Have you ever had food that looked so good you didn’t want to eat it?  Me either.  But this is pretty darn close.

Allow me to introduce Food Made by Tom.  Tom Call is a San Francisco chef of 17 years who picked up his cutlery and made the move to SLC.  Now making his mark in the growing Salt Lake culinary experience through catering, pop-up events, group and private cooking classes.

As a visitor/attendee/eater of a few of Tom’s private and pop-up dinners I can attest that each meal is an experience.  Tom sources local food and personally creates a unique menu which fits the guests and the season.

For instance, our most recent Food Made by Tom dinner experience was a 5 course meal:

1 Cucumber Carpaccio – calabrese, summer vegatables, home-smoked feta

2 Heirloom Tomato Tartar – avocado mousse, semolina crisp, beets, basil

3 Dungeness Crab Bisque – cauliflower panna cotta, meyer lemon, spring onion

4 Crisp Organic Chicken – peas, morel mushroom, buttermilk, fennel emulsion

5 Roasted Peach Galette – almond caramel, white thyme gelato

Each round brought new flavors and a freshness that is, unfortunately, difficult to find in many restaurants.  But, the best part about this incredible dinner was that all of it was prepared and served in the backyard of one of our good friends.

A 5 star meal locally sourced, prepared, and served by a San Francisco chef on the back deck of a home in Salt Lake City?! (you exclaim incredulously)  I kid you not.

Tom is an all-star chef.  He is an artist and your taste buds are the canvas.  There are many different ways to enjoy a meal prepared by Tom, check out his website or Instagram feed to see more details on how to enjoy his culinary creations.

In our local real estate market the housing inventory has reached a 2.1 month supply of homes.  This means, that at the current rate of home sales it would only take 2.1 months to sell every home in our market if no other home comes on the market.

Typically, a ‘normal’ market is characterized by a 5-6 month supply of homes while a ‘buyer’s’ market is above a 6 month supply.

Analysis?  It’s still a crazy seller’s market!  Now is the time to jump in and sell a home before the autumn and winter slow down.

The limited supply of housing inventory isn’t deterring home buyers.  Home sales in May in Salt Lake County climbed to 1764 units sold, up 5 percent compared to 1681 units sold in May 2015.  May’s sales were the highest on record since May 2006, when 1817 homes were sold.

In Davis County, home sales rose 4 percent to 507 units sold, up from 486 sales a year ago.

Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said existing sales continue to hum along, rising in May for the third consecutive month.  “This spring’s sustained period of ultra-low mortgage rates has certainly been a worthy incentive to buy a home, but the primary driver in the increase in sales is more homeowners realizing the equity they’ve accumulated in recent years and finally deciding to trade-up or downsize,” he said.  “With first-time buyers still struggling to enter the market, repeat buyers using the proceeds from the sale of their previous home as their down payment are making up the bulk of home purchases right now.”

The median home price in May in Salt Lake C0 increased to $273000, up 7 percent compared to a median price of $255000 year-over-year.  In Davis Co, the median price climbed sharply to $259900, up 16 percent compared to last year’s median price of $224500.

The cumulative median days on the market for a listing in Salt Lake Co in May fell to 8 days, down from 17 days a year ago.

Article taken from The Salt Lake Board of Realtors®

Housing Demand is Strong, but Inventory Shrinks

SANDY (April 28, 2016) – The Salt Lake Board of Realtors® today reported fewer single-family homes were sold in Salt Lake County in the first quarter of 2016, while sales of condominiums increased.

“Demand for housing is strong, but a limited supply of housing inventory pushed sales down,” said Cheryl Acker, president of the Salt Lake Board of Realtors® and branch broker of Salt Lake-based Realtypath. “In contrast, more buyers are looking for more affordable options and moving to condos and townhomes.”

There were 2,569 single-family homes sold in the first three months of 2016, a 2 percent decline compared to 2,614 sales in the first quarter of 2015. Condominium sales increased to 730 units sold, a 1 percent increase compared to 720 sales a year ago.

New listings of homes fell to 4,994 in the first quarter, down 8 percent from 5,406 new listings a year earlier. In Salt Lake County there is currently less than a four-month supply of housing inventory, based on sales trends of single-family homes over the past year.

Single-family home sales increased in Utah (up 8 percent), Tooele (up 4 percent) and Weber (up 4 percent) counties. Davis County home sales dropped 3 percent. Overall, sales of single-family homes across the Wasatch Front were flat year-over-year – 5,692 sales in this year’s first quarter compared to 5,691 sales last year.

The median price of a single-family home in Salt Lake County climbed to $271,400 in the first quarter, up 6 percent compared to $255,000 in the first quarter of 2015. Condo prices increased 5 percent to $188,250 from $179,650 a year ago.

The top five most expensive ZIP code areas across the Wasatch Front in the first quarter for single-family homes were: the Avenues (84103) $451,000; Emigration Canyon (84108) $437,500; Draper (84020) $431,750; Holladay (84124) $413,500; and Sandy (84092) $399,900. Four of these five areas in the first quarter saw a drop in home sales. Only the Avenues saw sales rise.

The average cumulative days a listing was on the market in the first quarter in Salt Lake County fell to 59 days, down from 79 days in the first quarter of 2015.

This article was taken from the Salt Lake Board of Realtors