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Sheri’s Palm Springs Area Blog

Whether it be real estate updates, restaurant reviews, events, or highlights of unique homes in Palm Springs, follow Sheri as she covers all that Palm Springs and the surrounding area has to offer.

What You Ought To Know About Rental Property Insurance

What You Ought To Know About Rental Property Insurance

PGA West, La Quinta

Many home and condo owners choose to rent their properties to short-term renters (less than six consecutive months). While this can be a great income opportunity, you'll want to check your homeowner policy for coverage. If it won't cover your home for short-term rental usage you'll want to look for a policy that does.

In speaking with Richard Cox of The Cox Insurance Agency in Palm Desert, Richard said, "We can now cover most rental homes and condos for short-term rentals at a very reasonable cost. Representing a first in the industry, this Comprehensive Property and Liability Insurance Program was created especially for homes and condos that are being used as short-term vacation rentals."

Short & Long Term Rental Coverage 
Richard further said, "This new program can be used by those who book their homes year-round or by those who only book a few days, weeks or months per year. Owners can now have peace of mind knowing that they are properly covered at a reasonable cost."

So, even if you think you are properly covered, you'll want to review your policy, or have your agent review your policy. "Most vacation homeowners are simply not covered for the risk of short-term rentals." 

Richard Cox can be reached at 760.797.1800.
Email Richard

From Sheri Dettman
In Buying - Info For Buyers, Buying – Info For Canadian Buyers, Owning - Homeowner Tips & Resources, Sheri's Palm Springs Area Blog

Dining Around The Desert: La Spiga, Palm Desert

Patio dining at La Spiga in Palm Desert

Our recent dining experience at La Spiga Ristorante Italiano started with an email from one of my clients. “You always do such a nice job reviewing local restaurants and I am interested in your opinion about La Spiga Ristorante Italiano in Palm Desert,” Julie wrote.

The truth is, my husband, Bill, and I stopped in one evening a couple of years ago when driving by. La Spiga was packed and - without having made a reservation (highly recommended!) - we went elsewhere and frankly forgot about coming back. You see, La Spiga is a hidden gem that’s tucked away from highway 111 in Palm Desert and, in our case, it became one of those “out of sight out of mind” cases.

Wonderful Patio Dining

Thank you, Julie, for jogging our memory. We simply loved La Spiga! La Spiga is a Tuscan-style villa that’s surrounded by rose gardens, herb beds and fruit trees. The patio wraps around the entire building, offering a lovely view of the nearby mountains. We highly recommend that you enjoy La Spiga’s patio (or deck as some refer to it) to maximize your dining experience. Last night, most of the diners were, indeed, taking advantage of the lovely outdoor dining opportunity.

Our server, Aubrey, was fairly new to La Spiga, having been there just two months. But we could tell she was very well trained. It is indeed rare in this day and age for a restaurant to actually invest the time and effort to thoroughly train their wait staff. Aubrey’s service was spot-on and friendly.

Calamari Worth Going Back For

For starters I ordered Calamari Fritti. It was crispy and served on a bed of marinated, julienned cucumbers, with a green tomatillo reduction. Bill and I agreed that this was one of, if not the best, calamari dishes we’ve ever tasted. The calamari was prepared perfectly. It was not oily or greasy, nor was it chewy. What really set this dish apart, though, was the chef’s use of cucumbers and reduction sauce. Aubrey suggested that we take the chef’s recommendation and mix the elements with the calamari. In one word, superb!

Bill’s chose the artichoke with mascarpone soup of the day for his appetizer. The flavor blends were perfect and, frankly, we passed our starters back and forth between each other several times since they were both delicious.

Bring On The Pasta!

For his main course Bill choose the Pappardelle Con Ragu Di Buffalo. This entrée featured pappardelle pasta with Bolognese style in house-ground buffalo tenderloin with red wine reduction. Bill likes the health aspects of buffalo compared to beef, and this dish, again, was enjoyed from start to finish. A real highlight was having leftovers for lunch the next day!

Bing partial to seafood I choose the Risotto Al Pescatore. This dish featured an abundance of seasonal seafood with just the right amount of tomato sauce. Perfection for me personally would have been just a bit more risotto, but the abundance of seafood and wonderful flavors more than made up for it.

