Renters in Murray pay a median of $1,500 a month, and the median home is valued at $507,500. Before borrowing here, test the new payment against your debt-to-income ratio, compare APR and total cost on at least three written offers, and confirm the lender is licensed in Utah.
On this page
- Murray in numbers
- Work and pay in Murray
- Murray households and housing
- How steady is work around Murray?
- Budget math at the median in Murray
- What the numbers suggest about borrowing in Murray
- Murray in context
- The Murray area, place by place
- Local context
- A typical Murray scenario
- Do this before signing in Murray
- Other guides in the area
- Frequently asked questions
Murray in numbers
Source: Census Bureau ACS 5-year estimates, 2020 to 2024, for the city of Murray. Estimates carry margins of error, and your own income, credit and debts decide what a lender offers.
Work and pay in Murray
By industry, the largest groups of Murray workers are in education and health care (24%), professional, scientific and administrative services (15%) and retail (10%). Compared with the median place in our U.S. city set, Murray leans toward professional, scientific and administrative services: 15% of workers against a median of 12%. Think of these shares as context for the local economy rather than a prediction about any one household.
Looking past the median, 46% of Murray households earn $100,000 or more and 14% earn less than $35,000. Murray beats the U.S. city median on $100,000 households (39%), and sits below it on households under $35,000 (20%). Whatever the averages say, your household is what gets underwritten.
Murray households and housing
Half of Murray residents are older than 38.7. Among adults 25 and over, 42% have a four-year degree or more and 5% stopped before a high school diploma. Next to the median place in our set (37.2 years; 37% with a degree), Murray is older, with schooling above the middle. Building a clean payment record matters more than any local average.
Detached houses make up 53% of the homes in Murray; buildings with five or more units account for 28% and mobile homes for 1%. The median place in our U.S. city set is 61% detached and 22% multifamily.
How steady is work around Murray?
The Bureau of Labor Statistics put the unemployment rate in Salt Lake County at 3.2% for September 2026 (not seasonally adjusted, preliminary), down 0.4 points from 3.6% a year earlier. Census survey data put the Murray rate at 3.8% on a 2020 to 2024 average.
Budget math at the median in Murray
Median rent in Murray ($1,500) runs 20% of the median monthly household income ($7,562 before taxes). The 30% yardstick works out to $2,269. If a lender capped total monthly debt at 36% of gross income, a common benchmark, the median household's ceiling would be about $2,722 a month. The price-to-income ratio for housing is roughly 5.6. Use these figures to sanity check a budget, then run your own income and payments through the calculator.
What the numbers suggest about borrowing in Murray
Commutes are comparatively short in Murray: only 5% of workers travel 45 minutes or more, in the lower third of the 784 U.S. city places we cover. Shorter trips usually mean lower transportation costs, which can help if you are sizing a loan payment.
Rent pressure is relatively mild in Murray: 42% of renters are cost-burdened, versus higher shares in much of our U.S. city set. If you are borrowing to consolidate, this is the kind of room that lets you pay a loan off faster.
Only 22% of Murray homeowners with a mortgage spend 30 percent or more of income on housing, in the lower third of the 784 U.S. city places in our set. If you own, you can afford to compare a loan against home-equity options carefully.
Murray in context
Out of 784 U.S. city places in the data, Murray lands with a median household income of $90,746 (290th of 784, top down), a median gross rent of $1,500 (399th of 784, top down), and a median home value of $507,500 (167th of 784, top down). Treat the order as context, nothing more.
For scale, look at two Utah places of similar size: Lehi ($131,299 income, $1,964 rent), where Murray runs 31% below on income and 24% below on rent and Ogden ($72,575 income, $1,216 rent), where Murray runs 25% above on income and 23% above on rent. Differences like these are why a loan that suits one town can strain another.
The Murray area, place by place
A short list of nearby communities, sorted by distance from Murray, to show how quickly costs change over a few miles.
| Place | Miles away | Population | Household income (median) | Rent (median) | Rent vs Murray |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Midvale | 3 mi | 35,989 | $75,084 | $1,597 | +$97 |
| Taylorsville | 3 mi | 58,678 | $86,413 | $1,482 | -$18 |
| Holladay | 3 mi | 31,099 | $117,043 | $1,704 | +$204 |
| South Salt Lake | 4 mi | 26,352 | $72,152 | $1,451 | -$49 |
| Millcreek | 4 mi | 63,648 | $98,045 | $1,492 | -$8 |
| Cottonwood Heights | 5 mi | 32,828 | $119,422 | $1,730 | +$230 |
| Sandy | 6 mi | 94,291 | $112,176 | $1,777 | +$277 |
| White City metro township | 6 mi | 5,669 | $106,357 | $1,605 | +$105 |
On income, Murray trails 5 of its 8 nearest neighbors; on rent, 3 of them are cheaper. Rent runs from $1,451 in South Salt Lake to $1,777 in Sandy, and the highest median income nearby is $119,422 in Cottonwood Heights. For anyone weighing a move to cut costs, this spread is the place to start; a loan payment should fit the budget after the move, not before it.
Local context
Murray is a Salt Lake County city near the center of the Salt Lake Valley. Intermountain Medical Center, a major hospital campus, is one of the largest employers, and TRAX light rail and FrontRunner serve the city.
A typical Murray scenario
Health-care employers in Murray offer steady paychecks and also steady medical bills. If your own bills are the reason you are borrowing, ask the hospital about financial assistance first.
Do this before signing in Murray
- Confirm the license with your state regulator before sharing details; the CFPB takes complaints about lenders.
- Put the payment through the DTI calculator before you apply anywhere. Lenders set their own limits.
- Get the same four numbers from every lender: what you receive, the APR, all fees and the total you will repay.
- Read your free credit reports at AnnualCreditReport.com and fix errors before you shop.
- Ask about early payoff. Most personal loans have no penalty, but confirm in writing.
Other guides in the area
Frequently asked questions
Does commuting from Murray change how much I should borrow?
It can. 5% of Murray workers spend 45 minutes or more getting to work, and every mile adds gas and wear. Leave room for a repair bill before committing to a payment, and favor a shorter term.
Should I borrow for a medical bill in Murray before asking about financial assistance?
No. Ask first. Nonprofit hospitals must have financial assistance policies, and a payment plan from the provider is often cheaper than a loan.
Do you treat Murray applicants differently from anyone else?
Not in our fit check. We screen on loan amount, credit range, income from any source and monthly payments, the same for everyone. Lenders set their own rules and must follow fair-lending laws.
Where do I file a complaint about a lender in Murray?
Keep the paperwork, then contact the Utah agency that licenses lenders; the CFPB portal accepts complaints about any lender nationwide, and the FTC wants to hear about fee-first offers.