Home financing in Salt Lake County.
County-by-county financing guides. No paperwork. No social. No ID.
17 institutions are headquartered inside the Salt Lake County line, Salt Lake City included, and 13 more keep a branch here. Below, we say which is which.
Not this lane? Business FinancingPersonal Financing
The doors in Salt Lake County.
The CDFIs, credit unions, and microlenders that actually say yes — county by county, in two languages. We are not a lender. Nobody paid to be listed. And where a county has no good doors, we say so.
- 30
- DOORS HERE
- 17
- BASED HERE
- 22
- UT COUNTIES WITH DOORS
- Lane
- Home Financing
- People
- 1.2Mresidents of Salt Lake County
- Covers
- Salt Lake City
- Elsewhere in UT
- Utah County →10 doors — the biggest list of any other county in Utah
- State
- Utah →22 of 29 counties hold a door in this lane
Certified by the U.S. Treasury to lend where a bank will not. Nonprofit, patient, and used to a file that is not clean.
Ironworkers Usa Credit Union · Community Development Fund of UtahOwned by their members, not by shareholders. They look at your whole story rather than a score, and that is the difference when a bank says no.
America First Credit Union · American United Credit Union- American United Credit UnionPersonal · Home · Business capital
- Canyon View Credit UnionPersonal · Home · Business capital
- Cyprus Credit UnionPersonal · Home · Business capital
- Deseret First Credit UnionPersonal · Home · Business capital
- Granite Credit UnionPersonal · Home · Business capital
- IN THIS LIST
5 of the 30 doors inside the county line are CDFI-certified.
The U.S. Treasury certifies them to lend to the people banks pass over. It is a loan, not a favour.
- Hercules First Credit UnionPersonal · Home · Business capital
- Lu 354 I B E W Credit UnionPersonal · Home
- Mountain America Credit UnionPersonal · Home · Business capital
Show the other 9Show fewer
- National J. A. C. L. Credit UnionMinority depositoryPersonal · Home
- Ridgeline Credit UnionPersonal · Home · Business capital
- Utah First Credit UnionPersonal · Home · Business capital
- Community Development Fund of UtahCommunity lending · Business capital
- Rocky Mountain Community Reinvestment CorporationCommunity lending · Business capital
- Suazo Business CenterCommunity lending · Business capital
- Utah Microenterprise Loan Fund (UMLF)Community lending · Business capital
- Gibbons and Reed Employees Credit UnionPersonal
- Utah Microenterprise Loan FundBusiness capital
Based elsewhere, with a member-facing office inside the Salt Lake County line. You can walk in.
- America First Credit UnionPersonal · Home · Business capital
- Chartway Credit UnionPersonal · Home · Business capital
- Goldenwest Credit UnionPersonal · Home · Business capital
- Ironworkers Usa Credit UnionCDFI-certifiedPersonal · Home
- Norfolk Fire Department Credit UnionPersonal · Home
- NO AGENDA
Nobody paid to be on this list.
The 30 doors inside the county line come off public data, and 25 of them are owned by their own members. We do not ask for your name, and we earn nothing if you knock on one door rather than another.
- Operating Engineers Local Union #3 Credit UnionPersonal · Home · Business capital
Show the other 7Show fewer
- Security Service Credit UnionPersonal · Home · Business capital
- Sonoma Credit UnionPersonal · Home
- Steuben Citizens Credit UnionPersonal · Home
- Tru Credit UnionPersonal · Home
- Utah Community Credit UnionPersonal · Home · Business capital
- Ambraw Credit UnionPersonal
- Hema Credit UnionPersonal
- Mission Asset FundAccepts ITIN
Zero-interest lending circles and credit building. SSN or ITIN accepted. Works through nonprofit partners across the country.
Personal - Accion Opportunity FundAccepts ITIN
Nonprofit small-business lender. Accepts ITIN in place of SSN. Serves most states, in English and Spanish.
Business capital - Grameen AmericaAccepts ITIN
Microloans for women entrepreneurs. Requires photo ID and proof of address — no SSN requirement. Branches in major metro areas.
Business capital
How to read this list.
We do not ask for your name, your email, or your number. Nothing on this page changes based on who you are.
A door is headquartered here when its head office sits inside the county line. The rest are based elsewhere and keep a branch you can walk into. We list both, and we label which is which.
Every institution on this page comes from public federal data — the CDFI Fund certified list (Aug 2026), NCUA credit union data (Mar 2026), and the SBA microloan intermediary list (Sep 2026) — plus a short national tier we verified by hand. We refresh each list as its agency publishes. No listing is paid.
Salt Lake County got expensive faster than wages did, and that is the honest starting point. What is also true is that households pooling two or three incomes, families with uneven construction pay, and buyers with an ITIN close on homes in this valley every year — usually through a credit union based right here rather than a national mortgage brand. This guide covers the loan types that work, who qualifies, which documents to gather, which doors serve Salt Lake County, and the Utah rules from trustee sales to the residential exemption that decide what a purchase really costs.
