah found that Homie had failed to plausibly plead an antitrust injury or establish that the defendants had participated in any alleged boycotts.
“Homie has not plausibly pleaded an antitrust injury based on some sort of market foreclosure, exclusion, or barriers to entry,” the ruling stated, adding that the company failed to provide specific facts tying the defendants to any anticompetitive behavior.
NAR welcomed the ruling. “NAR is pleased with the court’s ruling to dismiss the case with prejudice,” Waclawski said. “NAR will continue to facilitate local real estate marketplaces that provide fair and equal access to property information, foster competition, and empower NAR members to serve clients on their homebuying and selling journeys.”
Homie had initially filed its lawsuit in August 2024 and voluntarily dismissed Wasatch Front Regional MLS and Keller Williams from the case prior to the ruling. NAR filed a motion to dismiss in October, and oral arguments were heard in February 2025.
Pattern of Legal Vindication for NAR
These three rulings—each resulting in dismissal with prejudice—strengthen NAR’s legal position and affirm the organization’s long-held stance that its membership structure and MLS-related policies do not violate antitrust laws or discriminate against competitors. As legal scrutiny continues around industry practices, these recent court victories represent meaningful affirmation of NAR’s framework and its commitment to competitive, transparent real estate marketplaces.
Eliana Block is a business writer for Realtor ® Magazine. Stacey Moncrieff is executive editor of publications for the National Association of Realtors ® and editor in chief of Realtor ® Magazine. Reprinted from Realtor® Magazine Online, July 2025, with permission of the National Association of Realtors®. Copyright 2025. All rights reserved.
Salt Lake County Home Sales Nudge Up in June, but 2025 Still Trails Last Year
Home sales across Salt Lake County inched upward in June 2025, reaching 1,146 units sold—up nearly 3% from the 1,118 homes sold in June 2024, according to UtahRealEstate.com. Despite this monthly gain, overall sales in the first half of 2025 fell 5% compared to the same period last year, indicating a broader cooling trend in the local housing market.
Median home prices showed slight downward movement. The median price for all housing types in Salt Lake County dropped to $545,000, down about 1% from $550,000 a year earlier. Single-family homes followed suit, with the median price falling from $630,284 in June 2024 to $620,000 in June 2025—a 1.63% decline. The median price for multi-family homes remained unchanged at $430,000.
Market activity also slowed in terms of time on market. Homes typically stayed on the market for 28 days in June, up from 22 days a year ago. The number of under-contract listings dropped to 1,103, more than 6% below June 2024’s figure of 1,175. Meanwhile, active listings surged, reaching 3,256 as of June 30—a 35% increase from the 2,411 listings on the same date last year. The rise in inventory could provide some relief to buyers, though affordability remains a challenge.
National housing data presented a mixed picture. According to the National Association of Realtors®, overall home sales across the U.S. were unchanged from a year ago, but the median sale price rose 2% to $435,300, setting a record. “Multiple years of undersupply are driving the record-high home prices,” said NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun. “Home construction continues to lag population growth. This is holding back first-time homebuyers from entering the market.
More supply is needed to increase the share of first-time homebuyers in the coming years, even though some markets appear to have a temporary oversupply at the moment.” Yun also pointed to high mortgage rates as a major barrier, keeping sales stuck at cyclical lows. He estimated that if mortgage rates fell to 6%, an additional 160,000 renters could become first-time buyers.
“If the average mortgage rates were to decline to 6%, an additional 160,000 renters could become first-time homeowners.”
Lawrence
Yun
Chief Economist National Association of Realtors®
Nationally in June, homes remained on the market for a median of 27 days—unchanged from May, but up from 22 days a year earlier. First-time buyers made up 30% of all sales, consistent with May and slightly higher than June 2024. All-cash transactions accounted for 29% of sales, up from 27% in May and 28% last year. Investor and second-home purchases dropped to 14%, their lowest level since September 2022. Distressed sales, including foreclosures and short sales, made up 3% of transactions— steady from the previous month and a slight increase from 2% a year ago.
Market Snapshot of Salt Lake County
Local
Market Update for June 2025
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