Where it is and getting around
Desert Color is a master-planned community of roughly 3,350 acres on the far southeast edge of St. George. It sits east of I-15 along the Southern Parkway, reached from Exit 2, and reaches toward the Utah–Arizona line. Building started around 2019, and new phases open often. A second St. George Costco opened on Desert Color Parkway in March 2026, and more shops and dining near Exit 2 are still filling in.
| Destination | Approx. drive |
|---|---|
| I-15 on-ramp (Exit 2) | about 3 min |
| Arizona state line | about 5 min |
| St. George Regional Airport (SGU) | 10–15 min |
| Historic downtown | about 13 min |
| St. George Regional Hospital | about 15 min |
| Sand Hollow State Park | about 25 min |
| Zion National Park | about 50 min |
Drive times are rough estimates in normal traffic and vary by street.
Homes you’ll find
Nearly everything here is new construction from 2019 on, built by a dozen or more builders across separate villages:
- The Shores: the resort area around the lagoon, with single-family homes, townhomes, and condos.
- Auburn Hills and Sage Haven: detached single-family villages.
- Regency at Desert Color: a gated, age-restricted (55+) community by Toll Brothers.
- Ironwood Flats: homes and townhomes near the trails along the Arizona border.
- Atara: a Marriott Autograph Collection resort with for-sale residences.
Recent sales have run from below the citywide median to the top of the market, depending on the village and home type. For reference, the citywide single-family median sale price was $563,500 in September 2026 (see the full report).
Parks, trails, and amenities
- The lagoon: about 2.5 acres of swimmable water with a white-sand shoreline, the community’s centerpiece.
- Parks and trails wind through the villages and reach the open desert near Lizard Wash.
- Airport access: SGU sits on the same southeast mesa.
Short-term rental note
The city’s approved list includes “Desert Color (Resort ONLY)”, meaning the resort portion and not the residential villages. Marketing for lagoon-front homes often mentions nightly rentals, but confirm the exact plat with the city and read the CC&Rs before counting on rental income.
St. George allows nightly (short-term) rentals only in commercial zones, in developments named on the city’s approved short-term rental list, or on a single-family lot of two acres or more that fronts a major collector or arterial street and sits at least 500 feet from another short-term rental. Every short-term rental also needs a city business license. Always confirm a specific parcel with the city before buying with rental income in mind. See the full short-term rental guide →
Before you buy here
- The village and builder decide the home type, HOA dues, and rental rules. Compare them side by side.
- New phases nearby compete with resale homes, so look at builder incentives too.
- School boundaries here are changing as the area grows. Check any address with the Washington County School District boundary tool.
- MovingUtah: Living in Desert Color (acreage, villages, builders, lagoon, drive-time estimates, recent sale range)
- MovingUtah: Moving to St. George (Costco on Desert Color Parkway opened March 2026)
- City of St. George, Approved Short Term Rental Properties list (linked from the city’s Business Licensing page; secondary sources date it June 4, 2026)
- St. George City Code §10-17A-13 (single-family short-term rental standards) and Title 3, Ch. 2, Art. V (business license and transient room tax)
- Scott Buehler, St. George Housing Market Report, September 2026 (Washington County Board of REALTORS® MLS data, St. George single-family, closed sales 9/1–9/30/2026)