Written by Whetzel Homes Collective | Published October 17, 2026
St. George HOA fees are the regular assessments in that association’s budget. They are not a percent of the price. A reinvestment fee under a covenant recorded on or after May 6, 2026 is capped at 0.5% of value, or 0.25% in a low-amenity association, unless the home is in a large master planned development. On a $650,000 home those caps are $3,250 and $1,625.
The monthly number still comes from the packet for that community. Start your St. George home search once you know which associations apply.
How HOA fees work in Utah
An association assessment is a private charge created by recorded covenants. St. George does not set it. Washington County does not set it. The declaration states who must pay, when it is due, and what the money is for.
Utah splits this into two statutes. Condominiums follow the Condominium Ownership Act, Utah Code Title 57, Chapter 8. Most single-family and townhome associations follow the Community Association Act, Title 57, Chapter 8a. The label on the door matters because the section numbers differ.
Before closing, Utah Code Section 57-8a-105.1 requires the seller to give an independent buyer two things: a copy of the recorded governing documents, and a link to the Utah Department of Commerce HOA materials. Recorded governing documents include the articles, the bylaws, the plat, and the declaration of covenants, conditions, and restrictions. That statutory packet does not, by itself, include the rules or the fee schedule.
The standard Utah Real Estate Purchase Contract asks the seller for more. The Department of Commerce homebuyer checklist says those contract disclosures usually include the rules, the fee schedule, and the design guidelines. Contract terms can be negotiated. Read the deadline in your own contract, and use this guide to Utah REPC due diligence deadlines so the packet arrives while you can still act on it.
You are not an owner yet, so the association’s records duty runs to the seller. Under Section 57-8a-227, a complete written request from a lot owner must be answered within 10 business days. Ask the seller to send that request at the start of due diligence.
How much St. George HOA fees cost
There is no single St. George dues rate. A patio-home association and a resort community can both be legal and still charge different assessments, because each budget is its own. Use the adopted budget and the resale statement for the lot. Do not use a listing average.
Add the pieces that apply to that lot:
| Charge | Where you read it | How to turn it into a yearly number |
|---|---|---|
| Regular assessment | Adopted budget or resale statement | The stated amount times the number of payments in a year |
| Second association, if the lot is in one | Sub-association budget | Same math, kept separate from the master assessment |
| Special assessment already approved | Resale statement | The unpaid balance, on the date the statement gives |
| Reinvestment fee | Covenant and resale statement | Compare it with the cap below if the covenant was recorded on or after May 6, 2026 |
| Administrative setup fee | Resale statement | Allowed on or after May 7, 2025 only for the cost of the transfer |
Source: Utah Code Sections 57-1-46 and 57-8a-105.1, and the Utah Department of Commerce pages on reinvestment fees and homebuyer documents. Accessed October 16, 2026.
The one figure the statute does set is the cap on a reinvestment fee covenant recorded on or after May 6, 2026. Unless the property is in a large master planned development, the fee may not exceed 0.5% of the property’s value. In a low-amenity association the cap is 0.25%. A low-amenity association is detached single-family homes only, with no capital-intensive infrastructure to maintain. The Department of Commerce says routine maintenance, landscaping, signs, and perimeter fencing do not count as that infrastructure.
| Market value | 0.50% cap | 0.25% low-amenity cap |
|---|---|---|
| $450,000 | $2,250 | $1,125 |
| $650,000 | $3,250 | $1,625 |
| $950,000 | $4,750 | $2,375 |
Source: Utah Code Section 57-1-46, effective May 6, 2026. Math is value times 0.005, and value times 0.0025. A large master planned development is outside this cap. A covenant recorded before May 6, 2026 follows its own recorded terms. This table is not a monthly dues quote.
On or after May 6, 2026, an association may impose a reinvestment fee only if the declaration or a reinvestment fee covenant allows it, a majority of the voting interests approve it, and, outside a large master planned development, at least half of the fee goes into reserves. An administrative setup fee charged on or after May 7, 2025 is void unless the association uses it only for transfer expenses. A payoff statement is free unless the declaration, the bylaws, or the rules specifically allow a fee. That rule is Section 57-8a-106.
How to read the CC&Rs
Read the declaration in this order. You are looking for obligations, not for the marketing description of the pool.
What land is covered. The legal description and the plat show the lot, the common area, and any limited common area. A private street that the city does not maintain will show up here or in the budget.
Assessments. This section states the regular charge, the due date, late fees, and the vote required for a special assessment. If the section says the board may set the regular assessment within a stated range, that is the rule. If it requires an owner vote above a stated amount, that vote percentage is the rule.
Use limits. Leasing, parking, exterior changes, animals, and home businesses sit in this part. A city license does not erase a covenant. If you care about nightly rental, read this section beside the city ordinance. The comparison belongs in the St. George HOA nightly rental rules guide.
