Salt Lake County drop in July home sales mirrors U.S. figures

July home sales in Salt Lake County dropped by about one-third compared to a year ago, mirroring a national downward trend. But that's no reason to be "Henny Penny sky is falling," said Salt Lake Board of Realtors President Bill Heiner. Heiner pointed to mortgage rates hovering near 4 percent as one reason for his optimism. He expects the market to look better and better through the end of the year, although homes will continue to take a long time to sell.According to the Salt Lake Board of Realtors, the drop to just 718 home sales in July is the lowest since electronic records started in 1996. The Deseret News