Kendell remarked how Utah State University's house, which has the highest insured value at more than $1.1 million, was used this fall for a stretch of 24 functions in 25 days. It's a similar situation, he added, at the University of Utah's Rosenblatt House, the largest of all the homes at more than 11,400 square feet.

Also, large portions of some of the homes are unfinished, such as USU's and Southern Utah University's.

But these houses also need to be large enough to handle receptions and dinner parties for as many as 75 guests, like at the Rosenblatt House.

"It's a symbol of the university," said U. President Michael Young. Few major universities, he added, function without a president's house.

His house serves as a place for meetings or to entertain at least three times a week — large donors, for example, are offered receptions at the house in their honor.

Key faculty are also honored there, like in 2003 when U. geneticist Mario Capecchi was honored for receiving one of the world's most prestigious science honors, the Wolf Prize.

Young and his wife, Suzan, considered not living at the Rosenblatt House when he took the job as president, but some connected to the university saw it as an insult. Not living there, he added, wouldn't necessarily reduce the cost to maintain the house, which would continue to be used for functions that help advance the school's interests.

Young doesn't consider the house a "tremendous" perk but one that does help him to do his job more effectively. "We're grateful to be living there," he said.

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E-mail: sspeckman@desnews.com