If you own or rent in St. George, Hurricane, Washington City, or Ivins, fall is when winter visitors, relocating households, and year-round tenants compete for the same units. Here is a plain-English read of the St. George rental market as of mid-October 2026, using publicly published rent and Fair Market Rent data.
Where asking rents sit right now
According to Zillow Rentals market trends for Saint George, UT (last updated October 13, 2026), the average rent across all bedrooms and property types is $1,895 per month. That figure is flat month over month and $55 lower than a year ago. Zillow counted 324 available rentals at the time of that update, and put St. George about 5% below the national average rent of $2,000.
By bedroom size, the same Zillow snapshot shows:
- Studio: about $1,025
- 1-bedroom: about $1,250
- 2-bedroom: about $1,500
- 3-bedroom: about $1,900
- 4-bedroom: about $2,495
Those are asking-rent averages from listed inventory, not closed lease averages. Individual neighborhoods, HOA fees, utilities, and short-term vs. long-term use still move the needle a lot.
How that compares with HUD Fair Market Rents
HUD publishes Fair Market Rents (FMRs) each federal fiscal year for Housing Choice Voucher and related programs. For the St. George, UT MSA (Washington County), FY 2026 FMRs are:
- Studio: $1,210
- 1-bedroom: $1,218
- 2-bedroom: $1,575
- 3-bedroom: $2,072
- 4-bedroom: $2,624
Those figures come from HUD’s FY 2026 FMR publication (effective for the fiscal year that began October 1, 2025). You can review the official notice and datasets on the Federal Register FY 2026 FMR notice and HUD USER’s FMR data page.
FMRs are a program benchmark, not a guarantee of what a specific street will lease for. Still, they are a useful gut-check when you are setting rents, underwriting a purchase, or talking with a voucher household.
What this means for St. George landlords
A market that is roughly flat to slightly softer year over year usually rewards turn readiness and pricing discipline more than aggressive rent pushes:
- Price to the unit, not the headline. A clean 2-bedroom near employment corridors can still clear faster at a realistic ask than a tired unit priced off last year’s peak.
- Watch days vacant. With hundreds of active listings in the metro, a week of extra vacancy can erase a small rent bump.
- Document condition at move-in and move-out. Soft markets do not change Utah deposit rules, and clear photos still prevent most disputes.
- Decide short-term vs. long-term deliberately. Southern Utah’s visitor demand is real, but so are HOA rules, insurance, and city permitting. Pick one strategy and underwrite it honestly.
What this means for renters
If you are shopping this fall:
- Use the bedroom averages above as a starting range, then filter for utilities, parking, and commute.
- Tour quickly when a unit fits. Soft averages do not mean every good listing sits for weeks.
- Ask what is included (water, trash, internet, yard care) before you compare two rents that look similar on paper.
- If you use a housing voucher, confirm the local payment standard with the housing authority. Payment standards are set as a percentage of FMR and can differ from the raw FMR table.
Bottom line for Washington County
As of mid-October 2026, St. George’s published asking rents are a little below last year, inventory is active, and HUD’s FY 2026 2-bedroom FMR for the metro sits at $1,575. Landlords who keep units show-ready and priced to today’s comps, and renters who move fast on well-matched listings, are both playing the market as it is, not as it was two summers ago.
Axiom Property Management works with owners and renters across St. George and the broader Southern Utah market. If you want a local read on a specific property or neighborhood, reach out to the St. George team.
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