galla99 – Page 3 – Gallaudet Properties

February 18, 2015

La Quinta, CA Real Estate analysis 2014 Year End

The City of La Quinta, unit sales for year 2014 are 16.6% lower than 2013. As you can see from the graph below, each month in 2014 fell behind the same month of the previous year. The fourth quarter of 2014 was the worst with 26.75% less sales than the third quarter of 2013. During 2014, we have had a very tight inventory of homes for sale which is a major contributor to the decrease in sales this year.

The 4th quarter of 2014 was the worst quarter for La Quinta since 2007. The quarter that recently ended recorded La Quinta sales of 230 homes, a drop of 26.75% over the same quarter in 2013 (314). Just to keep this in perspective, 2013 was the best year since the “bubble” burst in 2006.

What we have noticed here in the Coachella Valley was that during the late fall of 2013 and the first quarter of 2014 there was a noticeable increase in the number of American buyers most likely based on the slight improvement in the US economy and a decrease in Canadian buyers most likely based on the devaluation of the Canadian dollar. The number of buyers at that time, coupled with a very low inventory, caused prices to begin to rise substantially in many developments. Toward the beginning of the second quarter, there seemed to be a change in buyer attitude. The Canadian dollar kept declining against the US dollar and the number of American buyers decreased reducing the demand causing prices to level off and even declined slightly. This malaise which has been caused by the tight inventory, and the investors not liking the increase in pricing, has malingered for the rest of the year. We are hoping that after the election and as we enter the selling season, we will see more inventory and then sales again pick up.

This is a graph of the Real Estate “Bubble”. The red line represents the normal historical Real Estate appreciation rate of 4.5%

Here are some yearly sales figures (units) for the City of La Quinta from 2002:
Year – All LQ – Golf Course
2002 – 1,356 – 259
2003 – 1,572 – 640
2004 – 1,938 – 785
2005 – 1,563 – 638
2006 – 1,118 – 483
2007 – 942 – 444
2008 – 1,076 – 405
2009 – 1,202 – 409
2010 – 1,360 – 518
2011 – 1,446 – 510
2012 – 1,532 – 587
2013 – 1,537 – 567
2014 – 1,282 – 576

* Remember that the sales numbers represent “Closed” escrows. Since the average escrow is between 45 and 60 days, the decision to purchase the homes that closed in June was probably made in March to early April.

For more information about the Coachella Valley Real Estate market, Please call us at (760) 203-2621!

Source: DesertAreaMLS

February 12, 2015

The Citrus Club in La Quinta!

The Citrus Club in La Quinta is the private club of the famous La Quinta Resort and Club which when established in 1926 became a mecca for the rich and famous. The Private Citrus Club was conceived and established much later, in 1988. Since then the surrounding community has grown to 576 homes developed by 9 different builders. That number also includes 73 custom homes. Prices of these homes range from $600,000 to $2,500,000.

Because the Citrus is the private club of the La Quinta Resort, the membership opportunities are unique. Whether it be the Social, Sport, or the Golf Membership that is desired, included are all the amenities at the Resort in addition to those at The Citrus. These additional privileges include: tennis (known as one of the best programs in the Desert with 23 courts including 5 har-tru clay courts), the beautiful state of the art spa, the fitness center (in addition to the one at the Citrus), member discounts on dining and shopping at the Resort (that includes three restaurants in addition to the Mountain Clubhouse), and 42 pools all around the Resort. With the golf membership also included are the two Resort courses, the Mountain and Dunes, as well as the private Citrus course.

The Citrus Club’s (15,000) square foot full-service Fitness Center is state of the art. It features high quality cardio and strength training machines as well as a spacious classroom for innovative regularly scheduled classes including Zumba, Tai Chi, Pilates and Yoga, and an outdoor lap pool.

Currently at The Citrus there are 35 homes for sale. Most homes include pools and spas, and are on the golf course. The course was designed by Pete Dye and the practice range is considered to be one of the most spectacular in the Desert. There are 3 parks in the Citrus, all with waterfalls, lakes and nice walking trails.

For more information about The Citrus Club and other golf course communities in our Desert, please download our free golf resource guide where you can easily find and compare golf membership deposits, monthly dues, and real estate prices! Simply click the button below.

