The Journal
Helpful real estate guides for buyers and sellers in Nephi, Juab County, Utah County, and Central Utah.
Browse by topic or location to find answers that apply to where you live.
Free checklists, glossaries, calculators, and reference guides for buyers and sellers.
Resources · Utah County
My conversation with Matt Ott of Mammoth Heating & Air: repair versus replacement, second opinions, duct cleaning, Utah elevation, and what a furnace tune-up should include.
Buying · Utah County
What happens between contract and keys? A plain-English look at title searches, commitments, escrow, insurance, consumer choice, and Utah's unusual joint-advertising rules.
Buying · Utah County
Dana Hoyt and Rev Brimhall explain what an inspector sees that buyers may miss, how to read the report without panicking, and when extra testing may make sense.
Resources · Utah County
Who owns the home? What happens to the equity and the heirs? Dana Hoyt asks reverse mortgage professional Matt Harrison the questions Utah homeowners and their families actually want answered.
Resources · Utah County
Can you sell the right to build without selling your land? What TDRs mean for Utah landowners, builders and buyers—and the five questions to ask before a deal.
Town Guides · Nephi
Nephi's updated noise ordinance puts real numbers on how loud commercial and industrial properties can be — 75 dBA by day, 65 dBA by night, measured at the property line. What it says, what it sounds like, and why it matters for homeowners.
Buying · Utah County
A conversation with TJ Shelley of First Colony Mortgage: preapproval vs. prequalification, cash to close, credit, loan programs, advertised rates, builder incentives, and what to do before you start touring homes.
Buying · Utah County
A conversation with Travis from Edge Homes: how he got into new construction, the real advantages of buying new, and the builder credits and incentives most Utah buyers never think to ask about.
Buying · Utah County
Housing, property taxes, utilities, commuting, and childcare in Utah County — where the money really goes, which towns run cheaper, and how it compares to Juab County.
Buying · Juab County
What it really costs to live in Nephi, Mona, and Levan: home prices, property taxes, propane and septic, water shares, commuting north, and which savings are actually real.
Buying · Juab County
Water, septic, power, access, and zoning — the seventeen things to confirm on a Juab County parcel before you write an offer, and the red flags that should slow you down.
Buying · Juab County
Land plus home is not the project cost. The five buckets, the financing rules that decide your rate, appraisal risk, taxes and insurance, and a worked example.
Buying · Juab County
Manufactured, mobile, or modular? What the quote should spell out, why delivery isn't installation, who's responsible when something fails, and reading the warranty first.
Buying · Juab County
The full list — home and construction, price and contract, delivery and installation, land and site work, warranty and service — plus the red flags and one closing line.
Buying · Spanish Fork
Same price, two very different homes. How to compare new construction against an existing home — what's included, what's not, and which one actually fits the way your family lives.
Selling · Nephi
A Zestimate is a helpful starting point — but it's not an appraisal and it's not a pricing strategy. Here's what the algorithm can't see, and what Utah buyers actually pay attention to.
Resources · Utah County
You don't have to buy or sell a home to support a local Realtor®. Here are seven completely free ways to help a real estate agent grow their business.
Resources · Utah County
Tiny. Annoying. And somehow they always find you. From pre-approval paperwork to the 27-page inspection report, here are the 10 little thorns of buying and selling a home in Utah — and how to avoid stepping on them.
Resources · Utah County
A lead came through my website from a man claiming to own a 10-acre Park City parcel. The name matched public records. The phone number didn't. Here's how a seller impersonation scam unraveled — and how Utah landowners can protect vacant land.
Selling · Nephi
Your list price is a strategy. Buyer behavior — clicks, showings, second showings, and offers — is the feedback that tells you whether that strategy is working. Here's how to read the signals.
Buying · Nephi
Wire fraud, the final walk-through, rekeying locks, utilities, the Utah residential exemption, and the maintenance that protects your home. Plus a free printable checklist.
Buying · Nephi
Every rent check builds your landlord's equity — not yours. Here's the honest case for buying sooner, what your first home actually is, and the qualifiers that determine whether the numbers make sense.
Market Update · Nephi
Short sales are up 16% in 2026 — but most buyers and sellers don't know what one actually is. Here's the plain-English explanation, the current data, and what buyers and sellers should know.
Buying · Nephi
The final step — how to write a competitive offer, what contingencies protect you and why, what happens between acceptance and closing, and how to get to closing day without surprises.
Buying · Nephi
Before you start touring homes, choose your agent deliberately, understand the Buyer-Broker Agreement, research your market, and define must-haves vs. nice-to-haves. Here's how.
Buying · Nephi
Your lender approval number is a ceiling, not a recommendation. Here's how to calculate your true monthly housing cost — including the maintenance reserve most buyers forget.
Buying · Nephi
Pre-qualified and pre-approved are not the same thing — and neither is every lender. Here's what pre-approval actually involves, what documents you need, and why the lender you choose matters beyond the rate.
Buying · Nephi
Before you look at a single listing, know your credit score, your debt-to-income ratio, and your savings across three buckets. Part 1 of the Ready in 90 buyer series.
Selling · Nephi
The market doesn't reject homes — it rejects prices. Here's what actually drives your home's value, five things to do before you set a list price, and the real cost of overpricing.
Buying · Nephi
Waiting for rates to drop before buying seems logical — until you factor in what happens to home prices when rates fall. Here's the honest math on waiting vs. buying now in Juab County, Utah.
Buying · Juab County
Closing costs typically run 2% to 5% of the loan amount in Utah — on top of your down payment. Here's what's included, what's negotiable, and how to use the Loan Estimate to prepare before you close.
Selling · Juab County
Utah sellers are required to disclose known material defects — including past repairs. Here's what the law actually requires, what "knew or should have known" means, and what you're not required to disclose.
Resources · Juab County
In Utah, water is public property — what you own is the right to divert and beneficially use it. A plain-English guide to deeded rights, appurtenant rights, water shares, culinary and secondary water, wells, and irrigation rights, with real examples for Juab and Utah County.
Buying · Juab County
Most of Juab County, Utah qualifies for a USDA loan — a 0% down payment mortgage option most buyers have never heard of. Here's how it works, who actually qualifies, and the income limit nobody mentions.
Buying · Mona
A lot of homes in Mona, Levan, and rural Juab County run on septic systems instead of city sewer. Here's what to ask before you buy, why bedroom count matters, and what a septic inspection actually covers.
Selling · Juab County
Multiple offers on your home? Purchase price is only one part of the picture. Here's how financing, contingencies, and appraisal gap coverage affect which offer is actually the strongest.
Resources · Central Utah
Thinking about buying or selling a home while in debt? Here's when it may make sense, when it may be better to wait, and how to make the decision from your real numbers — not the calendar.
Buying · Nephi
After the 2024 NAR settlement, buyer's agent compensation is negotiated per transaction rather than automatic. Here's how Utah buyers can ask the seller to cover their Realtor's fee — and what to know before the offer goes in.
Resources
A plain-English guide to pre-approval, earnest money, contingencies, escrow, and closing costs — the first terms every Utah buyer and seller hears.
OUR HOME · OUR COMMUNITY · YOUR GUIDE
Honest guides to Nephi, Mona, Salem, and every town along the corridor. Written by someone who actually drives these roads.
Real data on what's selling, what's sitting, and what things actually cost in Juab County. No spin. No pressure.
A Realtor who chose this area on purpose — and knows exactly what it takes to buy or sell here.
