St. Helena
The luxury tier expanded hard, and buyers are taking their time doing it.
What the numbers
actually say.
St. Helena and Yountville are reported together, and in the second quarter they moved sharply up: the median reached $2.14M, 30% higher than a year earlier, on 21 closed sales, while $2M+ sales roughly doubled and supply fell by 40%. Days on market rose too, to an average of 74. A rising median with longer marketing times is the signature of a top tier being bid by patient, well-capitalized buyers, and in a market this small a handful of trophy sales can swing the number.
Source: The Wine Country Index™, Q3 · 2026 edition: C.A.R. county data for August 2026 and Sotheby’s International Realty submarket reports for Q1–Q2 2026. Figures are directional; verify comparables before decisions.
Strength at the top is not strength everywhere. With only about 21 sales a quarter, your comparable set has to be built, not looked up, and your launch price should reflect the buyer pool for your segment rather than a median lifted by a few estates.
Longer marketing times give you room to diligence properly. I track original list price and true exposure on every comparable, so you know which listings are priced to the new top and which are borrowing from it.
Living in St. Helena.
St. Helena is the classic Napa Valley town — Main Street, the historic stone buildings, and walking distance to some of the valley's most established restaurants and tasting rooms. Buyers here are typically choosing the address and the school district as much as the house, and holding periods run long.
The numbers beneath
the county median.
A free, block-level read of the Wine Country luxury market, published every quarter: pricing, days on market, absorption, and the insurance squeeze now deciding deals. Seven pages. Useful whether or not we ever work together.