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January 30, 2015

Featured Community: Rancho La Quinta Country Club

This is the first in a series of descriptive blogs on individual Desert Golf Course Communities in our area. Each week we will be featuring a different community.

This weeks featured community is Rancho La Quinta Country Club.

Rancho La Quinta Country Club is a luxury golf and tennis community of 980 homes established by T.D. Desert Development in 1994 on over 700 acres in La Quinta, California. There are approximately 60 homes currently on the market, ranging from $500,000 to $2,000,000.

The Country Club is comprised of two world class golf courses designed by Robert Trent Jones, Jr and Jerry Pate. The courses have previously hosted the PGA Tour’s ever popular “Skins Game” and have recently changed over from “Bentgrass” to “Bermuda” grass to better serve golfers in the desert climate. The 23,000 square foot clubhouse has a main dining room, private dining room, full service clubroom/bar, men’s and women’s locker rooms, Pro Shop and “The Turn” for a quick bite for golfers.

The property also has a premier Racquet Club and Pool complex with 9 lighted courts including 2 clay courts as well as stadium seating on center court. The Racquet Club features a Tennis Shop, men’s and women’s locker rooms, a fitness center with state-of-the-art exercise equipment offering Kinetix Health & Performance Center services including certified personal trainers, fitness classes, nutrition counseling, physical therapy, massage therapy and spa treatments. In addition, The Racquet Club features “The Cantina” for breakfast, lunch and dinner service. Patio dining is also available courtside or poolside. The main pool at The Racket Club is a Junior Olympic size. Additionally there are several community pools and spas located throughout the community. The Racquet Club coordinates very popular leagues for Bocce Ball and Pickleball.

Rancho La Quinta Country Club is one of many golf clubs mentioned in our Golf Resource Guide. This guide outlines golf club prices, locations and home price ranges.

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January 26, 2015

What will it be today? Golf, pickleball or both?

Over the last few years I’ve been hearing more and more about pickleball. It’s definitely a sport that is gaining a lot of players here in La Quinta, Palm Desert, Palm Springs and the greater Coachella Valley, and that seems to reflect a growing interest all around the country. According to Tennis Club Business Magazine, pickleball is growing faster than any other sport in the country.

An abundance of courts
It’s a sport that’s played with paddles and combines elements of tennis, squash and table tennis. The court is smaller than a tennis court (the size of a double badminton court) and often pickleball is played on adapted tennis courts. There are a lot of dedicated players in our area and one pickleball court directory listed 11 places to play in Palm Desert alone! In La Quinta, there are pickleball courts at PGA West.

To give you an idea of how quickly this sport is catching on, one survey of some local tennis courts found that over about a one-month period, 234 pickleball players used the courts compared to 54 tennis players.

The sport gives players a great workout and is a lot of fun while at the same time it’s a bit easier on the body. It started out as a backyard game for kids, then became popular with older players and now there are national competitive divisions for virtually every age group.

Ideal for socializing
Its increased popularity up and down the Palm Springs area is testimony to the active lifestyle here: If you participate in a sport, you’ll find plenty of people to play with when you have a home in La Quinta or any of the surrounding communities. Of course, sports like this are always great ways to meet people and make new friends.

Historically, that social quality has been one of golf’s greatest attributes. Not only is the sport a wonderful way to get some exercise and enjoy the outdoors, golf provides a time when friends and family can enjoy one another’s company and perhaps engage in some good-humored competition. (I also need to mention that by most accounts, pickleball was invented by a couple of golfers who wanted to create something that their kids could enjoy.)

Our Free Golf Course Guide
I’ve told you where some pickleball courts are, but if you want to see the relative location of golf courses here, you need to download our Golf Resource Guide. You’ll get the “lay of the land” as it relates to all the great courses plus the towns and neighborhoods where you would enjoy living. These include communities like The Mountain Estates, The Enclave, La Quinta Resort Spa Villas, Los Estados, Puerta Azul, Santa Rosa Cove and many more.

Browsing our guide, you’ll see that golf courses including Mountain View Country Club, PGA West, The Hideaway, The Tradition, The Citrus Club, The Palms Golf Club, Silver Rock Golf Resort and many other fabled courses are always nearby. Our guide lays them all out for you so you can get the ideal overview.

