Regardless of whether you are in the market looking to sell your current home or buy another one, it's the move of a savvy consumer to find a Utah real estate agent to represent you in any real estate transaction.

Among the top reasons to get a qualified agent is because the Utah Division of Real Estate requires that all licensed agents take educational classes to keep up their real estate license in an active. Here are a few of the current topics that agents are required to learn about, Utah Law, Federal Law, ethics codes, RESPA law, appraisal law and Utah CORE classes, which include any topics that the state of Utah deems necessary at the time. In the past, such topics have included classes on how to avoid fraud, short sale classes and Utah lien law as well as Utah title law.

Higher education standards in turn also leads to smoother negotiations as you go through the buying or selling process. And since many of the available listed properties are foreclosures, a wise consumer picks an educated real estate ally. If you are selling your home, and you think that you may end up selling it short, you will absolutely need to be represented by a real estate agent.

In the month of August of 2010, we saw an increase of nearly 25% in reported foreclosures, with Salt Lake county taking the lead, reporting 1,620 for the month. This flood of available homes makes this an amazing time to score some great deals on Utah property!

There are many that have made the mistake of waiting to buy or sell a house, thinking that all of these newly foreclosed homes will lower home prices even further. Current trends over this summer, however, show just the opposite. Notice these average sales prices for the month of August, 2010 in Washington County, of $181,200 while the average foreclosure sold for $197,062. Trends are also showing a consistent price increase over the last 6 months as well, indicating that the time for waiting is past, if you are wanting to score a deal on a property.

Since agents are kept up to date on these types of stats by their broker, they are your best bet for locating that hidden jewel that you have waited for. So, do your homework and hire a Utah real estate agent to help you negotiate your next transaction.

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