Maurice Minno Palm Springs Realtor, Palm Springs Homes

This Palm Springs Neighborhood Snapshot focuses on Smoke Tree Ranch. Considered by many to be the ultimate example of exclusivity, notoriety and prestige yet uniquely different than all other Palm Springs Neighborhoods. Smoke Tree Ranch is defined by its natural, pristine setting and homes of remarkable desert style and rustic character. It is a Palm Springs Neighborhood tucked away from view. So private, in fact, that many Palm Springs residents have never ventured behind Smoke Tree Ranch’s guarded entrance gates.

Smoke Tree Ranch clearly is the one Palm Springs Neighborhood which exudes the desert's relaxed casual and rustic lifestyle while retaining its ‘Crown Jewel’ heritage. Featured in The Robb Report, March 2004 issue, Smoke Tree Ranch was termed ‘Eternal Springs’ and ‘Palm Springs Magic Kingdom’ and one of The Robb Report’s ‘World’s Top 10 Exclusive Hideaways and Great Escapes’.

Smoke Tree Ranch's roots date to 1936 when Fred and Maziebelle Markham purchased the approximately 375-acre Mojave Desert Ranch. Today, reportedly 300 acres of the Ranch are dedicated to the Smoke Tree Ranch, with the 20-acre Smoke Tree Guest Ranch at its center.

Smoke Trees line the entry road into the Smoke Tree Ranch. The Smoke Trees’ gray colored branches are usually leafless most of the year to conserve water, but their small, densely clustered twigs do sprout leaves, only for several weeks in the spring, followed by purple flowers normally appearing in May and June. The tree’s foliage and springtime flowers create from a distance the image of smoke, thus the name Smoke Tree.

Walt Disney made his initial home in Smoke Tree Ranch in 1948, and subsequently built three unique cottages on the Ranch. Disney reportedly conceptualized Disney Land while living at the Ranch. He was forced to sell his Smoke Tree home in order to raise the initial funds required for Disney Land’s construction. However, Walt Disney and his wife returned to Smoke Tree Ranch buying another home in the Ranch in 1957 which they used until Walt’s death in December of 1966.

The Smoke Tree Ranch Paper called The Desert Rat first appeared in 1936 with the Ranch’s founding. The Desert Rat sported a Rat as its mascot, possibly a take off on Walt Disney's Mickey Mouse?

Today Smoke Tree Ranch features:

• 93 homes…and new homes are now under construction;
• The Guest Ranch -- with the Ranch House, Dining Room, Kiva, Disney Hall, Swimming Pool, Bowling Lawn Green, Tennis Courts, croquet, three-hole putting golf course and guest accommodations in 57 guest cottages.

Resale homes in Smoke Tree Ranch come on the market rarely. An example of one such resale home is this estate property.

If you have interest in purchasing property in Palm Springs, either a Palm Springs Condo or Palm Springs House, I welcome the opportunity to share with you the Buying opportunities that are now available. Please visit my website for more information on Palm Springs Official Neighborhoods, Palm Springs Homes For Sale and My Real Estate Market Insights.

Maurice Minno, Palm Springs Realtor, Palm Springs Homes For Sale, Palm Springs Condos For Sale.

Palm Springs Home Sales Weaken, Condo Sales Remain BRILLIANT -- Market Insights Report; October 2010 - Palm Springs Real Estate Trend Report

Condo sales this October grew by a whopping 22.4% vs. Septembers' numbers. ...and year-over-year sales of Palm Springs Condos were up by 25%. Buyers are snapping up the best properties, with the best prices in years.

For Single Family Palm Springs Homes, the number of sales in October declined by 2.5% versus the previous month. This marks the third consecutive month in a row of declining Palm Springs Single Family Home sales. When compared to a year ago, the number of Single Family Home sales also was down, but by double digits -- 20.2%. WOW!

So the message is clear. The Palm Springs Condominium market was the first sector of the Palm Springs Homes market to recover. And it is clear that strong Buyer interest and actual sales continue to propel the Palm Springs Condo market to new highs.

Given the slump in Palm Springs Single Family Home sales, the median sale price dropped in October by 4.9% to $194,000 versus Septembers' number. This means simply that the market could not be more opportune for Buyers given the values now available in the Palm Springs Single Family Homes for sale market.

Some other key Palm Springs Home Sales market indicators:

Number of Days on the Market: Condos average days on market dropped by 20 days from September's average number to 100 days. Single Family Homes now average 92 days on the market, down by 5 days from September.

Normal Sales: This is a BIG Palm Springs Real Estate Market Headline - 57% of all the Palm Springs Single Family Homes and Condos sold in October were normal sales...not Short Sales or REOs.

Majority of Homes and Condos Sold Under $500,000: Of all Palm Springs Real Estate transactions in October, 86.1% were sales under $500,000. 11.1% of the sales were in the $500,000 to $1 million category, and only 2.8% of the sales were in the $1 million dollar plus Palm Springs Homes segment.

Given the unprecedented market favoring Buyers, my question is simply -- Why Wait? Is This A Good Time To Buy A Palm Springs Condo or Palm Springs Home -- Yes, Yes and Yes!

If you have interest in purchasing property in Palm Springs, either a Palm Springs Condo or Palm Springs House, I welcome the opportunity to share with you the Buying opportunities that are now available. Please visit my website for more information on my Palm Springs Real Estate Market Insights - The October 2010 Report.

Maurice Minno, Palm Springs Realtor For Palm Springs Homes For Sale and Palm Springs Condos For Sale

Recent Palm Springs Homes' Buyers from Paris, France left a lasting impression on me. They, like many of my Buyers, have traveled to Palm Springs to luxuriate at their favorite boutique resort 'in the world' (send me a note and I will tell you which one). And while I was showing them potential Palm Springs Homes which fit their preferences, they presented me with a copy of the June 2010 AD (Architectural Digest) Magazine, France Edition with cover story 'Californie Forever...A Louer A Palm Springs'. My Buyers spoke of the great 'new buzz' in Paris, and throughout France, of Palm Springs Homes' unique architecture and the renowned desert lifestyle.

Why, I asked them, do you and other Parisians love Palm Springs Homes? Their answer was expressed with typical 'French' passion and a wide range of emotional flair, yet simply to me, they said it was all about the glamour of the Palm Springs Homes -- the modernism architecture, the desert modernism style of the indoor and outdoor casual lifestyle, and the magnificent backdrop setting of the San Jacinto and the Santa Rosa Mountain views. This is what the Parisians love, they told me, the beauty of Palm Springs, CA and Palm Springs Homes' modernism architecture, unique in the world. ...and this is the essence captured by the AD Magazine, France Edition article featuring Palm Springs Mid-Century Modern Homes.

Can you name the Neighborhoods where these Palm Springs Homes Are Located?

Where Is This Original Alexander Palm Springs Home located in Palm Springs?

And the answer is:

The 'Twin Palms' Neighborhood of Palm Springs Homes

Where Is This Desert Modernism-Styled Home located in Palm Springs?

And the answer is:

The 'Indian Canyons' Neighborhood of Palm Springs Homes

My great reward, as a Palm Springs Realtor Buyer's Agent, is the very special opportunity I have to work with Buyers from all parts of the US and internationally; my Parisian clients being only one example. They have discovered the allure of Palm Springs Homes, the unique Mid-Century Modern and Desert Modern Architecture and the casual desert lifestyle of Palm Springs, CA.

From my experience, the Palm Springs Homes' buzz is real, 'A Louer A Palm Springs', and it is coming from afar!