Apparent increases in sales and price of rural land, recent changes in land taxing procedure and proposed land-use legislation have brought forth a number of land questions among legislators, public officials and the general citizenry of Utah. This study is directed at questions pertaining to land purchases and land buyers in rural Utah counties. A random sample was taken of the land transfer cards on file at the Utah State Tax Commission. Land buyers whose names appeared on the transfer cards and the returned questionnaires were used in the analysis and are the sole basis of the conclusions of the study. General conclusions from the study were: Land-use at the time of the transaction was most frequently agricultural or vacant or idle for acreages and was most frequently nonagricultural for lots. Following the transaction there was a tendency on the part of buyers to change agricultural and vacant or idle land to a different land use. Buyer characteristics such as annual income, buyer age and residence varied among the regions of the state and were important factors in land transfers. About 50 percent of the total dollars spent for land parcels included in the sample went for residential land. Land located near city limits, improved or unimproved, averaged the highest price per acre or lot. The study's conclusions apply only to recorded land transfers on file at the Utah State Tax Commission for the years 1969 through 1971.

The purpose of this paper is to test the hypothesis that economies of scale exist in the provision of government services in nonmetropolitan Utah counties. Financial data from the counties was analyzed using statistical methods. Total expenditures, general government, public safety, public works, libraries, health and welfare, parks and recreation, and toads are examined.

Increased incomes, better transportation, and the desirability of country living all create the demand for land in the agricultural-urban fringe areas to increase. High l and values, low returns on investment, and residential encroachment place farmers in a situation where continued agricultural production is difficult. As ownership transfer occurs, the use of l and is often changed. This study is directed at measuring the effects of ownership transfers in rural areas of rapidly urbanizing counties on the local agricultural industries, and the effect of zoning requirements on these transfers. The study sample consisted of land buyers recorded at the Utah State Tax Commission . Data were obtained from (1) a mail questionnaire sent to the recorded land buyers, (2) soil classification , and (3) zoning requirements. General conclusions from the study were: 1. The average 1 and buyer was a professional, managerial or technical middle- aged worked with an annual income of twice the average income in his area. 2. Over three- fourths of the land involved in the transfer was in agricultural use. After the transfer, one- fourth of the agricultural land changed use. 3. Area zoning requirements may have altered the development pattern and acreage bought, but no conclusive results were obtained. The study ' s conclusions apply only to recorded land transfers on file at the Utah State Tax Commission for t he years 1974 through 1976.