Thinking of buying a brand-new home in Utah? Be prepared to pay a lot more than you might expect—especially when it comes to your monthly mortgage.
According to a new study, the median monthly mortgage payment for a newly built home in the Salt Lake metro area is $2,876. Compare that to the $1,784 payment current homeowners are making, and the reality becomes clear: the cost of new housing isn’t just about the price tag—it’s about the long-term burden on your budget.
The price gap between new and existing homes in Utah is surprisingly small. In Salt Lake, a newly constructed home costs about $551,000, compared to $541,000 for an existing home—a difference of only $10,000. Nationally, that difference is more than $42,000. But in Utah, rising interest rates and skyrocketing construction costs mean that small price gap leads to a huge difference in monthly cost.
And that’s the heart of the housing crisis in our state. Utah families don’t just need more homes—they need affordable homes. Yet most of what gets built today are large, expensive single-family houses that few people can realistically afford, especially first-time buyers. Why? Because outdated local zoning laws make it illegal to build more affordable types of housing in most neighborhoods.
It doesn’t have to be this way.
Utah’s housing shortage is, at its core, a supply problem. But not all housing is created equal. If we want to lower costs, we need to allow a wider variety of housing types—especially those in the so-called “missing middle.” These include duplexes, triplexes, fourplexes, townhomes, and ADUs (accessory dwelling units)—options that fit more people on less land, cost less to build, and still offer privacy and community.
The problem? Zoning laws in most Utah cities make it nearly impossible to build this kind of housing. Rules that were originally intended to preserve “neighborhood character” now block young families, teachers, first responders, and retirees from finding a place they can afford.
If we keep building only one kind of housing, we’re going to keep getting one kind of result: high prices, higher payments, and people priced out.
To fix this, we don’t need billion-dollar programs or new taxes—we just need to legalize housing. Reform outdated zoning codes. Cut red tape for ADUs and small multifamily homes. Let the market respond to what people actually need!
Because when it comes to housing in Utah, the real question isn’t how much a home costs on paper. It’s how many people can actually afford to live in it.
And right now, that $1,000-a-month gap is making the answer clearer than ever.
