Find a Financial Advisor in Salt Lake County

Salt Lake County at a glance

Salt Lake County is the most populous county in Utah and the center of the Wasatch Front, with the state capital, the main airport, the University of Utah and a long list of suburbs between the Oquirrh Mountains and the Wasatch Range. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 to 2024 American Community Survey, the county has about 1,220,916 residents (2025 estimate), a median household income of $97,494 and a median home value of $525,700. Median age is 34.0, which is young for a large American county, and 11.9 percent of residents are 65 or older. About 39.4 percent of adults have a bachelor’s degree or higher.

Two-thirds of homes, 66.1 percent, are owner occupied. The median monthly owner cost with a mortgage is $2,124 and median gross rent is $1,592. Unemployment is 3.8 percent. A home worth more than five times the median household income is a stretch, and that single fact explains many of the money conversations in this county: how to buy a first home, how to hold on to one, and how to keep saving while doing it.

This page covers all six services people look for: advisors, wealth management, planning, retirement, life insurance and investing. Advisors who serve the Salt Lake County area work by phone or video, and the first conversation is free.

Financial advisors in Salt Lake County

The phrase financial advisor covers very different jobs. One person writes plans for a flat fee. Another manages portfolios for a percentage of assets. A third sells insurance and annuities on commission. A teacher in Granite School District, a software engineer in Draper, a nurse at a hospital in Murray and a restaurant owner in Midvale each need a different mix of those services.

Sort out the job first, then the person. Our financial advisors guide explains the types of advisors, how they are paid and what the main titles mean, so you can walk into a first conversation knowing which questions to ask.

Utah income tax, credits and what they mean for planning

Utah taxes income at one flat rate rather than a graduated schedule, and it offers a credit that can offset some or all of the tax on Social Security income for certain taxpayers. That is a very different picture from states that exempt Social Security outright, and it means retirees should look at the credit and its income phase-out rather than assume benefits are free of state tax. The state has no estate or inheritance tax, though federal rules still apply to large estates.

Other Utah features matter at the margin. Primary residences receive a property tax reduction, so a second home or rental is taxed more heavily, and sales tax applies to many purchases. Because rates, credits and thresholds change, confirm current rules with the Utah State Tax Commission or a tax professional before acting on any of this. A planner can then model the effect on your actual return.

Wealth management in Salt Lake County

Wealth management fits households with several moving parts: stock compensation from a tech or health care employer, a business sale, an inheritance, rental property or a growing taxable account. Salt Lake County has plenty of such households, from physicians and executives to owners who built a company over twenty years.

A wealth manager should coordinate investments with taxes, insurance, charitable giving and the plan for your heirs. Charitable giving deserves its own mention here, since many families give regularly to a church or a cause and can sometimes do so more efficiently by donating appreciated shares or using a donor-advised fund. Ask any firm how it charges, what the minimum is and how often you will meet. The estate planning guide covers wills, trusts and beneficiary designations.

Life insurance in Salt Lake County

Household size is larger than the national average in much of the county, and many parents have a single earner or one full-time and one part-time income. That raises the stakes if one adult dies or cannot work. A common rule of thumb is to add the mortgage, other debts, a few years of income and future education costs, then subtract savings and any employer coverage.

Term policies of 20 or 30 years are the usual tool for families, because they cost far less than permanent coverage. A stay-at-home parent also needs coverage, since replacing childcare, meals and transport would cost real money. Our life insurance guide explains term, whole and universal life, and the Utah Insurance Department can confirm an agent’s license.

Earthquakes, inversions and wildfire edges: protecting a Salt Lake County home

The Wasatch Fault runs along the base of the mountains through the east side of the valley, and geologists regularly point out that a large earthquake is a matter of when, not if. Standard homeowners insurance excludes earthquake damage, so owners should price an endorsement or a separate policy and think about the deductible, which is typically a percentage of the home value. Older brick homes in Salt Lake City and Murray carry particular risk if they have not been retrofitted.

Other hazards are quieter. Winter inversions trap smoke and haze in the valley. Homes near the foothills in Draper, Holladay and Cottonwood Heights sit close to wildfire country, and the canyons bring avalanche and flash flood risk. Ask your insurer about wildfire premiums and defensible space, and keep an emergency fund large enough to cover a deductible without selling investments.

Retirement planning in Salt Lake County

Retirement planning here often starts with a question about where to live. Some retirees stay for family and the mountains, others move to St. George or to another state for lower costs. A planner can compare staying in a paid-off Sandy home with downsizing to a condo near Millcreek and using the equity to fund spending.

