Desert Highlands sells few enough homes in a year that the usual tools don’t work here. Automated estimates need volume to calibrate against, and a community this size doesn’t give them enough to work with. Two homes on the same street can trade far apart, and an algorithm reading square footage won’t tell you why.
This page carries the current numbers and, more usefully, the read behind them. Julie and Jeff Jurgenson update it every quarter.
The numbers: 2026 year to date, through June 30
| 2026 YTD | 2025 YTD | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes sold | 23 | 17 | +35% |
| Average sale price | $3,357,565 | $3,222,882 | +4% |
| Average price per square foot | $690 | $773 | -11% |
| Sale price to list price | 92% | 93% | -1 point |
| Active listings | 10 | 10 | flat |
| Average days on market | 131 | 84 | +47 days |
This quarter’s read from Julie and Jeff
Desert Highlands carried real momentum through the first half of 2026. Twenty three homes sold year to date against seventeen over the same stretch last year, and the average sale price rose about 4 percent. Demand inside the gate is healthy.
Price per square foot went the other way, down about 11 percent. That’s mix rather than softness, and it’s the same story we flagged after the first quarter: a larger share of unremodeled homes changed hands compared with fully updated ones. Inventory held steady at 10 active listings, the same as this time last year, so a well prepared home still separates itself.
One number deserves a closer look. Average days on market jumped from 84 to 131. At first glance that reads as a slowdown, and it isn’t. It’s skewed by a handful of listings that sat well over 300 days before going under contract. Set those aside and the typical Desert Highlands home is still selling in roughly 85 days, essentially unchanged from last year. Well priced, well prepared homes are still moving. It’s the exceptions dragging the average up.
The other number worth watching is the one underneath all of it. Homes closed at 92 percent of list, down from 93 percent a year ago. On a home at the average that’s a gap of roughly $292,000 between the asking price and the closing price. Prices are up and volume is up, and sellers are still starting too high.
Why Desert Highlands prices are hard to read from the outside
Three things make this market different from the Scottsdale numbers you’ll see quoted in the news.
The sample is small
With a community of roughly 560 properties, a quarter with four sales and a quarter with nine can look like a market swing when it’s just noise. One unusual sale moves the median. That’s why the year over year comparison above matters more than the quarter over quarter, and why the direction matters more than the number.
Condition varies more than location
Much of the community was built in the 1990s. A home on original finishes and a full remodel sit in the same neighborhood at very different prices. In a newer community, square footage and lot tell you most of what you need. Here, condition can outweigh both.
The club is part of the price
A golf membership is required with a home purchase, so the real cost of buying here includes a number that never appears in the listing price. Comparing a Desert Highlands list price against a community with optional membership isn’t comparing the same thing. Details are on the Desert Highlands Golf Club Membership page.
What buyers here are paying for
Buyers reward three things right now:
- Homes that have been remodeled or redesigned
- City, valley and mountain views
- Golf course views, with a caveat: frontage carries a premium as long as errant golf balls aren’t a problem for that particular lot
What they won’t pay for:
- An unremodeled home priced as though it were finished
- West facing backyards
- Homes with too many levels
That last group is where sellers lose money. Owners tend to price for the home they remember buying, and buyers price for the work they’ll have to do. If you’re weighing a renovation, start by working out what the home is worth finished, which comes down to which tier it sits in.
What this means if you’re selling
Scottsdale runs on a seasonal rhythm and Desert Highlands runs on it harder than most. The practical selling season here is mid January through April, which means a home should be staged and ready to list in early January rather than being prepared in January to list in February.
Miss that window and you’re either selling into a thinner buyer pool or waiting out the summer.
What this means if you’re buying
Inventory drives everything here. When the count is low, sellers hold the leverage, and the homes that sit are usually sitting on price rather than on condition or location.
Read the sale to list ratio before you assume you have no room. Homes here have been closing under list, which means the asking price is an opening position more often than it’s a final one.
Some homes trade off market and never appear in the listing count at all. Expect to pay a premium for those. Quiet doesn’t mean cheaper. For what each home type and price tier actually gets you, start with homes in Desert Highlands by price tier.
And remember the club sits on top of whatever price you agree. How that works, and what it costs, is set out in full on the membership page.
For off market inventory, and for pricing trends broken out by home type and condition, call Julie or Jeff. They track Custom Estates, Hillside Villas and The Heights separately, and each one by whether the home is unremodeled, remodeled or redesigned.
Get the full Desert Highlands market update
Julie and Jeff send a detailed Desert Highlands market report each quarter, with sales by price band, days on market and the read behind the numbers. It goes to owners and to buyers watching the community.
Or call and they’ll send it to you. Julie 480.296.6388. Jeff 480.848.4826.
Why owners call Julie and Jeff for this
Julie and Jeff Jurgenson work every file together. Jeff handles strategy, negotiation and contract detail. Julie leads the client relationship and the golf community side. Both of them live in Desert Highlands.
In a community that sells roughly 35 homes a year, the value isn’t in pulling a number off a website. It’s in knowing which of those sales is comparable to yours and why the other ones aren’t.
Talk to Julie and Jeff about your home
Julie Jurgenson: 480.296.6388
Jeff Jurgenson: 480.848.4826
The Jurgenson Team, eXp Realty. 20551 N Pima Road, Suite 185, Scottsdale, AZ 85255.
Not intended as a solicitation if you are currently working with a real estate agent.
