What is the property tax rate in Utah?
The property tax rate in Utah averages 0.48% of market value for owner-occupied homes (Tax Foundation 2026, based on the 2024 American Community Survey). Only Hawaii (0.29%) and Alabama (0.37%) are lower, and Arizona ties Utah at 0.48%.
County tax rates look about twice as high, and both numbers are right. The Utah State Tax Commission reports a statewide average tax rate of 0.009753, or 0.9753%, for calendar year 2024. That rate applies to taxable value, and a primary residence is taxed on only 55% of its market value. Multiply 0.9753% by 55% and you get about 0.54% of market value, close to the Tax Foundation figure.
How Utah sets assessed value
Utah appraises all property at fair market value based on its condition and use as of January 1, the lien date, under Utah Code 59-2-103 and 59-2-104. The county assessor updates values every year, so assessed value follows the market up and down instead of drifting below it.
Taxable value then depends on use. Qualifying primary residential property is taxed on 55% of market value after the 45% exemption. Commercial property, vacant land and second homes, which are no one’s primary residence, are taxed on 100%. For an apartment owner, the class the assessor puts your building in is the biggest single driver of the bill.
The residential exemption for Utah apartment buildings
Yes, apartments can qualify. The Tax Commission says rental property used as a tenant’s primary residence can receive the 45% primary residential exemption, so a building full of long-term tenants is taxed on 55% of its value instead of 100%.
A unit qualifies when it is someone’s primary domicile for at least 183 consecutive days in a calendar year, whether the occupant is the owner or a full-time tenant. The owner must complete a residential property declaration signed by all owners, and the county may ask for current leases or the federal schedule showing rental income. Counties are barred by law from contacting tenants directly.
Senate Bill 238 (2026) amended Utah Code 59-2-103.5. Starting January 1, 2027, owners file Form TC-473A with the county board of equalization after a change in ownership, after a period of being ineligible, or when the county reviews the exemption. The deadline is September 15, and the Tax Commission notes that late applications cannot be accepted. For a buyer, that filing is one of the first jobs after closing.
Truth in Taxation: how Utah limits tax increases
Utah has no cap on assessed value, but Truth in Taxation keeps rising values from automatically raising total tax revenue. Each year the county auditor sets a certified tax rate for every taxing entity. When values go up, the certified rate goes down so the entity collects the same revenue as the year before, plus revenue from new growth such as new buildings.
An entity that wants more than that must advertise the increase and hold a public hearing, starting at or after 6 p.m. and at least 10 days after the July valuation notices go out. Lehi City’s published example shows a 10% rise in values lowering its rate from 0.001429 to 0.001299, leaving a typical home’s city tax unchanged.
Your own bill can still rise. If your building’s value climbs faster than the average in your tax area, your share of the levy grows. A newer or renovated building often sees that happen.
Does a sale trigger reassessment in Utah?
No. Utah does not reset value on a sale the way California does, because every property is already revalued at market each January 1. The buyer inherits a value that is meant to reflect the market already.
In practice, a sale at a price well above the assessor’s figure can still raise next year’s value, since sales are what assessors use to measure the market. The other sale risk is the residential exemption: if the new owner misses the declaration, the building can be taxed at 100% of value instead of 55%, which nearly doubles the bill.
Utah property tax rates by county
Average county rates in Utah range from about 0.44% to 1.57% of taxable value. The figures below are the Tax Commission’s average property tax rates for calendar year 2024, the latest it has published, from its fiscal 2025 annual report. Rates differ inside each county by city and school district, so check the tax area on your own notice.
Among the large counties, Salt Lake averages 1.0662%, Weber 1.0220%, Davis 0.9969%, Utah County 0.9548% and Washington County 0.7595%. Remember these apply to taxable value, which for a qualifying apartment building is 55% of market value.
| County | Average tax rate (2024) | Group |
|---|---|---|
| Emery | 1.5673% | Highest |
| Tooele | 1.2632% | Highest |
| Carbon | 1.2577% | Highest |
| San Juan | 1.1926% | Highest |
| Duchesne | 1.1152% | Highest |
| Cache | 0.7457% | Lowest |
| Garfield | 0.6924% | Lowest |
| Summit | 0.6803% | Lowest |
| Wayne | 0.5960% | Lowest |
| Rich | 0.4352% | Lowest |
How to appeal your property value in Utah
You appeal to your county board of equalization by the later of September 15 or 45 days after the county mailed your Notice of Valuation and Tax Changes, under Utah Code 59-2-1004. Counties must mail those notices on or before July 22.