Public employees may have a pension through the Utah Retirement Systems, and school and county workers should learn their plan type, vesting rules and survivor options well before retirement. Everyone else relies on a 401(k), an IRA and Social Security. Health coverage is the other big item, since Medicare begins at 65. Our retirement planning guide lays out the building blocks.

Universities, hospitals and employers in Salt Lake County

The University of Utah and its health system, Salt Lake Community College, Westminster University and other schools anchor a large education and research economy. Intermountain Health and other hospital systems employ thousands of nurses, physicians and administrators. Add the airport and its airline operations, banks and financial firms, state and county government, and technology offices in places such as Draper and South Jordan.

Each employer type brings its own benefits. University and hospital staff often have 403(b) plans, public workers may have pensions, and tech workers often hold restricted stock units that trigger a tax bill when they vest. An advisor who reads your benefits booklet with you can find free money in employer matches and flag deadlines you might have missed.

Financial planners in Salt Lake County

A planner builds a written roadmap. Picture a couple in Taylorsville in their early thirties with a baby on the way, student loans and a first home. Their plan might set a target for an emergency fund, compare paying down loans with investing, choose term life coverage and open a my529 college savings account, Utah’s plan. Each of those steps has a dollar amount and a date attached.

Planners charge by flat fee, hourly rate, retainer or a percentage of assets. Choose a model that matches how you want to use the help. The budgeting and saving guide is a useful starting point if you want to get your own numbers together first.

Investment advisors in Salt Lake County

Investment advisors manage portfolios and must register with the SEC or the Utah Division of Securities. Their filings, known as Form ADV, describe fees, conflicts and disciplinary history, and you can read them for free online. Compare the advisory fee with fund costs underneath it, because both come out of your return.

A reasonable first meeting covers your goals, your timeline and how much risk you can handle in a market drop. If a firm promises a specific return, walk away. Our investing guide explains diversification and index funds in plain language.

How to choose a financial advisor in Salt Lake County

Write down what you want help with, then interview two or three candidates. Ask how they are paid, whether they act as a fiduciary, how they handle your account day to day and who you will talk to when you call. Look up the registration on the SEC adviser site or the Utah Division of Securities.

Fit matters as much as credentials. You will share a lot about your family and money, so pick someone who listens and explains. Because advisors who serve the Salt Lake County area meet by phone or video, you can compare people from Draper to Magna without driving across the valley.

Areas we serve in Salt Lake County

Advisors who serve the Salt Lake County area help households in Salt Lake City, West Valley City, West Jordan, Sandy, South Jordan, Taylorsville, Murray, Millcreek, Midvale, Draper, Riverton and Herriman, along with Holladay, Cottonwood Heights, South Salt Lake, Kearns metro township and Magna metro township. Everyone meets by phone or video.

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Buying and keeping a home in Salt Lake County

With a median home value of $525,700 against a median household income of $97,494, a first-time buyer needs either a large down payment, two incomes or a lot of patience. Many young couples start in the west and southwest parts of the valley, in places like West Valley City, Kearns, Taylorsville and Herriman, where prices are lower than in Holladay or the east bench. Master planned communities such as Daybreak in South Jordan attract families who want newer homes with parks and trails.

Run the monthly math before you shop, not after. A mortgage payment, property tax, insurance, utilities and repairs usually add up to more than the loan payment alone. A common guideline is to keep total housing costs near a quarter to a third of gross income, which is hard in this market, so some buyers look at a townhome, a duplex where they rent out one side, or a house hack with a roommate. Whatever you choose, keep an emergency fund in place so a new roof does not land on a credit card.

Homeowners who have lived here for a decade or more often sit on large gains. Selling triggers federal capital gains rules with a significant exclusion for a primary home, and the details depend on how long you lived there. A planner can help you decide whether to sell, borrow against the equity or keep the house and rent part of it.

Commuting and the Wasatch Front economy

Salt Lake County is the hub of a corridor that runs from Ogden to Provo. Many residents drive on I-15, I-215 or Bangerter Highway, while others use TRAX light rail and the FrontRunner commuter train. Some live in Salt Lake County and work in neighboring Utah County, which has its own technology cluster, and others do the reverse.

Skiing, climbing and the national parks draw people for work as well as play, and outdoor recreation companies, resorts and the airport give the economy a seasonal tilt. Seasonal and gig income makes budgeting harder, so a household with uneven months benefits from a larger cash buffer and from setting aside tax money as it comes in. The state’s selection as host of the 2034 Winter Games may add construction and tourism activity, but no household plan should depend on that.

Frequently asked questions