Salt Lake County · Salt Lake City
Sell Your Commercial Property In Salt Lake City, UT
We are an active buyer of Salt Lake City commercial rental properties with five or more units, whether the building is fully leased, half vacant, or overdue for renovation.
- Clear feedback on your deal, typically within 48 hours
- 5 to 100+ units, stabilized or distressed, listed or off-market
- Owners, agents, and brokers welcome — every conversation is confidential
We buy:Tired landlordsEstate & trust sales1031 exchangesDeferred maintenanceHigh vacancyPartnership splits
Neighborhoods & Nearby Towns: West Valley City · Murray · Sandy · Midvale — Salt Lake County, UT
The Salt Lake City Market
What Drives Rentals In Salt Lake City
Salt Lake City is a renter-majority city: 54.2% of its 92,652 occupied homes are rented, per the Census Bureau's 2020-2024 American Community Survey. Salt Lake County's renter share is 33.9%, and Utah's is 29.8%. Buildings with five or more units hold 40.9% of all Salt Lake City housing units, so a 5-plus unit property here is a core asset rather than a fringe one.
Skyline Capital Investments buys apartment buildings in Salt Lake City and across Salt Lake County, including West Valley City, Murray, Sandy and Midvale. We underwrite from the rent roll, the 2025 tax area rate of 0.009240 and the real age of the building, which has a 1965 median year built citywide.
If you are weighing whether to sell commercial property in Salt Lake City, UT this year, the figures below are the ones we work from. They are the same ACS, HUD and Salt Lake County numbers an apartment buyer prices in.
Health care and education jobs
Educational services plus health care and social assistance employ 33,318 Salt Lake City residents, 26.8% of all employed residents in the 2020-2024 American Community Survey.University of Utah
The University of Utah enrolls more than 38,000 students, runs Utah's only academic medical center, and reported $781 million in research funding in fiscal 2025.Salt Lake City airport hub
Salt Lake City International Airport served 28,158,007 passengers in 2025 and works as a Delta Air Lines hub carrying about 70% of that traffic.Our Buy Box
What We Buy In Salt Lake City
Asset Type
Multifamily, 5+ Units
Apartment buildings and income-producing residential.
Size
5 – 100+ Units
Sweet spot: 15–25 units.
Condition
Stabilized To Distressed
Value-add, mismanaged, and high-vacancy properties welcome.
Deal Types
Listed Or Off-Market
Direct-to-owner, pocket listings, portfolios.
Local Market Data
Salt Lake City Apartment Market
Figures gathered October 2026 from public market data.
Who rents in Salt Lake City
Renters occupy 54.2% of Salt Lake City's 92,652 occupied housing units, per the Census Bureau's 2020-2024 American Community Survey. Salt Lake County's renter share was 33.9% over the same period, and Utah's was 29.8%. Salt Lake City holds 50,178 renter households, which is 34.8% of every renter household in Salt Lake County.
Salt Lake City's population was 208,007 in the 2020-2024 American Community Survey. The 2020 Census counted 199,723 residents in Salt Lake City. Salt Lake County's population reached 1,196,523 in the 2020-2024 survey.
Three job groups anchor the tenant base. Educational services plus health care and social assistance employ 33,318 Salt Lake City residents, 26.8% of the 124,315 employed residents counted in the 2020-2024 survey. Health care and social assistance alone accounts for 15,422 of those jobs. Professional, scientific, management and administrative work employs another 19,314 residents. Finance, insurance and real estate add 9,044.
The University of Utah enrolls more than 38,000 students and operates Utah's only academic medical center. West Valley City, Murray, Sandy and Midvale draw on that same wage base.
Rents and affordability in Salt Lake City
Median gross rent in Salt Lake City was $1,414 a month in the Census Bureau's 2020-2024 American Community Survey. Salt Lake County's median gross rent was $1,592 and Utah's was $1,496 over the same period. Salt Lake City rent therefore sits $178 below the Salt Lake County median.
Median household income in Salt Lake City was $75,090, against $97,494 across Salt Lake County. That $22,404 gap is why rent burden runs heavier inside Salt Lake City.