An appeal argues market value as of January 1. For an apartment building, the strongest evidence is usually an income approach built from the actual rent roll and expenses, along with recent sales of similar buildings. If you also think the building was wrongly classed as commercial rather than residential, raise that at the same time, since the class swings the bill far more than a small value change.
- January 1: lien date; value is set as of this day.
- By July 22: Notice of Valuation and Tax Changes mailed.
- September 15 or 45 days after mailing, whichever is later: deadline to appeal to the county board of equalization.
- By November 1: tax notices mailed.
- December 1: unpaid taxes become delinquent, unless the county extends to December 30.
Worked example: property tax on a $2M Utah apartment building
Take a 24-unit building in Salt Lake County with a market value of $2,000,000, every unit leased to a full-time tenant. With the 45% residential exemption, taxable value is $1,100,000. At the county average rate of 1.0662%, the yearly tax is about $11,728, or 0.59% of market value. The same building in Emery County would owe about $17,240, and in Rich County about $4,787. At the statewide average of 0.9753%, the bill would be about $10,728.
Now the sale. Say the assessor had the building at $1,700,000 and it sells for $2,000,000. If the next January 1 value moves to the sale price, taxable value rises from $935,000 to $1,100,000 and the tax from about $9,969 to $11,728, an extra $1,759 a year. At an illustrative 6% cap rate, that trims about $29,000 from what a buyer can pay.
The exemption matters far more. Taxed at 100% of $2,000,000, the Salt Lake County bill would be $21,324, which is $9,596 a year more than with the exemption. At the same 6% cap rate, that is close to $160,000 of value. That is why a buyer will want proof the declaration is on file.
| Scenario | Taxable value | Yearly tax |
|---|---|---|
| Salt Lake County, 1.0662%, exemption applied | $1,100,000 | $11,728 |
| Emery County, 1.5673% | $1,100,000 | $17,240 |
| Rich County, 0.4352% | $1,100,000 | $4,787 |
| Statewide average, 0.9753% | $1,100,000 | $10,728 |
| Before sale, $1.7M value, Salt Lake | $935,000 | $9,969 |
| No residential exemption, Salt Lake | $2,000,000 | $21,324 |
How property tax affects your sale price
Buyers price apartment buildings on net operating income, so each dollar of property tax comes off value at the market cap rate. Utah’s low rates and the residential exemption keep property tax a smaller expense line than in Texas or Illinois, which supports values.
Two things can cost you at sale. Units rented short-term, with no tenant living there for 183 consecutive days, may not qualify for the exemption, and a buyer will price in the higher bill. A missing or out-of-date declaration raises the same question. Have the last three tax notices and your declaration ready before you list.
What to check on your Utah tax notice before you sell
Your July valuation notice and November tax notice already answer most of a buyer’s property tax questions. Pull the last three years of each and check these items.
If anything looks wrong, the cheapest time to fix it is during the appeal window, before a buyer’s underwriter finds it and prices it in.
- The market value the assessor used, and how it compares with your expected sale price.
- Whether the building is classed as primary residential, with taxable value at 55% of market, or as commercial at 100%.
- Whether a residential property declaration is on file and signed by every owner.
- Any units, such as a manager’s office or a short-term rental, that the county taxes at full value.
- The tax area number and its combined rate, and any entity on it that held a Truth in Taxation hearing.
- Any penalty or interest from a late payment, which a buyer will ask you to clear at closing.
Selling an apartment building in Utah
Skyline buys apartment buildings with five or more units in Utah, along the Wasatch Front and in Washington, Cache and Iron counties. We buy directly, close on your timeline, and can work inside 1031 deadlines. We underwrite from your actual tax notices, so a building with its exemption in place shows that in what we can pay.
For the tax on the sale itself, see Utah capital gains tax on real estate. For notice, deposit and eviction rules a buyer inherits, see Utah landlord-tenant law for apartment owners.
