Here's why Utah might be the next boom state

[Austin Wolff]

In a previous article, I made the case for why North Carolina might be the next boom state. In an accompanying video, I also pointed out that Utah had the highest population growth from new births (see the heatmap above, courtesy of Pew Research Center’s analysis of Census data).

Metros along the Wasatch Front, such as Salt Lake City, UT; Provo, UT; and Ogden, UT continue to see strong job growth, low vacancy rates, and relatively high price appreciation. The area is also geographically constrained between the Great Salt Lake, Utah Lake, and the Wasatch Mountains, leading to the low supply in housing.

The geography reminds me of coastal cities like Los Angeles, which are usually sandwiched between the ocean and the mountains. As long as there is demand to live in these areas and low housing supply, prices will likely continue to appreciate. And I think this effect will be exaggerated along the Wasatch Front metros like Salt Lake City, Provo, and Ogden, UT.