Choosing the La Quinta Community that best suits you is absolutely critical! Whether you are looking for a year round home, a vacation property, or a potential Lease property, it is imperative that you are comfortable with the Community you settle in. It’s not just about the house..though that IS important. A great house in an area that does not “feel” good to you and your family, looses some of it’s sparkle very quickly.
Here in the Palm Springs Valley, there are 9 very different cities to choose between. The West side cities of Palm Springs & Cathedral City, blend into our Centrally located cities of Rancho Mirage, Palm Desert and Indian Wells, which bleed into our more Easterly cities of La Quinta, Indio, Coachella and Thermal. Once you’ve settled on a city, then you need to think about your activities. Do you golf, ride, hike, swim, shop, go out to eat alot? That will help narrow it down to areas within that city. Then you need to decide whether a gated community is more suitable to your needs. Then it comes down to the amount of sun you want on your yard considering the months you’ll be here.
Then you’ll want to look for the best VALUE to YOU within your budget. This is where a LOCAL PROFESSIONAL comes in handy!
Our Desert Area offers a myriad of “Things to Do”. Even in the summer, with our triple digit heat, there are plenty of things to do. This fun facebook page, “365 Things To Do in the Palm Springs Valley.” always offers up some fun activities..both day time and evening!
La Quinta has a charming shopping center in Old Town, which is located very near to the La Quinta Spa & Resort, Duna La Quinta, The Citrus, Haciendas, Santa Rosa Cove, the La Quinta Cove, and all the surrounding areas. Offering several different dining options including Solano’s for American cuisine, Vue (formerly The Wine Bar), and also the always entertaining The Grill on Main Street.
The summer is always a great time to shop for property in our Palm Springs Valley. Sellers that really want to sell tend to leave their properties For Sale during our hot months. Buyers that brave the heat are usually pretty serious about buying in the desert. El Paseo in Palm Desert rocks the entire summer with it’s shops and restaurants. The River is the mall of choice and offers a 16 screen theatre too! Palm Springs has Pool parties regularly at it’s many family friendly Hotels..The Ace, The Hacienda Hotel and the Saguaro all participate. Take a stroll in the Village when it’s NOT season, and get to know the owners of the boutique shopping stores. Modernism is rampant in Palm Springs.
Many golf options available to La Quinta residents
Whether you’re looking for a Golf Course home, a Non-golf course home, or Land or Equestrian Property, the summer is always a good time to “get your feet wet” and start viewing what’s out there.
What makes the Norman Estates at PGA West in La Quinta different than other golf course communities? There are several unique characteristics of this small, friendly, “neighborhood within a community.” Greg Norman designed the community as well as the Norman course that flows around it. The Norman course is the only desert style golf course at PGA West, and now with the drought, we can see that it was ahead of it’s time! There is also a friendly “Australian style” clubhouse, that is warm and friendly.
Each course at PGA West is gated, with 24 hour monitoring. The Norman Estates at PGA West, has a second, pass code protected gate within the PGA West entry gate, creating a really private community. There are only 58 semi-custom homes at Norman Estates. The neighborhood is Tuscan inspired, lots are very large for golf course homes, (smallest is 14,000+ sf.), and there are several exterior elevations, helping to create a varied look from home to home.
I was the original onsite Sales Manager, when these homes were built in 2005-2006, and know each home on each lot intimately! Take the video below to see just one example of the homes at Norman Estates, PGA West. Streets are wide, mature trees offer shady walking, neighbors are friendly and the feeling is one of a true neighborhood at the Norman Estates in PGA West in La Quinta, California. HOA is approx. $550/month and home prices range from approx. $975,000 – approx. $1,500,000.
La Quinta, California is one of our centrally located Palm Springs Valley cities. Buyers looking to be a little further from the downtown Palm Springs activities, but near to the Central desert Valley shopping, as well as the more open areas often gravitate towards La Quinta. La Quinta offers a wide variety of both Gated and non-gated housing options, as well as Golf Course communities such as The Tradition, The Citrus, The Hideaway, Madison Club and Mountain View Country Club to name a few.
Now that the Loan standards have loosened up enough to allow conventional, refinances, VA Loans, and FHA options, buyers always want to know, “How much Cash do I need to close?” Take a minute to watch the very short video below as it helps to break down that question for you…
The famous La Quinta Resort & Spa in La Quinta, California truly is world renowned. The City of La Quinta, the “Gem of the Desert”, is one of the only cities that can claim to have gotten it’s name from a Hotel! Many of my desert buyers request to tour and write offers on the surrounding housing communities because they LOVE living near the Hotel and it’s many amenities.
There are many communities to choose between if you wish to be near the La Quinta Hotel. Many buyers choose to live within the Hotel community itself! They might be interested in the La Quinta Spa Villas, the Tennis Villas, Santa Rosa Cove, and just next door is the Legacy Villas. Legacy Villas and also the Spa Villas are lock and leave condos, which also rent very well as luxury lease units.