Among Salt Lake City renter households with income reported, 51.1% pay 30% or more of income on rent and 23.5% pay 50% or more. The matching Salt Lake County figures are 48.8% and 22.4%.
HUD's FY2027 fair market rents take effect October 1, 2026. Salt Lake City sits in the Salt Lake City, UT HMFA, which HUD defines as Salt Lake County alone.
| Unit size | FY2027 fair market rent, monthly |
|---|---|
| Studio | $1,202 |
| One bedroom | $1,349 |
| Two bedroom | $1,615 |
| Three bedroom | $2,143 |
| Four bedroom | $2,439 |
The FY2027 two-bedroom fair market rent of $1,615 runs about 14% above the Salt Lake City median. That marks the ceiling renovated two-bedrooms tend to reach.
Salt Lake City's apartment stock
Buildings with five or more units hold 41,432 housing units in Salt Lake City. That is 40.9% of the 101,188 total units in the 2020-2024 American Community Survey. The same share is 23.3% across Salt Lake County and 16.1% across Utah.
The size split shapes pricing. Salt Lake City counts 4,878 units in 5-to-9-unit buildings and 5,868 in 10-to-19-unit buildings. Larger assets hold 10,154 units in 20-to-49-unit buildings and 20,532 in buildings of 50 units or more.
Median year built for Salt Lake City housing is 1965, against 1986 in Salt Lake County and 1992 statewide. Units built before 1980 total 66,222 in Salt Lake City, 65.4% of stock, against 43.1% countywide.
New supply is thin against that base. Salt Lake City added 15,793 units built in 2010 or later, 15.6% of stock. Of those, 3,727 date from 2020 or later. Vacant units number 8,536, an 8.4% vacancy share, above 5.2% countywide.
A 1965 median build year puts roofs, boilers and electrical service at or past replacement age. When we price a building for owners who sell commercial real estate in Salt Lake City, UT, our capex line usually moves before our rent line does.
Apartment property taxes in Salt Lake County
Salt Lake City's total property tax rate for 2025 was 0.009240 of taxable value. Salt Lake County's 2025 tax rate file listing puts tax district 01A, the main Salt Lake City area, at that figure. The Utah State Tax Commission's 2025 tax rates by area report shows the same total.
Utah taxes apartments on who lives in them. Utah Code 59-2-103 grants residential property an exemption equal to a 45% reduction in value, leaving 55% taxable. Subsection (6)(b)(ii) extends that exemption to each residential property that is a tenant's primary residence. Occupied units in a 5-plus unit building therefore qualify. The Tax Commission's Standard 10 taxes primary residential property on 55% of market value.
On a $2 million Salt Lake City apartment building whose units are tenants' primary residences, taxable value is $1,100,000. At the 2025 rate that is about $10,164 for the year, against about $18,480 without the exemption.
Salt Lake County values all property as it existed on January 1 each year. For owners who sell commercial property in Salt Lake City, UT, a sale therefore does not start a separate assessment schedule. Owners file a declaration with the Salt Lake County Assessor to claim the residential exemption. The Salt Lake County Board of Equalization takes appeals for 45 days after valuation notices are mailed. Recording a deed at the Salt Lake County Recorder costs a $40 flat fee.
Landlord rules that apply in Salt Lake City
Utah blocks local rent control outright. Utah Code 57-20-1 bars any county, city or town from controlling rents or fees on private residential property without express legislative approval.
Deposits follow Utah Code 57-17-3. An owner has 30 days after the renter vacates and returns possession. Within that window the deposit balance, any prepaid rent and a written itemization of deductions must go out.
Notice periods are short in Utah. Utah Code 78B-6-802 allows a three-business-day notice to pay or surrender after a rent default. Ending a month-to-month tenancy takes at least 15 calendar days' notice.
Salt Lake City adds a licensing layer. Every residential rental property inside city limits needs a business license. The base fee is $193 once, plus $342 per unit, dropping to $35 per unit under the Landlord/Tenant program, also called the Good Landlord program. Enrolled owners finish training within six months, then a four-hour refresher every three years.