When it’s time to go beyond an “overview” and get into the specifics of what best suits your needs, we’re here to answer your questions and help you focus your search. We would be privileged to serve you.

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January 9, 2015

The Winner Is: Award Season in Palm Springs!

Check out at this lineup of celebrities: Reese Witherspoon, Benedict Cumberbatch, Michael Keaton, Steve Carell, Julianne Moore, Brad Pitt and Robert Downey, Jr.

It looks like every supermarket tabloid editor’s dream for front page hot gossip news stories, doesn’t it?

Actually, these notables were among the glitterati who recently attended the Palm Springs International Film Festival gala awards festivities at the Palm Spring Convention Center. My husband and I were fortunate to be among the attendees as well, so we got a good dose of star exposure that evening.

Attendance is up
As with many events staged in Palm Springs, La Quinta and the general Coachella Valley area, the film festival awards evening has grown significantly since it started back in 2002. Festival Chairman Harold Matzner told us that night that only 200 people attended the first awards gala. This year, there were 2,400 of us in the audience.

You may have seen some of the winning films throughout the evening. Among the titles honored were “Gone Girl,” “Selma,” “Whiplash,” “The Judge,” “Boyhood,” “Still Alice,” “The Theory of Everything,” “Birdman,” “The Imitation Game” and “Wild.”

If you’re a film buff at all, take a close look at that list. You may want to try to see any you have missed. The Palm Springs International Film Festival is the first movie awards event of the year and many times what happens here gives us a clue as to which actors, directors and producers will be walking away with Oscars in their hands later in the season.

January is a busy time
Events on the desert often foreshadow things that occur throughout the year. I don’t know if the film festival organizers selected January in the Coachella Valley because our weather is so nice, but I do know that the professional golfers roll into town this time of year because of the climate.

This year the Humana Challenge in partnership with the Clinton Foundation comes to PGA West and La Quinta Country Club from January 19-25. This was formerly the Bob Hope Classic. I know that our local golfers are anxious to see how the pros look at the beginning of the season.

Will Tiger Woods get back to form? As I write this it’s not known exactly who will play, but one favorite – Phil Mickelson – has said that he’ll be in La Quinta for sure. Last year the Humana field of players ended up claiming 20 PGA Tour titles, including the golfer who won the FedExCup title – Billy Horschel!

As I close today’s article, I want to reflect on how wonderful it is to live in a place where you can attend an event with the celebrities I mentioned in my opening and then play a round of golf on a course that will soon host pros like Phil Mickelson battling it out for their share of a $5.7 million purse.

Live where the pros play
Not only that, you can live in the communities that surround the PGA West and La Quinta CC. And, if you’re familiar with La Quinta, Indian Wells and Coachella Valley real estate, you know that the offerings range far wider than those two. For example, the La Quinta Resort has three great courses and several communities.

The best way to give yourself an introduction to the courses and the communities is to download our free guide to Palm Springs Area Golf Clubs. You’ll see all the courses, towns and communities, as well as restaurants and other notable commercial areas. The guide also include some relative pricing information, for both homes and memberships.

Of course, it’s just a start. When you want to learn more, give us a call and we can answer all your questions.

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December 31, 2014

A Slice is a Good Thing at these Pizza Restaurants

Do you know how in some communities most of the automobile dealerships tend to be located in one area? It makes it convenient for shoppers to hit a lot of new car showrooms and used car lots without having to drive all around town.

We have a similar setup with pizzerias in the La Quinta–Palm Desert area. A person could sample good pizza at a different restaurant every day for more than a week without ever having to leave a short stretch of El Paseo, which is the business section of Highway 111.

Your trek might start at the Haus of Pizza (72795 Hwy 111) then ramble down the road to Stuft Pizza (72840 Hwy 111). Next up could be Sammy’s Woodfired Pizza and Grill (73595 El Paseo) or the Copper Oven (73196 Hwy 111) followed by The Hood Bar and Pizzeria (74360 Hwy 111) or perhaps Piero’s PizzaVino (73722 El Paseo).