It's a process, not a rejection.
A mortgage is a long loan secured by the house. Stop paying and the lender can take the property. The rest is detail — and the details decide whether you can buy at all.
The shapes that matter here:
- Conventional loans — the standard product, sold on to investors, strictest documentation, usually the best pricing if you fit the box.
- FHA loans — government-insured, more forgiving on credit and down payment. The workhorse for first purchases in this valley.
- VA loans — for veterans and service members, with no down payment requirement in most cases.
- USDA loans — restricted to eligible rural areas, which in this county means the outer edges, not the valley floor.
- Portfolio and ITIN mortgages — loans a credit union or small institution keeps on its own books instead of selling. Because nobody else must approve them, this is usually where a self-employed borrower or a borrower with an ITIN finds a yes. Expect a larger down payment and a rate above the advertised market.
- Rehab and renovation loans — one loan covering purchase plus repairs. Useful for the older brick homes on the county's west and central sides.
- Down-payment assistance — second loans or grants layered behind a first mortgage, administered through participating lenders.
- Home equity loans and lines — borrowing against equity you already built, for a repair, a roof, an accessory unit, or to clear something worse.
What you can buy here shapes the loan. New construction across the valley skews to townhomes and condominiums with HOA dues, which come with their own underwriting questions about the association itself. The attainable older stock — mid-century and earlier brick homes in West Valley City, Glendale, Poplar Grove, Rose Park, Midvale, Magna, and Kearns — is often solid and often needs systems work, which is where renovation financing earns its place.
Manufactured homes are a real segment here and are financed differently depending on whether the land comes with the home.
Ask that question before anything else, because a home on leased land is a different loan entirely.
Forget what the banks say.
Underwriting asks four things: what you earn and whether you can prove it, what you already owe monthly, what you can put down, and whether the property supports the loan.
In this county, approved buyers frequently look like this:
- A household pooling two or three incomes under one roof — very common on the west side of the valley. On some programs a non-borrowing household member's income can be counted; a credit union that keeps loans on its own books is where to ask.
- A framer, concrete finisher, drywaller, roofer, or landscaper paid as a 1099 subcontractor, approved on two years of tax returns plus bank statements.
- A seasonal worker whose year has two different halves — construction in summer, canyon and resort hospitality in winter. Two years of records showing the full cycle is what makes that income usable.
- A warehouse or distribution worker with steady hours and overtime that shows up consistently on pay stubs.
- A restaurant or hotel worker with base pay plus tips, where the tips appear on filings and in deposits.
- A family with an ITIN buying through a portfolio lender with a larger down payment saved over years.
What sinks applications here is rarely the income.
It is documentation, existing debt, and — increasingly — the HOA.
A car payment and a card balance consume the same room a mortgage payment needs, and on a condo or townhome the monthly HOA dues count against you too.
Ask for the dues figure before you fall in love with the unit.
One more thing almost nobody is told: deductions that lower your taxable income also lower the income a lender may use. Talk to a housing counselor before you file next year's return, not after.
An ITIN does not make ownership impossible; it changes which door opens. Portfolio lenders and some credit unions do this work without advertising it. Ask each institution directly rather than guessing from a website.
Get your papers in order.
Mortgage files are the thickest in consumer lending. Build one folder now:
- 01Government-issued photo ID
Plus your ITIN or Social Security number.
- 02Two years of tax returns with every schedule, personal and business.
- 03W-2s or 1099s for the same two years.
- 04Thirty days of pay stubs if you are on a payroll.
- 05Two to three months of statements for every bank account, including the one holding your down payment.
- 06A written explanation for any large deposit that is not payroll, and a signed gift letter for gift money.
- 07For self-employment
Profit-and-loss statement, business bank statements, Utah state registration, city business license, and contractor license if applicable.
- 08Proof of rent paid
Canceled checks or transfers — which helps build a payment record when your credit file is thin.
- 09Utility or phone payment records if you are using alternative credit.
- 10Two years of address and employment history.
- 11Homebuyer education certificate
Required by nearly every assistance program.
- 12For the property
The HOA documents and dues statement if there is an association, and for a manufactured home, whether the land conveys with it.
The doors worth knowing.
Start with a HUD-approved housing counseling agency, then a credit union based in this valley, then assistance.
ALL 30 DOORS, BY NAME AND BY TOWN- 30
- DOORS HERE
- 32
- ACROSS UT
Based in Portland, Oregon. A credit union — owned by its members rather than by shareholders, which is exactly what changes the conversation after a bank has said no. It is CDFI-certified.
BEST FORA personal loan, or building a credit file from nothing, and buying, repairing or refinancing a home.Based in Riverdale, Utah. A member-owned credit union, which means the people deciding on your file answer to depositors in the same towns you work in.
