When it comes to sleeping during the music festival..watch out! Any idea is a good idea. Everyone’s renting out their homes or their bedrooms, or whatever they can come up with. Then there are the temporary accomadations right at the fields! These “sleeping tipis” are all the rage. Rows and rows of white tipis with colorful extra large tipis for the Executives. Check it out…
coachella music festival sleeping tipis
Luxury sleeping at the Coachella Music Festival
Bank of America; short sale lemon
Just read an article in the New York Times called Banks Always Win. How serendipitous when I am encountering that very thing with my now year long Short Sale with B of A. I have been writing of this journey because it is so unbelievable to me and the Sellers, that it deserves the written word.
When you see a Short Sale listing that has been sitting for hundreds of days and the List Price keeps going up, then back down, it’s because the appraisal came in too high, the Investors believed it, and their counter was so far over what the property is worth that the Buyer walks, shaking their head in disgust. Does B of A really think that because they have a higher value in their little pea brain it is the Reality of the homes’s value? Buyers set the value you ding dongs. It’s called a Buyers’ Market for a reason. Your property is worth what a Buyer will pay..period!
First appraisl one year ago (4/15 marks 365 days with this listing and four qualified buyers). Anyway, first appraisal comes in at $980,000. At that time, I tried to convince them that my offer of $850,000 was fair. No offers came in until the List Price had been reduced to that number from my original list price of $1,050,000. Buyer of course walks.
I raised the LP to $980,000 and began reductions. Again..no offers until I hit $850,000. B of A counters at $980,000 again. Buyer #2 walks.
I get Buyer #3 at $850,000. B of A does a new appraisal. Must’ve been closer because they counter at $865,000. Buyer accepts with a conventional loan. Lender appraises the house at $825,000. Buyer #3 walks.
I List the home at $865,000..the “approved B of A price” per the approval letter which was set for a March 15,2012 close. I get an offer of $865,000 and this time I call the Lender. Local woman and she guarantees that she will fund this loan. OK..I submit the offer. Darned if the B of A negotiator doesn’t tell me “this file is aged,” so we close and re-open it once again. New appraisal is ordered. Yippee! Surely, this time it will come in at $865,000! Not so fast…
This appraiser has decided that over the past year, the home has gone up in value to..drumroll..$1,050,000!!! Hey, wasn’t that my original List Price? Why yes it was! Sure wish I could get them that number and make more money. I get the file escalated and send in the ONLY THREE COMPS that have SOLD in this SAME NEIGHBORHOOD over the past 6 months. All support this offer..maybe a little less in fact. I’m sure this time they are going to approve this offer. But no…
B of A in their wisdom, have countered at $925,000. Now, if this home was EVER worth $925,000 we would have already received an offer at that number. Well, they say..your 3 comps are very close indeed, but the comps our appraiser sent us are higher and we are choosing to use those. REALLY???? Why go outside the exact gated community for comps? Across the freeway puts you closer to the beach..values are different. A neighboring community is valued higher because of the builder.
Did B of A hand our a booklet for their appraisers that changes the rules? Since when does using DIRECT sold comps not hold any merit? I thought the BEST comps were what give you true value for that home in that neighborhood.
Oh, the best thing. I just received my first back up offer. Agent says his clients don’t see the value of $865,000 because another Short Sale just closed in the community a couple months ago for $850,000, so they are offering $815,000 since values are declining.
Who wants to take bets that B of A runs off my Buyer #4 at $865,000 and ends up with at least $50,000 LESS when they do finally accept an offer. Hee-hee..why the banksters continue to decimate property values…
Thermal is the site for future development of a high end country club and racetrack for wealthy car lovers. What a score for this Desert community located on the east end of the Palm Springs Valley !!! Developers planned to break ground today on this exciting project that’s been in the making for years.
Coined as the “Rich Man’s Playground,” the Thermal Club’s developers claim they will succeed because there just aren’t many other places like this in the entire world – even though economic times are tough around the globe. A project of this type is not a new idea in our desert, there has been talk of building something like it here since the late 1980s.
The race course has been in the design stages for the past two years by Alan Wilson, a well-known track designer out of Salt Lake City. It will feature 3 independent circuits with the flexibility of running 19 different configurations.
