Photo: National Scenic Byways Online · Public domainMeasured against area pay, Payson costs less to live in than 54% of U.S. towns
It ranks #23 of 119 in Utah for affordability. Up 1.5% in a year, 11% below the Utah typical home.
Census 2020–24 home values, rents, tax bills and cost burden, measured against the median household income of the Provo-Orem-Lehi, UT metro area ($101K). How TownRatings grades cost of living
The grade compares costs with what households across the Provo metro earn ($101K, Census 2020–24). The typical home costs 4.3 years of metro income, and 43% of renters pay 30% or more of income for housing.
In dollars
- $472Ktypical home, 11% below the Utah typical homeZillow, September 2026
- $1,500a month for a two-bedroom, utilities includedHUD Fair Market Rent, 2026
- 98prices across the Provo metro, where the U.S. is 100 (housing 104)BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024
In paychecks the grade
- 4.3 yrsof area income buys the typical home; the typical U.S. town: 3.3$101K, Provo-area income
- 18%of area income goes to the median rent; the typical U.S. town: 18%Census 2020–24
- 43%of renters pay 30%+ of income for housing; across Utah: 47%Census 2020–24
- 18%of owners do; the typical U.S. town: 20%Census 2020–24
The short version on homes in Payson
The least expensive town in its area
All three neighboring towns with a Zillow value cost more than Payson. The closest is Salem at $600K; West Mountain tops the list at $1.27M. Vs. neighbors ↓
A burst of building in 2022
Payson permitted 607 new homes in 2022, 85% of them in buildings with two or more homes, against about 192 in a typical year of the past decade. 2025 came in at 194. New homes ↓
Written from the data on this page. Home values are the Zillow Home Value Index, through September 2026; sales and supply are Redfin’s for September 2026; permits are Census figures through 2025; incomes, rents paid, taxes and ownership come from the Census American Community Survey.
What’s behind Payson’s grade
Measured against what households in the area earn, Payson is more affordable than 54% of U.S. towns, #23 of 119 in Utah. Home prices pull the grade down most; property tax holds it up.
Prices here have kept pace with Utah: up 14.9% in five years, against 12.5% statewide (Zillow).
Up 14.9% in five years
About the same pace as Utah (12.5%).
Show as a table
| January | Payson | Utah |
|---|---|---|
| 2017 | $229,000 | $273,000 |
| 2018 | $251,000 | $298,000 |
| 2019 | $280,000 | $325,000 |
| 2020 | $302,000 | $349,000 |
| 2021 | $349,000 | $399,000 |
| 2022 | $429,000 | $496,000 |
| 2023 | $444,000 | $512,000 |
| 2024 | $450,000 | $513,000 |
| 2025 | $460,000 | $525,000 |
| 2026 | $473,000 | $536,000 |
| September 2026 | $472,000 | $533,000 |
A typical Payson home worth $225K in October 2016 is worth about $472K today.
Zillow Home Value Index: the typical value of all homes (middle third), smoothed and seasonally adjusted, through September 2026.
A balanced market
About 4.5 months of supply: neither buyers nor sellers have a clear edge.
Under ~4 months of supply favors sellers; over ~6 favors buyers.
Redfin Data Center, all residential sales, September 2026.
A typical home costs 4.3 years of area income
The calculator starts from the area income the grade uses. Switch to Payson’s own median, or type yours.
That’s $54K short of a typical Payson home.
A two-bedroom rents for about $1,500 a month here, $1,160 less than owning.
An estimate, not a loan offer: payments of up to 28% of income, a 30-year fixed loan, Payson’s typical property tax (0.47% of value a year, from the Census) and insurance of about 0.35%. Mortgage insurance, HOA fees and other debts aren’t included.
A two-bedroom rents for about $1,500
Renters already here pay a median of $1,549.
Fair Market Rent a month, utilities included
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Fair Market Rents by ZIP code (Provo-Orem-Lehi, UT MSA): the 40th-percentile rent plus utilities for a standard unit. Median rent and renters: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey.
194 new homes permitted in 2025
Builders were permitted 194 new homes in Payson in 2025: 166 single-family houses and 28 in buildings with two or more homes, worth about $80.4 million to build. That's 8.4 per 1,000 residents, about the pace of Utah as a whole. Over the past 10 years, Payson has permitted 2,336 homes in all.
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses, Payson gained 2,807 residents while 983 new homes were permitted: about 2.9 new residents per new home, about the same as across Utah (2.7).