BEST FORBuying, repairing or refinancing a home, and working capital, equipment and payroll for a small business.Based in West Jordan, Utah. A credit union: no shareholders to satisfy, and a habit of reading a whole story rather than a single score.
BEST FORWorking capital, equipment and payroll for a small business, and a personal loan, or building a credit file from nothing.Based in Salt Lake City, Utah. A credit union — owned by its members rather than by shareholders, which is exactly what changes the conversation after a bank has said no.
BEST FORA personal loan, or building a credit file from nothing, and buying, repairing or refinancing a home.
Don't fall into these traps.
A market that rose fast attracts people selling shortcuts. Here is what to refuse.
You pay, you maintain the house, and the seller keeps the title. In many such arrangements one missed payment forfeits everything you paid. If there is no real closing with a recorded title transfer, walk away.
HUD-approved housing counseling is free. Loan officers are paid at closing.
In a competitive market buyers get pushed to waive inspections. On an older brick home in this valley — foundation, sewer line, furnace, roof, masonry — that is the most expensive thing you can agree to in a single sentence.
A low price with a troubled association is not a bargain. Pending special assessments become your bill the day you close.
Refinancing repeatedly while rolling fees into the balance hands your equity to whoever arranged it. Ask one question every time: does my total interest cost go down, and by how much?
Criminals send an email that looks exactly like your title company's, with new wire instructions. Never accept wire instructions by email. Call the title office at the number you already had and confirm every digit by voice.
Some portfolio and ITIN loans include them. Not automatically wrong — but you must know they are there and what they cost if you refinance in three years.
You have the right to interpretation and to time. Anyone discouraging either is telling you about themselves.
If you fall behind, the free HUD-approved counselor is the correct call. Anyone arriving with paperwork and urgency is not there to help.
Everything below is set by Utah, and it reads the same in every county in it. The 30 marks above are this county's own doors — who opens one is decided by them, not by the state.
The rules where you are.
Utah's legal frame differs from other states in ways that change your risk and your bill.
Utah uses a trust deed, and foreclosure generally proceeds by trustee sale rather than through a courtroom. There is a required notice sequence, but the timeline moves faster than in judicial states. Know that before you take a payment you can barely carry, and call a HUD-approved counselor at the first missed payment, not the fourth.
Utah taxes an owner-occupied primary residence on a reduced portion of its value. If you buy a home that was previously a rental, the exemption does not follow automatically — confirm with the county that it has been applied, because the difference in the annual bill is not small and your escrow estimate may be based on the wrong number.
The Wasatch Fault runs along this valley, and much of the older housing stock is unreinforced brick masonry. Standard homeowner policies typically exclude earthquake damage; coverage is a separate endorsement or policy. Ask about it during inspection rather than after, and get a quote before you commit — it belongs in the monthly math.
Utah has broad areas of elevated radon, and testing during inspection is inexpensive relative to the fix. Ask for it.
In older parts of the valley, some parcels carry irrigation shares or secondary water arrangements. Confirm what conveys with the property, because it affects both your bill and your landscaping plans.
Much of the county's newer attainable stock is in associations. Read the dues, the reserve situation, the rental restrictions, and any pending assessments. A weak association can affect your ability to finance the unit at all.
Utah Housing Corporation administers homebuyer loans and down-payment assistance through approved lenders, and terms change. Treat it as an office to ask about rather than a product to assume.
If you plan to rent a basement or an accessory dwelling unit, city rules on accessory units, licensing, and parking vary widely across this valley. Confirm with the specific city before counting the rent.
The short version.
- 01
Salt Lake County is expensive, and that is a fact about the valley, not a verdict on you. Households with pooled income, seasonal construction pay, and ITINs buy here every year.
- 02
The order that works: call a HUD-approved housing counselor first and take the homebuyer class. Then sit down with two or three credit unions based in this valley and ask whether they keep mortgages on their own books and whether they lend to ITIN borrowers. Then ask what down-payment assistance you qualify for through Utah Housing Corporation. Only then start touring houses.
- 03
Before any of that, do the unglamorous work: two years of filed tax returns you can hand over, three months of explainable bank activity, existing debts reduced, and every rent payment documented.
- 04
On the property itself, three Utah-specific questions save real money: is the primary residential exemption applied, what does earthquake coverage cost on this house, and what exactly do the HOA dues and reserves look like. Ask them before you write an offer.
Same county, another question.
Business FinancingLoans, lines of credit, and capital for small businesses and contractorsSEE IT IN SALT LAKE COUNTY →
Personal FinancingPersonal loans, credit building, and ITIN-friendly financing optionsSEE IT IN SALT LAKE COUNTY →22UT COUNTIES WITH DOORSThe whole stateEvery county in Utah, in this same lane.32 institutions fund homes and repairs inside Utah county lines.OPEN THE STATE →Still don't see your situation?
Ask Iris. She'll explain it the way it should have been explained the first time.