About The Palm Springs Area
Click to play "Destination Palm Springs" Video (4:22)If you've never visited the desert, or haven't visited it for many years you may just call the area Palm Springs. Actually, Palm Springs is only the western most city of The Coachella Valley. The Valley also includes the cities of:
- La Quinta Overview
- Rancho Mirage
- Palm Desert Overview
- Palm Springs Overview
- Indian Wells Overview
- Indio Overview
- Cathedral City Overview
Each city offers community features that appeal to both seasonal and year round residents.
Palm Springs Area Real Estate
The Valley has many popular resort style communities. Many offer world-class golf (over 150 golf courses and country clubs), tennis, fitness facilities, social activities and more. With lots of great choices you'll want to spend some time thinking about what is most important to you and what you really want in a community. Define the kind of lifestyle you desire and the important features you want in your new desert home. You might start by viewing our Desert Real Estate Community Profiles.
Early development in the Valley was centered in the Palm Springs area and then spread eastward. In general you'll find most newer communities and homes in the La Quinta area which is forecast to be the upcoming center of the Valley. City demographics also peg La Quinta, Palm Desert and Indio as three of the youngest cities in the desert. Palms Springs has seen a lot of redevelopment over the last decade, led to a large extent by Palm Springs gay community, which is the largest per capita in the United States.
Golf Community Or
Or Non-Golf Community?
Not everyone wants to live within a golf community or country club. There are many wonderful non-golf communities that offer other options and amenities, yet are in proximity to golf courses or country clubs. Keep in mind, also, that many country clubs offer social (dining, spa and club house privileges) and/or sports (tennis and/or fitness) memberships for non-golfers.
New Home Or Resale?
In terms of value in today's market, re-sale homes and condos generally present the best real estate opportunities. If however you are considering a newly constructed home keep in mind that we can assist you with any onsite sales office. It costs you nothing and you get the added benefit of extensive and unbiased local real estate knowledge. We can also assist you in comparing recent market values, and in today's buyers market everything is negotiable, and not everyone pays the same price. To take advantage of this value added service we simply must accompany you on your first visit to the new home community.
Palm Springs Area Property Taxes
Annual property taxes in Riverside County are set at a rate of 1.25% of the appraised value of the property. The new appraised value will be set at your purchase price, even if the previous value was higher. Annual property taxes are divided into two payments and paid semi-annually (due 12/10 & 4/10). If you are purchasing a property via a loan you can request that your lender add the property taxes to your loan amount each month (called impounding taxes) with the lender then paying the property taxes for you twice annually. You can also pay your property taxes on line via this link to the Riverside County Property Tax Portal.
Some communities in the desert may also add a supplemental tax called Mello-Roos which funds new infrastructure for the communities. Your Realtor can tell you if a property is located in a Mello-Roos area.
May 16, 2012 | Sheri Dettman 