Every year as a table
| Year | New homes | Single-family | 2+ per building | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 (Jan–Aug) | 117 | 117 | 0 | $44.2 million |
| 2025 | 194 | 166 | 28 | $80.4 million |
| 2024 | 120 | 120 | 0 | $55.6 million |
| 2023 | 108 | 74 | 34 | $25.7 million |
| 2022 | 607 | 91 | 516 | $73.8 million |
| 2021 | 332 | 104 | 228 | $44.5 million |
| 2020 | 310 | 81 | 229 | $42.1 million |
| 2019 | 304 | 193 | 111 | $54.6 million |
| 2018 | 238 | 74 | 164 | $27.8 million |
| 2017 | 78 | 50 | 28 | $11.7 million |
| 2016 | 45 | 45 | 0 | $8.1 million |
| 2015 | 71 | 35 | 36 | $8.9 million |
| 2014 | 55 | 41 | 14 | $8.9 million |
| 2013 | 64 | 40 | 24 | $9 million |
| 2012 | 32 | 20 | 12 | $3.6 million |
| 2011 | 36 | 36 | 0 | $4.8 million |
| 2010 | 60 | 48 | 12 | $8.4 million |
| 2009 | 51 | 51 | 0 | $7.5 million |
| 2008 | 18 | 18 | 0 | $3.2 million |
| 2007 | 128 | 66 | 62 | $18.4 million |
| 2006 | 78 | 76 | 2 | $12.8 million |
| 2005 | 122 | 120 | 2 | $18.2 million |
| 2004 | 148 | 128 | 20 | $18.3 million |
| 2003 | 152 | 134 | 18 | $18.2 million |
| 2002 | 219 | 215 | 4 | $20.6 million |
| 2001 | 258 | 248 | 10 | $22.5 million |
| 2000 | 322 | 293 | 29 | $28.3 million |
Homes authorized by building permits, counted in the year the permit was issued. U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey.
Property tax runs below the Utah norm
The median bill is $2,019 (Utah: $2,525), 0.47% of a home’s value a year, against 0.52% statewide.
Census American Community Survey 2020–24: the median real-estate tax bill homeowners report, and that bill ÷ the median home value. Bills include town, school and county taxes. The Census reports bills over $10,000 only as “$10,000+”.
The rest of a budget near Payson
Only figures published free for the whole country, each labeled with the area it covers: the Provo-Orem-Lehi, UT metro area, or Utah. Groceries follow the goods price level; nobody publishes them town by town.
| Cost | Here | Compared with | Area | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prices overall U.S. = 100 | 98 | UT 99 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
| Goods (groceries, clothing, cars…) U.S. = 100 | 96 | UT 96 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
| Utilities U.S. = 100 | 79 | UT 79 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
| Other services U.S. = 100 | 99 | UT 99 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
Price levels: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities 2024 (metro area and state). Electricity: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Electric Power Monthly, table 5.6.A.
Payson vs. its neighbors
Of the 4 towns here with a Zillow value, Payson has the lowest. Spring Lake has no Zillow value, so it is in the table only.
Cost next door · one source per column
| Town | Cost | Typical home Zillow, September 2026 | Median value Census 2020–24 | Tax rate bill ÷ value | 2-bed rent HUD 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Payson | B− | $472K | $430K | 0.47% | $1,500 |
| West Mountain | B | $1.3M | $658K | 0.41% | $1,500 |
| Spring Lake | – | — | $555K | 0.47% | $1,500 |
| Elk Ridge | C+ | $696K | $615K | 0.50% | $1,500 |
| Salem | C+ | $600K | $606K | 0.44% | $1,550 |
“—” under Cost: not graded (too little Census data, or under 1,000 residents). “—” under Zillow: Zillow publishes no value for that town, so it’s left blank rather than mixed with Census figures.
Questions about the cost of living in Payson
Is Payson expensive to live in?
Measured against what households in the area earn, Payson costs less than 54% of U.S. towns: a B− for cost of living, #23 of 119 in Utah. The typical home costs 4.3 years of the median household income of the Provo-Orem-Lehi, UT metro area ($101K).
How much does a house cost in Payson?
About $472K, Zillow’s typical value for September 2026, up 1.5% in a year. The Utah typical home is $533K.
What salary do you need to live in Payson?
To buy the typical home with 20% down at 6.3%, about $114,000 a year, keeping the payment (about $2,660 a month with tax and insurance) at 28% of income. To rent a two-bedroom at 30% of income, about $60,000.
How much is rent in Payson?
HUD puts a two-bedroom at about $1,500 a month with utilities, the going rate for someone moving in. Renters already here pay a median of $1,549 (Census 2020–24).
What are property taxes in Payson?
The median bill is $2,019 a year, 0.47% of the median home value (Utah: $2,525, 0.52%), from the Census 2020–24.
Are home prices in Payson going up?
Yes: up 1.5% in the past year and 14.9% in five years, against 12.5% across Utah (Zillow).
Neighbors talk housing
What Payson buyers, sellers and renters are saying.
Home values: Zillow Home Value Index (ZHVI), Zillow Research, September 2026. Sales, days on market and supply: Redfin Data Center, September 2026. Income, ownership, taxes and rent: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey. New homes: U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey. Fair Market Rents: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The calculator is an estimate, not a loan offer. Regional price levels: BEA; electricity: EIA. How TownRatings grades cost of living.