Selling guides
Selling a home in Utah and Idaho, situation by situation
Plain answers for the sales that come with extra questions: an inherited home, a divorce, tenants in place, taxes on the gain, buying your next home at the same time, or a cash offer. Each guide covers both states and lists its sources.
Inherited home or probate
Selling an inherited home or a house in probate in Utah and Idaho
If the house was in the owner's name alone, it usually goes through probate. A small estate affidavit can't transfer real property in Utah or Idaho. The court appoints a personal representative, who can then list and sell the house without a separate court order unless the court restricted that power. Heirs generally take a basis equal to the home's value on the date of death, so a prompt sale often produces little taxable gain. A house held in joint tenancy, a living trust or, in Utah only, a transfer-on-death deed can usually skip probate.
Read the guideSelling during a divorce
Selling a house during a divorce in Utah and Idaho
Yes, you can sell a house while a divorce is pending in Utah or Idaho, but usually only with both spouses' written agreement or a court order. Once a Utah divorce is filed, a court injunction bars either spouse from transferring or encumbering property without that consent or order, and in Idaho both spouses must sign to sell community real estate. Utah divides marital property equitably (fairly, not always equally), and Idaho divides community property substantially equally unless there are compelling reasons not to. Your divorce attorney or mediator should approve the sale terms and how the proceeds will be split before you list.
Read the guideSelling a rental with tenants
Selling a rental with tenants in Utah and Idaho
Yes, you can sell a rental with tenants living in it. A sale doesn't end a lease by itself: in Utah the state purchase contract has the buyer take title subject to leases that run past closing, and in both states the new owner becomes responsible for the tenant's deposit. To deliver the home vacant, you have to end the tenancy the lawful way. That means 15 calendar days' notice before the end of a rental period for a Utah month-to-month tenant, and at least one month's written notice in Idaho. A fixed-term lease generally runs to its end date unless the tenant agrees to leave early.
Read the guideCapital gains tax on your home
Capital gains tax when you sell your home in Utah or Idaho
If you owned and lived in the home as your main home for at least 2 of the 5 years before the sale, federal law lets you exclude up to $250,000 of gain, or $500,000 on a joint return. Only gain above that is taxed, at 0%, 15% or 20% federally, plus the 3.8% net investment income tax for higher incomes. Utah taxes the remaining gain at its flat 4.45% rate for 2026. Idaho taxes it at 5.3%, but lets you deduct 60% of qualifying gain on Idaho property you held at least 12 months. Have a CPA run your numbers before you sell.
Read the guideBuying and selling at once
Buying and selling a home at the same time in Utah and Idaho
There are three ways to do it. You can sell first and stay on in the home briefly, buy first and carry two homes for a while, or make your purchase contingent on selling and try to close both on the same day or back to back. In Utah, the state-approved REPC has a box (Section 2.2) that makes an offer subject to the sale of the buyer's home, with the terms in an attached addendum. In Idaho, most offers use the Idaho REALTORS® RE-21, whose Section 4 contingency deadline matters a lot. Which route works for you depends on whether you can qualify for both mortgages and how much risk you can take.
Read the guideCash offer vs listing
Cash offer or list on the MLS? Selling as-is in Utah and Idaho
A cash offer from an iBuyer or investor trades price for speed and certainty: no showings, no repairs and a closing date you pick, but the offer price, a service charge and repair deductions usually leave you with less than an MLS sale would. Listing on the MLS exposes the home to every buyer, which tends to produce the highest price, but it takes longer and the buyer can still negotiate repairs. Selling as-is doesn't remove your disclosure duties in either state. Compare offers by your net proceeds, not the headline price.
Read the guideSeller concessions
Seller concessions and closing cost credits in Utah and Idaho
A seller concession is money you agree to pay toward the buyer's costs, usually a credit at closing for their closing costs, prepaid items or a rate buydown. The buyer's loan program caps it: Fannie Mae allows 2% to 9% depending on down payment and occupancy, FHA 6% of the sales price, VA 4% of reasonable value for items it counts as concessions, and USDA 6%. A credit can't be more than the buyer's actual allowable costs, and it has to be written into the contract. In Utah, the 2024 state-approved REPC has no line for it, so it goes in an addendum. In Idaho, it goes in the purchase agreement.
Read the guideBuyer broker agreements
Buyer broker agreements in Utah and Idaho: what changed in 2024 and who pays
A buyer broker agreement is the written contract between a homebuyer and the brokerage that works for them. Since August 17, 2024, NAR's settlement rules require one before an MLS participant tours a home with a buyer, and it must state the agent's pay as a fixed, objective amount that can't be exceeded from any source. Idaho law already required a written agreement before any brokerage could represent a buyer, and Utah's rules require a written agency agreement too. The agreement decides what the buyer owes their agent; a seller pays any part of it only if the seller agrees to in the purchase contract.
Read the guide
For every sale
Whatever your situation, these cover what the sale costs and how the paperwork runs.