Discovery Land Company is the Scottsdale based development company which is handling development, sales and operations at the club. They also developed The Madison Club and The Hideaway luxury country clubs in La Quinta. Memberships to the non-equity private club start at $85,000, corporate memberships of $200,000 include up to 4 designees. Club members must purchase lots starting at $200,000.
Approximately 40 people have joined the Thermal Club so far, most of them having homes in the Palm Springs Valley, Los Angeles, Orange County and San Diego. Some members are from Texas, New York and Montana.
The Thermal Club project is expected to generate hundreds of jobs locally in construction, with about 60 permanent positions. What a boon for our desert here and for the city of Thermal !!! It will be exciting to see how this project develops !!!
Who's paying for the view??
Who’s buying the really BIG properties..big prices and big locations? The Russians according to the New York Times. This specifically talks about New York, but it made me wonder…will they be heading here to the Palm Springs Valley any time soon?
Some of our most luxurious high end properties are on golf courses. Of course, they could BE golf courses. Porcupine Creek just sold. Escena and Palm Desert CC both sold to development companies that are now re-habbing them and building the properties out. Then there are the luxury golf developments of Bighorn in South Palm Desert. If you want a more rural surrounding, The Madison Club in La Quinta might be the one for you. Indian Wells, located centrally in our Valley offers several exclusive clubs..The Vintage is one of them. There are some glorious properties in downtown Palm Springs that just might ring your Russian Bell..
Luxury property sales here in our Valley have continued to record higher and more frequent sales through the first quarter of 2012. These sales are expected to continue through the year and into next year. Great values can be had in these higher end properties now that their List Prices are more reflective of the market.
If you’re looking for luxury..now could be the time.
Cities have Birthdays too !!! Happy Birthday, La Quinta !!!
This beautiful springtime month will bring celebration of the City of La Quinta’s 30 years of incorporation. For being such a relatively “young” city, La Quinta is surely rich with culture and its own unique history.
La Quinta invites everyone to join in as they celebrate this special occasion during their annual City Picnic & Birthday Party which is taking place on Saturday, April 28.
The party starts at 10am at the Fritz Burns Park, corner of Calle Sinaloa (Ave. 52) and Avenida Bermudas. It will be a fun family event with lots of entertainment – activities for children, hot dogs, muffins, cold drinks and giveaways !!! You won’t want to miss it . . . and it’s FREE !!!
Don’t miss La Quinta’s Birthday bash, put it on your calendar now !!! For more info, call 760-777-7090 or visit www.la-quinta.org/communityservices
Diamond in the rough???
Real Estate Investors are not a new thing. Investors buying LOTS of homes, however, may be. This New York Times article points out the surprising numbers of homes being purchased for Lease homes and Flipping..it’s predicted to continue to grow. Here in the Palm Springs Valley, I am seeing more and more Investors-both local and from afar-purchasing vacant or distressed properties.
What are they doing with the homes? Two things..
1. Minimum clean up. Meaning cosmetic clean up to get the home prepared to lease. The return on their investment money is much higher than parking the money in a bank, buying bonds and deemed to be less risky than the Stock Market.
2. Maximum clean up. Buying homes that REALLY need some help. Roofs, knocking down walls, adding a bathroom, updating a kitchen. These homes are then being sold. Flipping has lower long term margins, but if done correctly, can return a quicker profit to the Investor.
The key to success is having the right people in place. Realtors that KNOW the area. Scouters that can find these Realtors. Software in place to estimate repair costs and after repair values. Realtors that can re-sell the property. Is this a new Trend? Yes, I think it is. In our Valley, there are many areas that invite investors to help reduce the blight and move inventory. Both good for our Valley.
That extra income is tempting...
Many of my clients, friends and acquaintances rent their homes and even rooms in their homes during the Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival. Now that it’s almost 3 weeks long-including the Stagecoach Festival-there is some Cash to be made. There are a few things to beware of however..namely, your Homeowner’s Insurance. Do you have it at all? If not..get it!
Homeowner’s insurance covers owner occupied structuers, your personal property such as furniture, TV’s, clothes, personal liability for lawsuits and medical bills resulting from injuries sustained on your property. But..if you do decide to rent your property for a weekend or week or whatever..check into two things.