Stuft Pizza La Quinta — Stuft Pizza – La Quinta

Let a thousand pizza styles bloom!
Are you getting the picture? I don’t know exactly how this incredible concentration of quality pizzerias occurred, but – like any true pizza connoisseur – I’m glad it did. Talk to locals and you’ll find folks who swear by their favorite among this lineup and I think that demonstrates that no matter how you prefer your pizza, you’re going to find a great restaurant offering your favorite style.

Many of us love the food at Stuft Pizza. They have a wonderful wood-fired oven that makes their hand-tossed crust something very special. And, like many of the restaurants listed above, their offerings go far beyond pizzas and include pasta, steak, seafood, sandwiches and more. They also feature a very long wine list and impressive selection of craft beers. There is also a Stuft Pizza in La Quinta, which is so popular that it is always busy, no matter what time of year!

You’ll need to go on your own pizza adventure to see which aligns best to your tastes. But lest you put on a few pounds while you’re conducting your research, there are some good ways to work off those calories right in the area.
Cahuilla Hills Park is nearby and that’s where you’ll find the trailhead for the Cahuilla Hills trail system. It also has a tennis court and four pickleball courts, a sport that is rapidly growing in popularity.

Golf is great exercise too!
And if you want to burn some calories on the golf course, La Quinta Country Club and La Quinta Resort are not too far from the “pizza district.” And that brings up another fact: the concentration of great pizza restaurants in La Quinta, Palm Desert, Indian Wells and the Palm Springs area in general may only be topped by the concentration of great golf courses here.

To pinpoint the exact location of golf courses and many of the areas best restaurants, be sure to download our Golf Resource Guide. It’s a free guide and it gives you a bird’s eye overview of almost the entire Coachella Valley.

For example, if you want to see the location of golf course properties in and around courses such as the Citrus Club, The Palms Golf Club, Silver Rock Golf Resort, Painted Cove and many more, this is the guide you need to see.

And when it’s time to take your search for the ideal home to the next level, just give us a call or drop us an email so we can help out.

Here’s to your enjoyment of desert living, golf…and pizza!

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December 24, 2014

Dreaming of a White Christmas and a Round of Golf

You can’t get through the holiday season without enjoying Bing Crosby’s recording of White Christmas a few times. Various artists have put their stamp on the classic over the years, but none will ever touch Bing’s version.

You may know that there’s a major connection between Bing Crosby and the Palm Springs area – Rancho Mirage specifically – but did you know that there’s also a connection between the desert here and a white Christmas?

I’ll cover some of the highlights between the crooner and our area first and then make the white Christmas connection. (I have to hold you in suspense for at least a few moments!)

Bing Crosby Estate Rancho Mirage — Bing Crosby Estate – Rancho Mirage

Bing had a wonderful estate in Rancho Mirage, just across the street from the Thunderbird Country Club. Bing’s love of golf is almost as famous as his silky smooth singing voice and he actually helped establish the Thunderbird Country Club.

Stay in Bing’s estate
His estate there is 6,700 square feet, five bedrooms and six baths. Visitors to our area can rent it today if they want to get a feel for his lifestyle. I also need to mention that the neighborhood where it’s located is Thunderbird Heights, which has been home to many celebrities over the years. In fact, Rancho Mirage itself is often called the “Playground of the Presidents” because of its rich history with First Families over the years.

But what about White Christmas? you ask. If you’re familiar with the geography of La Quinta and the Coachella Valley, you know that we back up to the San Jacinto Mountains. This year we got our first snowfall on the mountains in the week before Christmas. It’s not uncommon to get up on Christmas morning, look up to the mountains and see snow.

And if you, visiting children or grandchildren feel like waging a snowball fight, you can always buy a ticket, hop on the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway and take the ride to the top of the mountains. Is there any other place in the world where you can have breakfast outdoors under a palm tree and in less than an hour be hiking under snowy pine trees? I don’t think so.

White peaks, green fairways
And in the same way, where else can you have a snowball fight with your family and friends and an hour later be playing golf on beautiful green fairways? The combination of the climate and geography of Palm Springs, La Quinta, Indian Wells and the Coachella Valley is truly one of nature’s wonders.

You can really see how the desert meets the mountains when you download our free Golf Resource Guide. It lays out the valley floor with the location of all our great golf courses and the communities that surround them. Also included are guidelines for the price of homes as well as country club memberships.

