I am a MLO and my wife and I are really considering moving to the Saratoga Springs, Provo, Lehi area. That would obviously mean me starting over building up a client base but if the real estate/housing market is good, then it's doable. Any input would be great, companies to look into, areas other than what I mentioned, people etc.

This may sound odd and I would have never considered it had it not been for people telling me this, I hear mixed things about working with Mormons, such as, if you're not a Mormon, those that are, likely will not work with you. That alone would be a big hurtle to get past if a large percentage of the population is Mormon. I personally have no problem working with anyone but if I lose a large chunk of the pie just because I'm a plain ol Christian, then I may be better off staying here. Sound nutty? I hope so, we really want to move to Utah! We love the outdoors, especially dirtbikes and Utah has awesome riding, not too mention we love snow skiing as well.

Please don't take offense, like I said, it never crossed my mind until a few people said something to me. I'm very happy to read your response, my wife and I really want to move out that way.

There might be a problem if you close your deals with a 30 pack of natty light, I'd take a 24 pack of Yuengling

Utah has changed a lot diversity-wise since I was a kid.

My dad is from here, my mom from Scandinavia.

We lived here briefly in the mid-80s in Bountiful.

All the areas you are talking about have a lot of young families, new homes, and a lot of businesses have relocated here for quality employees, friendly treatment of businesses, balanced budget at the State and local levels, with government agencies that actual work in most cases.  

UDOT, DMV, and the Courts are surprisingly fast here, compared to other States I have lived in (CA, ME, WA, GA, NC, VA, CO).

A very good family friend of mine is in real estate sales, as was my MIL.  The market or demographics here will not be a limiting factor.  Only your willingness to succeed will drive your results.

Utah is pretty strong in new housing starts, with a tight market supply, so things sell quickly.

Thanks so much, that's what I was hoping for and I kinda figured what I was hearing was BS.  Hopefully my wife and I will go out there for a week soon to scope the place out. To be honest, I'm very excited, the scenery is awesome and the skiing was even better. We are at a point in our lives that if we move, we need to do it soon.

Ha! That made me laugh!

The Saratoga and Eagle Mountain area is a good one. USDA housing loans are making the area explode. I just went under contract to sell my house.

You'll find not not being LDS to be a much bigger problem in Utah county (the area you're looking at) than some other parts of the state. As long as no one sees you drinking coffee, you may be ok.

I'm a fairly conservative guy with Christian beliefs and as a transplant here for 10 years can tell you that Utah is a nice place to live.  Sure there are Mormons here that can be jerks, just like there are in every religion. As a salesman I know of instances where I did not get the sale because "I was not a believer" but I have sold things to the LDS church without an issue.


In your line of work it might make it a little harder to network down in that area. I would suggest areas North of Salt Lake as they are a little more diverse.


 

One of my good buddies is a loan officer.  Although we are in Northern Utah.  So I don't think that helps down in Happy Valley.

I'm a Mormon. I also just got a mortgage. I don't know if the lady who worked my file was LDS or not. I was far more concerned about my rate than her salvation. YMMV.