What this means if you own a building in Salt Lake City
Three figures set the price. Salt Lake City's 54.2% renter share supports occupancy and the 0.009240 rate for 2025 sets the tax line. Pre-1980 stock at 65.4% sets the capex line. Owners who want to sell commercial property in Salt Lake City, UT start there.
We buy 5-plus unit buildings in Salt Lake City and nearby Salt Lake County communities, leased or half empty, updated or original. Test your own numbers with our cap rate calculator, see how Salt Lake City zoning changes affect apartment owners, then read what happens when you sell your apartment building in Salt Lake City.
Seller Notes
Pricing Your Building In Salt Lake City
More about selling in Utah →Investing in Salt Lake City? See apartment syndications in Salt Lake City →
- Salt Lake City's 2025 tax area rate of 0.009240 applies to 55% of market value when units are tenants' primary residences.
- A 1965 median year built leaves 65.4% of Salt Lake City units built before 1980, so roof, boiler and panel age drive capex.
- Owners who sell commercial real estate in Salt Lake City, UT see lease-up risk priced unit by unit, since the vacancy share is 8.4% against 5.2% countywide.
Seller Guides
Your Situation, Handled — Salt Lake City
Learn More
Taxes & Rules For Salt Lake City Property
The Utah rules that shape any deal in Salt Lake City: what a sale costs in tax, how buildings are taxed, what landlords must follow, and how to defer gains.
Salt Lake City Seller FAQ
How do I sell commercial property in Salt Lake City, UT without listing it?
Send the address, unit count and a current rent roll, and we underwrite the building as it stands. No listing, staging or repairs come first. We weigh in-place rents against the $1,414 Salt Lake City median gross rent, the 0.009240 rate for 2025, and deferred maintenance. Owners who sell multifamily property in Salt Lake City this way keep it confidential.
What are apartment property taxes in Salt Lake County?
Salt Lake City's total 2025 rate was 0.009240 of taxable value, per Salt Lake County's 2025 tax rate file. Utah Code 59-2-103 allows a 45% residential exemption, which leaves 55% of fair market value taxable, and subsection (6)(b)(ii) extends it to units that are a tenant's primary residence. A $2 million building taxed that way owes roughly $10,164 for the year.
Who are the apartment buyers in Salt Lake City for buildings that need work?
Value-add buyers who underwrite today's income rather than a finished pro forma. Skyline Capital Investments is a cash buyer for apartment complex in Salt Lake City deals from five to well over 100 units, including high-vacancy assets. With 65.4% of Salt Lake City units built before 1980, capex pricing is normal here.
Does Salt Lake City have rent control?
No. Utah Code 57-20-1 prohibits a county, city or town from enacting an ordinance that controls rents or fees on private residential property without express approval from the Legislature. Salt Lake City therefore has no rent cap and no vacancy control. Rents reset at market on turnover, which is one reason buyers pay attention to in-place rents versus the Salt Lake City median.
What should I have ready to sell commercial real estate in Salt Lake City, UT?
A rent roll, trailing twelve-month operating statements and the parcel number cover most of it. Selling commercial property in Salt Lake City also goes faster when the rental business license is current, because Salt Lake City requires one for every residential rental property. We can still start from an address and unit count if your records are thin.
Will you buy a Salt Lake City property that needs work or has high vacancy?
Yes. We regularly evaluate value-add, mismanaged, and distressed multifamily properties and underwrite them as they are today — no repairs or lease-up required before selling.
Do you work with Salt Lake City brokers and agents?
We do. Agents can bring us listed or pocket-listing deals in Salt Lake City, and we keep every conversation confidential.
Can I sell rental property in Salt Lake City with tenants in place?
Yes. We buy apartment buildings with tenants in place and keep existing leases intact. As a commercial real estate buyer focused on 5+ unit properties, we underwrite the current rent roll as it stands.
Do I need a broker to sell my apartment building in Salt Lake City?
No. You can work with us directly, or your broker can bring the deal to us. Either way, conversations stay confidential.
Submit A Deal
Selling A Building In Salt Lake City?
Send the address, unit count, and asking price if you have one. We keep every conversation confidential.