1. Is there a bed tax? Check your City Rules with regards to short term rentals.
2. Purchase a Short Term Vacation Rental Policy. (NOT the same thing as a Landlords’ Policy which is for long-term leases)
Renting for short term has different insurance requirements than if you were to have a long term rental..normally over 6 months defines long term. Long term leases do not have as high risks as short terms. Why? Because when you rent long term, you normally supply minimal appliances and furnishings. When you rent the home you are living in, or your vacation home, it usually has lots of furnishings and personal items with it.
Be sure to check with your Insurance Agent BEFORE you rent!
Last week was the first week that I received this comment from potential La Quinta home buyers..not once, but twice. Is that ubiquitous bottom, behind us?
I have no way to know for sure if we are at the bottom..in any price point. If you run into a Realtor that swears they DO know..I would suggest running. We Realtors are out in the streets daily, looking at homes, studying the inventory of available homes, looking at numbers of foreclosures that may be coming down the pike. We do have a better feel for the “bottom” than the average bear, but we do NOT have a crystal ball that predicts the future. So..are we at the bottom?
In many developments in La Quinta, Indian Wells, Rancho Mirage and Palm Desert..as well as Palm Springs proper, it appears we may be. Why? There are more Buyers looking for the same properties than there are those properties. What is everyone looking for in the desert?
So..as you can surmise. If you are a buyer looking for a home with 3 of the 5 criteria above, your Inventory is very limited..no matter the price point. However, there are plenty of homes WITH the above mentioned criteria. They just are no longer only selling if they are short sales or foreclosures. Equity homes (standard sales) are now becoming more and more normal.
Buyers are still demanding a good value, just not a “steal.” The Steals are now much fewer and further in between. But, hey, look at it this way. Now you KNOW you are buying into a desirable area, right? There is nothing more comforting when you buy ANYTHING than knowing that lots of other Buyers desire exactly the same thing. Value is rising.
Views, location, sun..Buyers are paying for these!
If you’re a La Quinta “Covian,” or even if you’re not, you may very well have never heard of or noticed this amazing little enclave of luxury homes located west of South La Quinta’s Yucatan Cove on Avenida Montezuma. Tucked into a corner of the cove and nestled up right next to the breathtaking Santa Rosa Mountains, these 19 custom estate residences form the community called Flores De Montanas.
Flores De Montanas is exclusive and gated for utmost privacy. These multi-million dollar estates are situated on a 9 prime acres of La Quinta Cove, with access to the 4.75 mile hiking path that starts on the corner of Eisenhower and Calle Tampico and travels south toward the Fred Wolff Nature Preserve and the Cove Oasis Trailhead. Where else in the valley can you find a hiking/biking trail practically at your back doorstep?
Located in the heart of La Quinta near Old Town, you can walk or ride your bike to its wonderful shops, restaurants, Coffee Shop, Farmers Market and Art Festivals . . . and the same with the La Quinta Resort & Hotel located just down the street on Eisenhower Dr.
Flores De Montanas is a great place to live for anyone wanting to live in one of the most exclusive, small and private developments in La Quinta. If you’re looking to build your desert dream home, the “Covian” lifestyle may just be the perfect fit for you.
Eldorado merges with Golden Voice
If you thought the Coachella Valley Music & Art Festival could not get any bigger, think again. Golden Voice, which operates the Festival, has just partnered with the Lake Farm owners of Eldorado Polo Club in it’s quest to increase the holdings for the Festival here in the Coachella Valley. Eldorado Polo Club sits on some of the most desirable acreage in the Valley and consists of 13 polo fields, a clubhouse, Cantina/restaurant and acres of stalls and corrals.
It’s not clear if Golden Voice actually purchased the polo club, but that may be the case. They are promising Polo as it’s always gone on..but better. During the festival, the fields will be converted into parking, tent cities and all the other things a music festival of this magnitude requires. The Coachella Music & Arts Festival is heading into it’s 12th year of continued growth and success. Now running for 2 weeks, including the ever growing Stagecoach Festival of Country Music greats, this recent purchase ensures the Music Festivals presence in the Valley for years to come…and sounds like the continued presence of the famous polo club and all the revenue the players/grooms/families and their ponies bring to the East Valley.
If you are thinking of buying a home in Indio or the East Valley..now may be much better than later.
