The Aletheia blog
Plain-English guides to buying, selling, and navigating real estate transactions.
Utah Home Buyer's Research Checklist
What to verify from public records before making an offer on a Utah home — and what to act on during due diligence. Source-by-source with direct links to Utah public portals.
Flat-Fee MLS Listing in Utah: What to Check Before You Sign
Utah has four separate MLS systems, and the advertised price on flat-fee listing services is often not the actual cost. How to read the terms, what the at-close math looks like, and which services currently pass a three-part entry-only filter.
Where to Source Marketing Materials for a Utah FSBO Listing
Where yard signs, riders, lockboxes, photography, floor plans, and printed materials come from when selling without an agent in Utah — what each involves and where to find it.
Kickout Clauses and Post-Closing Occupancy in Utah Real Estate
What a kickout clause is and how it works, what post-closing occupancy means for buyers and sellers, how the terms are set, and what lenders require when a seller stays after closing.
What Your Lender Is Doing Between Accepted Offer and Closing
A plain explanation of mortgage underwriting — what underwriters review, what conditional approval means, why financial changes during the contract period can derail a loan, and what verification of employment is.
How Real Estate Deal Cancellation Works in Utah
How cancellation gets communicated, what a mutual release is, how the title company handles held earnest money when parties disagree, and how long an earnest money return takes in Utah.
Utah Home Seller's Pre-Listing Checklist
Documents to gather, records to locate, and condition items to address before listing your Utah home — with the source for each item and what to do during the contract period.
What the 2024 NAR Settlement Changed for Utah Buyers and Sellers
A plain-English explanation of what the National Association of Realtors' 2024 settlement changed about real estate commissions — what's different for buyers, what's different for sellers, and what stayed the same.
Selling Your Home to Someone You Already Know in Utah
When buyer and seller already have a deal — what the transaction process still requires, why title insurance and earnest money matter even between people who trust each other, and how private sales work in Utah.
What to Know Before Signing a Utah Listing Agreement
A plain-English guide to what a listing agreement is, what its key terms mean, and what questions sellers commonly have before signing — for sellers who want to understand the document before they commit.
What Happens Between Accepted Offer and Closing in Utah
A timeline of every step between a signed purchase contract and closing day in Utah — the REPC deadlines, who does what, and what can go wrong at each stage.
Utah Closing Costs Explained — What They Are, Who Pays, and How Much
A plain-English breakdown of every closing cost in a Utah real estate transaction — what each fee is, who typically pays it (buyer, seller, or split), and how to estimate your total.
What Will I Net Selling My House in Utah?
A plain-English breakdown of how to calculate your net proceeds from a home sale in Utah — what gets subtracted from the sale price, what you keep, and how to estimate it before you list.
FSBO Utah — Everything Buyers and Sellers Need to Know in 2025
A complete guide to For Sale By Owner (FSBO) transactions in Utah — the process, legal requirements, common mistakes, how buyers can make offers on FSBO properties, and current statistics.
How Much Does a Real Estate Agent Cost in Utah?
A breakdown of real estate agent costs in Utah — typical commission rates, what the 2024 NAR settlement changed, who pays what, how to calculate the cost on your home, and alternatives.
How to Make a Real Estate Offer in Utah — Step by Step
A step-by-step guide to making a real estate offer in Utah — what goes into the offer, earnest money requirements, contingencies, timelines, what happens after submission, and how counteroffers work.
How to Sell Your Home Without a Real Estate Agent in Utah
A step-by-step guide to selling your home without an agent in Utah — covering legal requirements, disclosures, pricing, managing offers, and closing the transaction on your own.
Utah Real Estate Purchase Contract (REPC) — A Complete Guide for Buyers and Sellers
A plain-English guide to every major section of the Utah Real Estate Purchase Contract (REPC) — what each clause means, key timelines, and what happens if you leave something blank.
Utah Seller Disclosure Requirements — What You Must Disclose When Selling Your Home
A complete guide to Utah's seller disclosure requirements — what the law requires you to disclose, the Seller Property Condition Disclosure form, consequences of non-disclosure, and how to complete it properly.