Utah Home Loans 2026 — Complete Guide
Utah offers up to $27,500 in Utah Housing Corporation down payment assistance, plus how its 45% primary residence tax exemption disappears for second homes.
The number people miss: Utah's 45% primary residence exemption means a $500,000 home is effectively taxed as if it were worth $275,000 — but only for an owner-occupied primary residence. Buy a cabin or a rental instead, and the full value is taxed, pushing the bill to roughly 1.8 times higher on an identical home.
Utah Down Payment Assistance — UHC Programs
Utah Housing Corporation (UHC) offers down payment assistance as a second mortgage, with two structures to choose from, paired with a UHC-approved first mortgage.
UHC Down Payment Assistance Options
New: the Deferred option. UHC recently added a deferred structure — 3.5% simple interest with no monthly payment, due at sale, refinance, or maturity — as an alternative to the standard amortizing second mortgage (1% above your first mortgage rate, capped at 8%, with its own monthly payment). If keeping your monthly payment as low as possible matters more than the larger available amount, the deferred option is worth comparing directly against the standard one.
A much larger new construction program exists: The Utah Legislature appropriated $50 million to help roughly 2,500 first-time buyers purchase newly constructed homes, offering up to $20,000 interest-free and payment-free toward down payment, closing costs, or a permanent rate buydown. It's limited to new construction with a $450,000 price cap and cannot be combined with the Law Enforcement or Veterans grants — but it's a meaningfully larger benefit than the standard UHC options if you're buying new.
Eligibility & First Mortgage Options
UHC pairs its DPA with several first mortgage products: FirstHome (first-time buyers), HomeAgain (repeat buyers, same benefits), Score (620-659 credit, higher rate but still eligible for DPA), and NoMI (a conventional option with lower monthly mortgage insurance for stronger-credit buyers, income limit around $162,500).
Confirm your exact county limit and current program terms at UtahHousingCorp.org before applying.
Current Rates
| Product | Rate | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 30-yr Conventional | 6.55% | Freddie Mac PMMS, week of July 16, 2026 |
| 15-yr Fixed | 5.93% | Freddie Mac PMMS, week of July 16, 2026 |
| UHC first mortgage | Below market, varies by product | Confirm current rate with a UHC-approved lender |
2026 Loan Limits by County
Summit and Wasatch counties (Park City, Deer Valley, Sundance) carry Utah's highest FHA and conforming limits by a wide margin, while several other counties, including Salt Lake, Utah, and Weber, sit in an intermediate tier above the standard floor.
| Area | FHA Limit | Conforming (Conventional) Limit |
|---|---|---|
| Most rural/standard counties | $541,287 | $832,750 |
| Salt Lake, Utah, Weber, Tooele (intermediate) | ~$601,000–$744,000 | $832,750 |
| Summit & Wasatch (Park City area) | $1,163,800 | $1,163,800 |
Verify your exact county at HUD.gov before house-hunting — Utah's tiers are unusually granular county to county.
Property Tax in Utah
What Buyers Should Budget For
Utah's Primary Residential Exemption, written into the state constitution (Article XIII, Section 3), excludes 45% of a primary residence's fair market value from taxation, applying to the home and up to one acre of land — this single exemption is the main reason Utah's effective property tax rates look so low compared to other states. It applies automatically once a county assessor codes the property as owner-occupied, though you may need to complete a one-time Declaration (Form PT-19B) if your mailing or voter registration address doesn't already match the property. Second homes, cabins, and rental properties receive no such exemption and are taxed on the full 100% of value, roughly doubling the effective rate compared to an identical owner-occupied home. Lower-income homeowners, particularly seniors, may also qualify for an additional Circuit Breaker credit administered by the county, filed annually between January and September.
Pick Your Loan Type
Are you a teacher, nurse, firefighter, police officer, EMT, or veteran? Utah runs a Law Enforcement grant and a Veterans Grant (up to $2,500, no repayment, for veterans separated within the last 5 years) on top of the general UHC options covered here. Browse the Hero Home Loan Programs hub and select Utah for profession-specific options.
Frequently Asked Questions
Bottom Line: Utah's home prices run above the national median, but the 45% Primary Residential Exemption keeps ongoing property tax costs genuinely low for owner-occupants — a real advantage over second-home buyers. UHC's down payment assistance, plus the larger new-construction program for eligible buyers, together meaningfully close the gap on Utah's above-average prices.
Comments
Post a Comment