Crime in DHS? (Los Angeles, Riverside, Rancho Cucamonga: for sale, rent, crime rate)

[JimHitchiner]

Hi All,
We've been thinking about retiring to DHS as my father retired there back in '82 and really enjoyed it until he passed on in '87. However, after looking at some stats about the city, I've noticed that the crime rate is higher than the US average. Could someone enlighten me as to what's going on there or am I looking at an error in the info?
Best...
Jim

[dogmom]

Jim, my parents live in DHS and we just put an offer and had it accepted in their same development...DHS has a bad rap...due to low housing costs a lot of gang types moved in...Riverside County, DHS Police and other local agencies just had a HUGE bust a couple weeks ago, used the battering ram and took down a whole drug house..hoping the city and county stay on top of it, that is not particular to just DHS, each city has its own problems, of course.

Where we are buying is a development called Mountain View, in the Mission Lakes golf club area...its gated, newer homes, most have nice views, its on the far north western area of DHS, just off highway 62. My folks drive into Palm Springs for shopping, its only 10 miles..

Good luck, dm me if you need any links..its a great time to buy in the Mission Lakes/Mountain View development, lots of good buys..

[JimHitchiner]

Thanks dogmom. My father also lived in the Mission Lakes area and was the president of the golf club there. My wife and I just thought it would be a great place for a number of reasons:
1. Affordable housing.
2. Close enough to s. cal attractions yet away from the bustle of big city life.
3. Golfing.
I was born and raised in the LA area and would regularly go visit my grandparents who lived in Joshua Tree and I loved the desert life. It's been nearly 30 years since I visited the area, and was wondering how the area has developed both in liveability and crime. I have checked out the neighboring smaller communities around the PS area and have wondered where it's safe and where we can afford a home. I just picked DHS because I'm at least somewhat familiar with it but could easily be in places like La Quinta, Palm Desert, etc. Thanks for the info and if you have any other tips, just write me back.
Best...
Jim

[dogmom]

Jim, that's really interesting that your grandparents lived in Joshua Tree, mine lived in Yucca Valley...

One of the advantages to living in the heart of the valley, like PD or RM, closer to stores..but then prices of homes are more...hubby and I both grew up in the San Gabriel Valley, and aside from my folks and nephews, our oldest son lives in Rancho Cucamonga, and our long time friends are all in eastern San Gabriel Valley or Corona area..

We thought Mountain View at Mission Lakes would fill the bill for us..easy highway access to head into L.A. area.

Let me know what you end up doing...maybe we will be neighbors..

[JimHitchiner]

Well,
We are actually about 5 years away from relocating, just thought it would be good to check out the area in advance. My wife is a RN so she was hoping to find a job at any of the hospitals out there. Eisenhower Memorial is always advertising in one of her healthcare mags so she is hopeful of a job. Maybe we could be neighbors in the years to come. Take care.
Best...
Jim

[dogmom]

Hey Jim, smart thinking...I know that the folks across the street from my folks bought their house for their retirement, they come out on weekends..but its good to start looking and see what areas will work for you..
there's a lot of variety and price points...

Hope we see you out there sometime..
Barb

[Twinkle Toes]

Jim, you need to come out here and check out ALL the areas before you get your heart set on DHS. It has a bad reputation for a reason. No offense to Dogmom. You need to dredge up some of the older threads about the area to find out more about this area - not just DHS, but everything. You will also want to start reading the Desert Sun every day to familiarize yourself with what goes on in DHS, and around the valley. www.thedesertsun.com Another thing - DHS, aside form the crime, is in a wind tunnel.

[dogmom]

No Offense taken, Twinkletoes.. we know DHS has a bad rep..so do a few other places out there, parts of Cat City are not good, as with Indio and coachella and Thermal....the reason we feel ok with Mission Lakes and the gated community we are buying into is my parents have been there for a while, my mom sends me the articles from the Desert Sun, also I check the local tv stations online..We used to live in Beaumont, now that is a wind tunnel...nestled up against the hills is not as bad as down in the flatlands..but there is wind in the desert..when they lived in Bermuda Dunes not only did they have wind, they had major sand..they don't have much sand up in Mountain View..

I wish we had 200 or 300,000 to buy a home, we don't. But we are needing to be closer to my elderly folks, and this seems like a good fit for us..We have friends in Corona, our son is in Rancho Cucamonga and we are originally from the San Gabriel Valley so feel like we are coming home again..we are familiar enough with the Coachella Valley to know what's happening..my parents have lived out there since 1972..

Good luck, Jim..with any place you end up settling, there are problems good and bad.. do what we did, a list of pros and cons...that helps when major decisions are on the line..

[dogmom]

Jim, you might consider renting when you find the time is right to come out..then you are not locked into a particular area...Just a thought..its a really diverse valley..

[Twinkle Toes]

Absolutely. Rent first. We have some friends who came out from Los Angeles and fell in love with the neighborhood we used to live in, in Palm Desert. They fell in love with the house and the neighborhood and bought the house. That was last year. Now the house is up for sale because they decided Indian Wells was more their style. So they are buying in Indian Wells now and hoping to sell the palm Desert house. Of course, they have plenty of money, so this is not a problem for them, but what a hassle! rent first, take your time to check everything out. If you're into golf, play all the courses. That's how these people fell in love with Indian Wells - they are avid golfers, and once they played the IW course, they didn't want to golf anywhere else.