If you want to walk the same fairways at the Thunderbird Country Club that Bing Crosby walked, you’ll find it on our map along with membership details. You’ll also see the great family of courses and communities at La Quinta Resort, including the Pete Dye designed La Quinta Resort Dunes Course, Mountain Course and Citrus Course.

Our guide to Palm Springs area golf clubs is an excellent way to start your search for real estate in La Quinta, Palm Desert, Indian Wells and the neighboring communities. And when you’re ready to delve a little deeper into property and homes, give us a call. We would love to help you find the ideal place for you and your family in our beautiful area.

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December 12, 2014

Two Great Dining Opportunities in La Quinta!

“What other people may find in poetry or art museums, I find in the flight of a good drive.” — Arnold Palmer

I think a lot of residents here in La Quinta and the nearby communities share the sentiment Arnold Palmer expresses in that quote, but I know that the golfing legend appreciates more than a well hit drive. I say that because I’ve dined at his restaurant, Arnold Palmer’s.

As we’re into the holiday season, food, feasts and festivities are big on everyone’s mind…and schedules. I’m certain that many of you are looking forward to preparing some major meals when you host family and friends in your homes. But let me urge you to take it easy on yourself every so often and enjoy a great meal in a top quality restaurant.

Arnold Palmer's Restaurant — Arnold Palmer’s Restaurant

All things Arnie
If you’re in La Quinta, or planning to come through the area, make sure you put a stop at Arnold Palmer’s on your “to-do” list. And if the golfers in your group want to go on an Arnold Palmer Pilgrimage, they can play a round at the SilverRock Resort’s Arnold Palmer Classic Course and then end the day enjoying dinner at The King’s restaurant in La Quinta. Not only does the restaurant serve great food, the photos and trophies on display make it a very tasteful homage to this special man.

That’s just one of the options here. I’m planning on highlighting a few more of our popular restaurants in coming weeks, but before I leave the topic in this missive, let me give you another suggestion: Morgan’s in the Desert. This is another very highly rated restaurant and it’s also a good one if your party wants to blend golf with fine dining.

A busy event calendar
Morgan’s is at La Quinta Resort and Club, so it’s an ideal place to meet up after an afternoon round of golf. One thing I really appreciate about Morgan’s is that they always have some seasonal event or feature going on. For instance, in November the restaurant will be doing a “Duck and Pear Festival” followed by a “Alba White Truffle Festival” in December. This keeps the menu fresh so even locals can go back again and again and find something new to try.

And with so many great – and world famous – golf courses in our area, whenever you’re looking for a fresh links challenge, La Quinta, Palm Springs and the Coachella valley can serve one up.

Free golf course guide
If you want to see how all of these golf courses and restaurants relate to each other in terms of their locations, we have exactly what you need: our guide to La Quinta area golf courses and restaurants. It’s a free download and it will show you exactly, for example, how close Arnold Palmer’s is to The Citrus, La Quinta Resort, La Quinta Country Club and The Tradition.

And to take this one step further – you can also own a great home on or near those courses. Our golf course guide will also help you find the areas where you would like to own property.

With all of this said, let me make one prediction: You’ll soon be on the phone making tee time and dinner time reservations.

Bon appétit.

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December 8, 2014

Indoor-Outdoor Design Ideas From a Stellar La Quinta Home

When a La Quinta estate was recently listed for $39.5 million it became the most expensive home for sale in the Coachella Valley – and no, I didn’t accidentally misplace the decimal in that figure. The property is listed for $5.5 million more than what is being asked for Bob and Dolores Hope’s historic John Lautner-designed home, which is priced at $34 million. If you are wanting to design your own house to make it unique and have everything you need then visit Aveling Homes.

However, I’m not bringing this up to start a discussion of real estate prices and market conditions. Tom does a good job covering that territory on these pages. What I like about these high profile homes for sale is that we learn a lot about the special touches owners have designed and built into their ultra-expensive homes. These can serve as inspiration for all of us.

If you follow any design blogs, magazines or television shows, you’ll often encounter discussions of “bringing the outside in” and creating “outdoor living spaces.” Homes in the Palm Springs area, La Quinta, Indian Wells and the rest of the Coachella Valley are ideal for incorporating these design concepts. There may not be anywhere in the world that is better suited to blurring the line between indoor and outdoor living.