The Golf course communities include The Citrus, The La Quinta Country Club, Haciendas and La Quinta Fairways. A short mile away are several more golf course communities.
Here in the Palm Springs Valley, equestrian properties are really starting to move. That’s good news for my Land and Equestrian Property Listings, but can a potential buyer obtain a Loan? Realtors that deal in Land, and Equestrian Properties, know that obtaining loans for vacant Land is pretty close to impossible. Why would a lender lend money on something that is difficult to appraise, and doesn’t have anything of tangible value on it?
Equestrian Properties, however, often have homes, barns, and a variety of other amenities. Loans ARE available here in the Local area. I just closed on a 5 acre equestrian property and the new Buyers obtained a Conventional Loan. They did, however, take my advice and got their loan with a LOCAL Lender! Listen to the video here, to get some ideas about “choosing Lenders.”
Though Loans are available, the Lenders will be sticky about the appraisal, and must understand area values. If you don’t go with a Local Lender, it may be much more difficult to get financing on your Equestrian property.
La Quinta, California offers a plethora of choices and opportunities when it comes to buying a property. You need to decide many things as you move toward a home purchase. Are you going to be a year round resident, vacation home owner, or Investment Property owner? Do you want Golf Facilities, Equestrian Facilities, Swim facilities..what do you like to do? Then there is always the issue of financing.
What steps do you need to undertake to obtain a Loan? This short video will help you with this one..Once you have your financing in place, another important aspect to buying a home in La Quinta, is “do I want a Golf course, gated, La Quinta Community?” What do you get for your monthly HOA (Homeowners payments?) Will you use these amenities? Move slowly and thoughtfully toward your home purchase, and use a local Realtor that understands the Local market trends and areas.
Where are the Prettiest Neighborhoods in Indio, Ca. located? In my opinion, that would be On or right next to Avenue 49. This quiet, two-lane street is the East/West connector between Jefferson St. to the West and Monroe St. to the East. If you are “getting ready” to buy a property in our beautiful desert valley, be sure to watch the short Video below, and don’t overlook this quiet, GORGEOUS, area of our East Valley. There are several gated, non-golf course communities including Desert River Estates, The Orchard, Montage at Santa Rosa and Estacio for Resale homes. There are also two NEW HOME developments on Madison St./49th, which are called Madison Estates and Stonegate. Welcome to the beautiful West Indio area of classy, beautiful homes on 49th!!
Loans are tougher to qualify for today-that’s a fact. But compared to what?? If you’re looking for a home in La Quinta or one of the other Palm Springs Valley cities, do NOT despair. Requirements are tighter than they were during the craziness of the “100%, no doc Loan days in 2004-2006”, but that’s a GOOD thing! We all know how that turned out.
Had a Foreclosure or Short sale? It may not be as tough as you imagine to get another Loan, and purchase a property. Down Payment Resource (DPR), is looking to educate potential buyers about hard to find financial resources and programs that may be available to them. DPR allows prospective buyers to mine the company’s national database of 2,300 different programs in their local areas to find different loan sources. There could be grants, federal housing programs, delayed repayment loans, Interest free loans and more.
Foreclosures and Short Sales in your background does not necessarily mean there are no loans available to you. If you have re-established yourself, you may qualify for one of these programs.
If you are thinking of buying or selling here in the Palm Springs Valley, it could be a great time to look into your options!
I had the privilege of representing BOTH the Seller on this tranquil Equestrian Estate in Vista Santa Rosa, California, and also the Buyers. Located right by the border of La Quinta, this particular area is fast becoming known as “The Rodeo Drive of Horse Property!” 82480 Avenue 54 is fondly known as THE MANSION ON 54TH. Originally designed and built by Tennis Legend, Vic Braden, this 5 acre Estate rests behind entry gates, that open to a private road. The road circles by the Pond in the front of the main house, which is where the Canal water is held before it’s used for irrigation.
The estate is zoned for horses, but Mr. Braden chose to use it as his desert Tennis Retreat. The Tennis court has since been covered up as the current owner has chosen to surround the elevated home site with lush grass, citrus trees, and desert flora. The property is completely fenced, and has a back up source of water in it’s private well.
I had this amazing property listed for only 7 days before I brought the Seller the Perfect Buyers, and we opened Escrow. As I told this seller when I took this listing..I have BUYERS for specific Equestrian properties, and also Vacant Land. If you are looking to buy or sell your Equestrian property, vacant land, investment land, or farm land, give me a call. Consultations are FREE, and no pressure. Sometimes, we just want to see what our property is worth..760-285-3578
Choosing the La Quinta Community that best suits you is absolutely critical! Whether you are looking for a year round home, a vacation property, or a potential Lease property, it is imperative that you are comfortable with the Community you settle in. It’s not just about the house..though that IS important. A great house in an area that does not “feel” good to you and your family, looses some of it’s sparkle very quickly. 