Design review. Paint, roofs, solar, landscaping, and added living space usually need written approval. The design guidelines may sit outside the recorded declaration. Ask for them with the rules.
Insurance. The declaration assigns the master policy and the owner’s policy. The budget shows the premium the association actually pays. Match that page to your own insurance quote before you waive due diligence.
Amendments. The back of the declaration states the vote required to change it. Rules adopted by the board can change faster than the declaration. Read the last 12 months of minutes for rule changes that the recorded covenant does not yet show.
Then read the bylaws for the board, the meetings, and the quorum. Then read the current budget. The budget is the list of what this year’s fee buys.
Reserves and the risk of a special assessment
Utah Code Section 57-8a-211 tells a community association board to have a reserve analysis at least every six years and to review it at least every three years, unless the governing documents set a different schedule. Condominiums have a parallel rule in Section 57-8-7.5. The analysis lists the parts that will need reserve money, the remaining useful life, the estimated cost, the annual contribution, and a funding plan.
Owners get a summary every year without asking. A lot owner can request the full analysis. The annual budget must include a reserve line at the amount the board finds prudent, or a higher amount if the documents require one. Within 45 days after the budget is adopted, owners can veto that reserve line with a 51% vote of the allocated voting interests at a special meeting called for that vote.
A thin reserve is how a special assessment starts. The HOA reserve study guide walks through the summary line by line. Pair it with the latest budget before you treat the monthly dues as the whole cost.
Two associations, rentals, and age rules
Some master planned communities charge a master assessment and a neighborhood assessment. Ask the question in that form. The resale statement should list every association that can bill the lot. New communities in the St. George area often use this stacked structure. SunRiver and other established communities each have their own documents. The fee on a neighbor’s listing is not your fee.
A 55+ community is lawful when it qualifies under the Housing for Older Persons Act. HUD’s rule for that exemption is that at least 80% of occupied units have one resident who is 55 or older. The declaration states the occupancy rule, the verification the association uses, and any limit on how long a younger guest may stay. Read those sections. Do not assume every age-restricted community uses the same guest limit.
For a home you may rent, read the leasing section, any rental cap, and the minimum lease term. Then confirm the city allows that use. Investing in St. George only works when both the covenant and the city say yes.
What this means in St. George and Washington County
Buyers
Put the assessment into the monthly cost before you write the offer. A $650,000 home in St. George, Washington, or a nearby city can sit in different associations with different budgets. Whetzel Homes Collective can order the packet through the seller and read the assessment, the reserve line, and the leasing section with you.
Buyer-agent pay is negotiable. It is not guaranteed to be paid by the seller. A written buyer-broker agreement is the standard step before we tour. You can start that conversation through VIP Buyer Programs.
Sellers
Order the recorded documents, the rules, the fee schedule, the current budget, and the resale payoff early. Section 57-8a-105.1 makes the recorded set your job before closing. The payoff request goes to the association’s registered contact, with your written consent. If the declaration does not authorize a payoff fee, the association may not charge one.
Investors
Underwrite the assessment you can document, the reserve line, and any rental cap. A resort amenity does not, by itself, make a nightly rental lawful. Retirement and senior living buyers should also read the age-verification rule before counting on visits from family.
Book a no-pressure chat with our St. George team
Frequently asked questions
Does every home in St. George have an HOA fee?
No. A fee exists when the lot is under a recorded declaration that creates an association. Many streets in St. George have no association. The title commitment and the seller disclosures are where you confirm it.
Do HOA fees include property tax or my home insurance?
No. Property tax is billed by Washington County. Your homeowners policy is a separate contract. The association budget may include a master insurance premium for common property, and the declaration says how much of the building that policy covers.
Can I order the CC&Rs myself before I own the home?
You can ask. Until you own the lot, the records statute runs to the current owner. Utah Code Section 57-8a-105.1 requires the seller to give you the recorded governing documents before closing. The practical path during a contract is to have the seller request the packet.
What if the dues on the listing do not match the resale statement?
Use the resale statement and the adopted budget. A listing field can be old. The amount you will owe is the assessment the association confirms for that lot.
What happens next
If you have a lot in mind, we pull the association names from the title work, ask the seller for the budget and the CC&Rs, and walk through the assessment and the reserve line on a short call. You leave with a list of what the fee covers and what it does not. There is no pressure to write an offer.
Book a no-pressure chat with our St. George team, or call (435) 334-1544. More answers are on the FAQ page.
This article is general information based on publicly available data as of October 2026. It isn’t financial, legal, or tax advice, and it isn’t an appraisal. For advice on your situation, talk to a licensed professional. Whetzel Homes Collective.