Indoor-outdoor living for everyone
Most of the elements that “bring the outside in” are well within the reach of many home buyers. One of the most striking features of this nearly $40 million home are its expansive windows that bring views of the San Jacinto Mountains into the living space. Fortunately, you can get great mountain views at a significantly lower price. And do you know what: they are the same mountains for everyone!

Another feature in this expensive home that we see often in properties here is an atrium. With all the sun we get in La Quinta and the valley, an atrium is a wonderful feature and if you have one in your home you can even grow various palm trees indoors. That doesn’t just blur the line between the indoors and outdoors, it erases it.

Another feature included in this luxury estate is an outdoor, wood-fired pizza oven. These are becoming very popular and they can transform your outdoor entertaining. Fortunately, you can burn off the extra calories you consume eating your homemade gourmet pizzas the next day on the golf course.

The ultimate outdoor feature
For many homeowners in La Quinta and the neighboring communities, the ultimate way to bring the outdoors inside is to have their living space open up to a landscaped patio-lawn-pool-spa area, also fancy units of decking construction LA – that backs up to a golf course. That’s the quintessential image of golf course living and in our area there are so many great properties to choose from that are in that category.

Download our free golf resource guide and look for some of these: The Tradition, PGA West, Mountain View, Rancho La Quinta, The Citrus, The Hideaway, Indian Ridge, The Reserve and others. Also, spend some time using the search feature on our website.

Once you think you’re beginning to get a good overview of property and golf courses in La Quinta and the general Palm Springs area, call us and we can fill in some more details. I know we can help you find a home that meets all of your expectations!

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November 24, 2014

All the Valley’s a Stage, and Golf Courses!

Throughout the year, there are events in the Coachella Valley that bring some of the world’s best athletes into our community. For those of us who sometimes make better spectators than we do participants, these are great times and I’ve mentioned them before on these pages.

However, if you like being in the audience there’s more than just sporting events to see here and I’m going to briefly touch on a couple of these today. I want to talk about live theater and a special project that has been getting a lot of attention recently.

The McCallum Theatre in Palm Desert is a venue that offers the widest variety of performances imaginable. Broadway productions, ballet and concerts keep the facility hopping with activity all year long. Scanning through upcoming events, I see that Guys and Dolls, Anything Goes and Memphis are among the musicals scheduled over the next few months.

A great lineup of shows
Musical acts coming up include Vince Gill and The Time Jumpers, Neil Sedaka, the New Christy Minstrels and Patti Austin. There’s also comedy, dance and some great Christmas programs. As this line up demonstrates, renowned artists perform regularly, but I also wanted to mention a more of a local initiative.

It was recently announced that the McCallum Theatre is teaming up with David Gonzalez, a nationally known storyteller and poet, to preserve and present the stories that come from the eastern Coachella Valley. This will be a way of honoring and celebrating the heritage of this region.

Gonzalez will be going through neighborhoods in La Quinta and Indio – among other areas – to talk to locals and gather their stories. Eventually he’ll present these stories through different media, such as video and online, as well as in performance settings. It will be interesting to see how he is able to capture and highlight the local cultural heritage of our area.

‘Activate’ your lifestyle
All of these offerings add to the “active lifestyle” we’re able to enjoy in La Quinta, Indian Wells, Palm Desert and the greater Coachella Valley. But I would be remiss if I didn’t also mention some of the things that put “active” in the active lifestyle, especially golf. When you can live in communities like any of the 10 that are part of the La Quinta Resort, you begin to understand why the phrase “Golf Mecca” is often used to describe our area.

Those 10 gated communities span the La Quinta Resort’s three golf courses and include six communities that are actually within the gates of the resort. Among those six The Mountain Estates and The Enclave feature some truly magnificent custom homes. And to get a great idea of how all of these golf courses and golf course communities are situated, be sure to download our free golf resource guide.

It gives you a “bird’s eye” view of the Coachella Valley so you can see how the courses are located. It also serves as a country club membership guide by providing great information on membership fees and more.

Of course, if you call we can give you even more information than you can get from our guide as well as help you decide which communities would best meet your needs.

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