La Quinta, Rancho Mirage, Palm Desert...? (Orange, Indio: for sale, real estate, HOA fees)

[Roma]

Hi,

I've been looking at homes on the internet in these areas and more for curiosity to see "what you get for your money". I've been looking at homes in our price range on a golf course. There seems to be a wide selection to choose from but I know nothing about the area.

Of these and other areas in the desert Palm Springs area, What is the best? I know they probably are very similar but was is the differences?

I saw this home in La Quinta on the golf course but is La Quinta kinda far from shopping, doctors (hospitals) and stuff, compared to the other cities in the area? Safe?

What's the most upscale of these communities in general?

I also noticed that a lot of these homes have a "casita". Is this pretty much the norm in the Palm Springs area?

Heritage Golf course, Is that a nice golf course in the area?

Is there a good breast cancer center in the Palm Springs area?

How far is this area to Orange County along the coast?


Thanks!

[Twinkle Toes]

Originally Posted by Roma

Hi,

I've been looking at homes on the internet in these areas and more for curiosity to see "what you get for your money". I've been looking at homes in our price range on a golf course. There seems to be a wide selection to choose from but I know nothing about the area.

Of these and other areas in the desert Palm Springs area, What is the best? I know they probably are very similar but was is the differences?

I saw this home in La Quinta on the golf course but is La Quinta kinda far from shopping, doctors (hospitals) and stuff, compared to the other cities in the area? Safe?

What's the most upscale of these communities in general?

I also noticed that a lot of these homes have a "casita". Is this pretty much the norm in the Palm Springs area?

Heritage Golf course, Is that a nice golf course in the area?

Is there a good breast cancer center in the Palm Springs area?

How far is this area to Orange County along the coast?


Thanks!

Eye yey yey, where to start! LOL

Yes, the areas are very similar. You will want to stick to Palm Desert, La Quinta, Rancho Mirage and Indian Wells. You will want to avoid Desert Hot Springs, Cathedral City, Indio, much of Palm Springs and anything way out there in the Salton Sea area. As far as which city of the four I've mentioned is most prestigious, it all depends on what is important to you. Palm Desert is the shopping hub in the area, having the Westfield Mall and El Paseo. There are also a number of prestigious clubs in Palm Desert - Bighorn, The Vintage, just to name a couple.

La Quinta is where all the new stuff is being built. La Quinta is prestigious as well, having numerous upscale clubs such as The Quarry, The Reserve, Andalusia, The Hideaway, etc.

Indian Wells is just prestigious because it is the wealthiest city in the Coachella Valley. There are not really many shops or restaurants in Indian Wells, mainly just housing. This is where Indian Wells Country Club and Toscana Country Club are located.

Rancho Mirage is prestigious as it is known as "The Playground of the Presidents" and Eisenhower Medical Center in Rancho Mirage is named after a president. Eisenhower has a wing dedicated to the care of cancer patients called the Lucy Curci Center. The Betty Ford Center is located in Rancho Mirage. Rancho Mirage boasts numerous country clubs such as Morningside, Thunderbird Heights (where Betty Ford lives) and Thunderbird Cove.

All of these cities are within a reasonable, easy distance from one another and traffic is very light. You can easily get from La Quinta to Rancho Mirage in a matter of minutes.

Yes, most homes in the desert come with a casita. We had two casitas at our home in Palm Desert. The reason for this is that most people who live here frequently have visitors from out of the area who want to stay in the desert. Trust me, they also come in handy when your kids become teenagers!

Heritage Palms Country Club is in Indio, on the border of Indio and La Quinta. It is a 55+ club and the prices (what are currently listed on the MLS) range from $289,000 to $499,990, and from 1420 to 2504 square feet.

If you are looking for upscale and prestige, there are a lot of other places you would want to look at. Not that Heritage Palms isn't nice, but it's not upscale. I'm sure the golf course is fine, I don't golf, but my husband does and he's been there. I don't think you are really going to find a bad golf course anywhere in the desert, as they are all meticulously manicured and in pristine condition.

I can send you some listings if you want to DM me with your email address and what you are looking for. I hope I was able to help!

You can get to Orange County from La Quinta in about 2 hours. I currently live in La Quinta, which is the furthest city, of the four cities, from Orange County. It could be less than that at different times of the day.

[Roma]

Originally Posted by Twinkle Toes

Heritage Palms Country Club is in Indio, on the border of Indio and La Quinta. It is a 55+ club and the prices (what are currently listed on the MLS) range from $289,000 to $499,990, and from 1420 to 2504 square feet.

Thanks Twinkle!!!

The Heritage Golf Club (I guess that's what it's called) I think is where the home is located on. La Quinta Resort and Club | Membership | Heritage Golf Membership at La Quinta Resort & Club
Is this the same golf club as the Heritage Palms one?

The home I was looking at is $1,450,000. not $400,000!!!! I wish it was $400,00. It's not a 55 and over community either. I wonder if there are 2 golf courses with the name heritage in it?

The listing:
Real Estate Listings and Homes for Sale - Realtor.com

[Twinkle Toes]

Yeah, send me the listing. I have the MLS up right now and am not finding anything in either N. LQ or S. LQ with 'Heritage' in the name.

[Twinkle Toes]

Okay, I have the MLS ID#. I'll look it up and DM you the listing.

[Roma]

Twinkle are you getting my DM's? My computer is acting funny. I keep trying to DM you and it won't submit on my end? It just stays on clock. I keep trying to send it to you so I hope you aren't receiving like 5 copies!!!!

[Twinkle Toes]

Okay, I'll have to email it to an email address. It's in The Citrus in La Quinta (off Jefferson). It is 4 bedroom, 4.5 bath, 3971 square feet, 16988 lot size and has been on the market for 23 days. You must purchase the golf membership with this home. The HOA fees are $330 per month.

The Citrus is very nice and we could be neighbors!!!!!

[Roma]

Originally Posted by Twinkle Toes

Okay, I'll have to email it to an email address. It's in The Citrus in La Quinta (off Jefferson). It is 4 bedroom, 4.5 bath, 3971 square feet, 16988 lot size and has been on the market for 23 days. You must purchase the golf membership with this home. The HOA fees are $330 per month.

The Citrus is very nice and we could be neighbors!!!!!

Everything on this home looks good even the HOA but "not" the golf membership.

I just called the golf course and she told me what the monthly dues and the golf membership is. We don't golf but we still would have to pay $100,000 for the membership plus the monthly dues of $788.00. Or since we don't golf we would have to pay something like 265.00 a month just for the social membership plus the 100,000. But after 3 years you have to pay for the golf dues of $788.00 a month even if you don't golf or use it.
That is going to be too high for us even though she said you can get your membership fee back after you sell your home in the future. The $100,000. Which is good but it's just sitting there not collecting interest.

This home is nice but it's too steep for us with all the golf fees. We are retired and we don't golf but love the view.

[Twinkle Toes]

Yes. That's another issue with country clubs in the desert. Some require you to purchase the golf membership along with the home and some do not. Some places, like PGA West have either homes that come with a mandatory golf membership purchase, or homes that have no membership and you can't buy one.

[Twinkle Toes]

Check into Mountainview CC in La Quinta. They have homes on the course with no homes behind them and you may not have to purchase the golf membership. Of course, the Hideaway is beautiful and if I ever hit the lottery, that's where I'm moving to!