Is Now a Good Time to Buy a Home in St. George, Utah?

Is Now a Good Time to Buy a Home in St. George, Utah?

2026 St. George Housing Market Explained

If you're wondering whether now is a good time to buy a home in St. George, you're not alone. It's probably one of the most common questions I hear right now.
The short answer is yes. I think this is one of the better buying opportunities we've seen in Southern Utah in several years.

Right now, there are approximately 1,759 active residential listings in Washington County. In July, 344 homes closed. Based on that sales pace, we have roughly 5.1 months of available inventory.
That's a very different market than we experienced a few years ago. Buyers have more homes to choose from, and that gives them negotiating power that we haven't seen for a while.
I've been selling real estate in Southern Utah for more than 20 years, and one of the biggest mistakes I see people make is looking at national housing headlines and assuming that's exactly what's happening here.

Real estate is local, and right now I think there are some really interesting opportunities in our market.

A Recent Deal That Shows What's Happening
We recently helped a buyer purchase a home for approximately $800,000.

The seller had purchased that same property about three years earlier for approximately $1 million.
Our buyer was able to purchase it for roughly $200,000 less than what the seller had paid.
On top of that, we negotiated seller concessions and used those concessions to help buy down our client's interest rate into a great fixed 30 year mortgage.

I think this is a perfect example of what people sometimes miss about today's market.
I hear buyers say all the time that they're going to wait until interest rates come down. I understand the thinking, but the interest rate is only one part of the equation.
The price you pay matters. The terms matter. Seller concessions matter. Your monthly payment matters.

Most importantly, your ability to negotiate matters.
Sometimes getting a great deal today can make a lot more sense than waiting for the perfect interest rate.

Are Home Prices Dropping in St. George?

It really depends on what you're looking at.
There is a big difference between a home that's priced correctly in a desirable neighborhood and an overpriced property that's been sitting on the market.
We're also seeing big differences between price ranges.
I wouldn't describe the entire St. George market as either good or bad. There are too many different things happening at once.

Some properties are holding their value well. Others are seeing significant price reductions.
For buyers, that creates opportunity.

Is St. George a Buyer's Market in 2026?

In many situations, I would say yes.
Buyers simply have more choices today.
With approximately 1,759 residential properties currently available in Washington County and 344 sales closing in July, buyers aren't facing the same level of competition they did a few years ago.
Depending on the property and the seller's situation, we may be able to negotiate the purchase price, closing costs, repairs, rate buydowns or other concessions.
That doesn't mean every seller is desperate or every home is a bargain.
Good homes that are priced correctly can still sell quickly.
The key is finding the opportunities where the numbers work in the buyer's favor.
Should I Buy Now or Wait for Interest Rates to Come Down?
This is probably the question I hear most.

Personally, I wouldn't make a real estate decision based entirely on trying to predict mortgage rates. Nobody knows exactly where rates will be six months or a year from now.
I would look at the bigger picture.
Can you comfortably afford the payment today?
Do you plan on owning the home for several years?
Is it a property you really want?

Can you negotiate a better price or better terms today because there is less competition?
If those things line up, I think there can be some really good buying opportunities right now.
Look at the $800,000 purchase I mentioned earlier. Our buyer got the property for roughly $200,000 less than the seller had paid three years earlier, plus we negotiated concessions and helped buy down the interest rate.

That's why I don't think buyers should look at interest rates by themselves.
If rates eventually come down, refinancing may also be an option. If lower rates bring a lot of buyers back into the market, however, some of the negotiating power buyers have today could disappear.

What About Selling a Home in St. George Right Now?

I don't think this means it's necessarily a bad time to sell. It just means sellers have to be realistic about today's market.
A few years ago you could put almost anything on the MLS and buyers would show up.
That's not the market we're in anymore.
Buyers have choices, so pricing, presentation and marketing really matter.
If you're overpriced from the beginning, you can end up chasing the market down.
The longer a home sits, the more buyers start wondering why it hasn't sold.
That's why I spend so much time looking at what's currently for sale and what's actually going under contract, rather than only looking at what sold six months ago.
What About Luxury Real Estate in St. George?
The luxury market is a different animal.
As prices get higher, the number of buyers gets smaller. That makes pricing and marketing even more important.

You can't look at what's happening with a $500,000 home and assume the same thing is happening with a $2 million, $3 million or $5 million home.
For luxury sellers, I want to know how many comparable homes they're competing against, how many buyers are actually purchasing homes in that price range and how long it could take the current inventory to sell.
Those numbers tell us a lot more than a general headline about the St. George housing market.

Are St. George Home Prices Going to Fall?

Nobody knows for sure, and I don't think it's responsible to pretend we do.
What we do know is what's happening today.
Inventory is higher. Buyers have more choices. Sellers have more competition, and pricing matters a lot more than it did during the housing boom.
That can put pressure on sellers who are priced too high.
At the same time, Southern Utah still has a lot going for it. People continue to move here for the lifestyle, weather, recreation, retirement and overall quality of life.
That's why I think it's more useful to look at the specific neighborhood and price range you're considering instead of trying to make one prediction for all of St. George.
So, Is Now a Good Time to Buy a Home in St. George?
For the right buyer, I think it is.

With approximately 1,759 active residential listings in Washington County and 344 homes closing in July, we're sitting at roughly 5.1 months of inventory based on July's sales pace.
Buyers have choices, and in certain situations we're able to negotiate prices and terms that would have been extremely difficult to get a few years ago.
That doesn't mean every house is a good deal. It means buyers should be paying attention.
The market has changed quite a bit over the last few years, and the strategy that worked in 2021 or 2022 isn't necessarily the strategy that makes sense today.

If you're thinking about buying or selling in St. George or anywhere in Washington County, make sure you're looking at what's actually happening in your specific price range and neighborhood.
Bryan Burnett has been selling real estate in Southern Utah for more than 20 years and works with buyers and sellers throughout St. George and Washington County.