Utah Cities Named Most Affordable In 2022

By Press release submission

Jun 16, 2022

Central issued the following announcement on June 13.

Homebuyers looking for real estate in Utah know the market can be tricky to navigate. With home prices skyrocketing over the past two years and interest rates for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage hitting a ten-year high in April, choosing a future home can be quite daunting.

A new study by HomeSnacks took a deeper dive into the Utah housing market to explore the most affordable cities to live in 2022. The report used a multitude of data to determine the rankings including reports from the U.S. Census Bureau, current home and rental prices, overall safety, quality of education and overall city amenities. The study also only considered cities with at least 5,000 residents or more which narrowed the list down to 88 Utah cities.

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Here are the 10 Most Affordable Cities in Utah for 2022:

Hyrum
Washington Terrace
Brigham City
Sunset
Smithfield
Tremonton
Roosevelt
Vernal
Perry
North Ogden

The study says the current cost of living in Utah is about 5.5% lower than the national average. The median income of a Utah household is $74,197, according to the report. According to the MIT living wage calculator, the cost of living for a family of four with two working parents in Utah is $84,823. The national average is $89,744.

The study found the Utah county with the lowest cost of living in 2022 is Piute County. Researchers say the average living wage in Piute County is $74,325 according to MIT data. Childcare costs in Piute County are $9,149 a year for two children compared to the Utah average of $14,686. Housing costs, which combine the average rent and average mortgage payment, are $8,808 per year in Piute County compared to $12,484 on average in the state of Utah.

The affordability of each city was determined by comparing elements from the Census American Community Survey 2016-2020 including:

Median Home Price/Median Income (Lower is better)
Median Income / Median Rent (Higher is better)
Median Home Price

“We added simply median home price because high home prices generally correlate with higher expenses for all costs related to homes (heating, electricity, etc),” the study says.

Researchers compared these metrics using a “Cost of Living Index” that took the average rank of each metric to find the most affordable cities in Utah.

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Fast facts about each affordable Utah city:

1. Hyrum
- Median home price – $221,900
- Median household income – $66,902
- Location – 45 minutes north of Ogden
- Population – 8,415
- “Hyrum has the 11th best home price to income ratio in the state,” the study say. “On top of that, Hyrum residents pay the ninth smallest proportion of their income on rent statewide. In other words, it doesn’t really matter if you’re buying or renting in Hyrum; the city’s affordability stands out.”
2. Washington Terrace
- Median home price – $216,700
- Median household income – $65,204
- Median rent – $863
- Location – Ogden area
- “Being so close to Ogden means you have all the big-city amenities without the cost,” the study says. “The overall cost of living in Washington Terrace is 12% lower than the statewide average, but housing costs are even cheaper than that. Washington Terrace has the 11th least expensive homes in the state.”
3. Brigham City
- Median home price – $197,500
- Median household income – $57,312
- Median rent – $760
- Location – Box Elder County
- Population: 19,336
- “Brigham City saw most of its growth during the 1950s and 1960s, but has seen a struggling economy and stagnating growth since then,” researchers say. “It is near the headquarters of ATK Thiokol, the company that created the solid rocket boosters for the Space Shuttle.”

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4. Sunset
- Median home price – $181,800
- Median household income – $63,697
- Median rent – $962
- Location – Ogden suburb
- Population: 5,309
- “Rent in Sunset is nearly half the statewide average rent of Utah,” the study says. “And, even more importantly, residents of Sunset pay the smallest percentage of their income on their mortgage, so there’s plenty of money leftover for weekend trips to Ogden.”
5. Smithfield
- Median home price – $250,300
- Median household income – $73,788
- Median rent – $924
- Location – North of Logan
- Population: 11,670
- “Unemployment in Smithfield is 3.22%, and both income and property values have gone up by over 5% in the last year, indicating a positive outlook for the future,’ the study say. “Plus, there’s plenty for a nature-lover to do for free or cheap, like taking a scenic drive through Logan Canyon Drive or getting even closer to nature on the Wind Cave hike.”
6. Tremonton
- Median home price – $209,700
- Median household income – $59,488
- Median rent – $751
- Location – Box Elder County
- Population: 7,647
- “According to the most recent data from the FBI, the total crime rate in Tremonton is 27% lower than the national rate and 37% lower than the average Utah crime rate,” the study finds.
7. Roosevelt
- Median home price – $198,800
- Median household income – $57,659
- Median rent – $780
- Location – Duchesne County
- Population: 7,077
- “Roosevelt’s major industries are oil and agriculture, so if you have experience in either field, you should have an easy time finding a job here,” researchers say. “And when summer rolls around, don’t miss the annual Uintah Basin in Celebration, a week-long festival complete with concerts and parades.”

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8. Vernal
- Median home price – $164,500
- Median household income – $47,962
- Median rent – $706
- Location – Uintah County
- Population: 10,449
- “Vernal is the largest city in Uintah County and is about 175 miles east of Salt Lake City and 20 miles west of the Colorado border,” the study says. “As of the 2010 census, the city population was 9,089. The population has since grown to 10,844 as of the 2014 population estimate.”
9. Perry
- Median home price – $286,500
- Median household income – $82,435
- Median rent – $864
- Location – Box Elder County
- Population: 5,090
- “Located 50 miles north of Salt Lake City off of Route 15 in northern Utah, the city has many affordable things to do including four parks and hiking trails that lead up into Cache National Forest, not to mention the Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge,” researchers say.
10. North Ogden
- Median home price – $299,900
- Median household income – $87,755
- Median rent – $970
- Location – Weber County
- Population: 19,930
- “With a winning combination of a rock-solid economy and affordable living,” experts say. “Additionally, North Ogden’s crime rate is about half the national average, so you won’t be sacrificing security for affordability here.”