I think you’ll agree that La Spiga’s wine list offers a wide selection of wines across a wide array of prices. Enjoy a glass with your Italian dinner or, better yet, share a bottle around the table; you won’t be disappointed!

In summary, the atmosphere and service at LaSpiga’s was top notch. We will definitely be returning to La Spiga several times during the season.

Chef owner Vince Cultraro and his wife/hostess Connie Cultraro, can certainly be proud of La Spiga.
La Spiga Ristorante Italiano is located at 72-557 Hwy 111 in Palm Desert. (760) 340-9318.

> View ALL Desert Dining Suggestions Here

From Sheri Dettman
In Dining Around The Desert, Sheri's Palm Springs Area Blog

How I Found Our Own Desert Home, And How You Can Too!

A few months after move-in we had the plants looking good again

After helping hundreds of buyers find great opportunities on desert homes over the last few years, my husband, Bill, and I recently decided the time was right for a move of our own.

Finding Lifestyle And Value
Most of my buyer clients invest in a lifestyle for their family and friends rather than just a home. It’s about finding just the right fit for their lifestyle and, of course, at the right price! After all, a bargain home in the wrong location won’t be considered a bargain for long.

We placed lifestyle at the top of our list. That said, our lifestyle is a bit different from most of our clients since we are involved so personally in the real estate world. You see, we spend so much time engaged in golf, tennis, and other resort lifestyle activities (life can be tough!), that we wanted to purchase an upscale home that would offer us a bit of land and privacy that was adjacent to the La Quinta golf and tennis communities where we play.

The Same Process We Used Can Benefit You
Just as I do for most of our buyer clients, I entered our home and community criteria into a custom MLS Portal. As newly listed homes that fit our specific criteria came on the market, our system emailed us each new possibility. We soon had a short list of properties in the communities that interested us the most. We had looked at about a dozen properties when the right opportunity for us came our way.

How I Knew We Had To Buy This Home
I received an email update via my MLS Portal when a bank-owned property fitting our criteria came on the market. This home was offered at a huge discount compared to its original ’06 selling price. The listing price per square foot was substantially below comparable homes and well below the home’s replacement value.

Ready To Pounce
I’ve been telling my clients for years that finding a great opportunity today involves patience and pounce. It can take days, weeks or months to find your dream home. While patience may pay off, it’s also important to be prepared to pounce when you find your perfect home, particularly if the property is priced below market comps as ours was.

Practicing what I preach, my husband Bill and I had our ducks in a row, making it easy to pounce once the opportunity arose. I placed our offer quickly and within a few weeks we closed on our dream home at a very attractive price. Life is short. We’ve been enjoying our new home with family and friends for a few months now and I’d be more than happy to help you discover yours! Whether bank owned, short sale or regular sale property, there are great opportunities to be discovered. Every property must be priced competitively to sell in today's market!

From Sheri Dettman
In Sheri's Palm Springs Area Blog
You Can Benefit From Power Naps (Cat Naps)

You Can Benefit From Power Naps (Cat Naps)

According to Wikipedia, a power nap, also known as a Stage 2 nap, is a short slumber of 20 minutes or less that's proven to be beneficial. Cats already seem to know this as our cat Spencer here is demonstrating in my home office.

Spencer says that these 20-minute naps increase his alertness and motor skills. Spencer does has excellent skills with my mouse, but if you received an email from Spencer yesterday the email was likely sent in error during his nap!

Spencer and his female housemate Sage were adopted at the Humane Society during a summer visit to Bend, Oregon about five years ago as adult cats.

See Also:

  • Siesta
  • Nap
  • Sleeping On Duty (as Spencer is doing here)

From Sheri Dettman
In Sheri Dettman & Associates, Sheri's Palm Springs Area Blog
Palm Springs Area Home Inventories Declined In September

Palm Springs Area Home Inventories Declined In September

Indian Wells Country Club neighborhood

The supply of homes offered for sale in the desert has steadily dropped this year according to a report from the Desert Area MLS®. The September listings report showed the valley's inventory of homes fell 22 percent to 4,418 homes and condos during September 2011, down from 5,681 in September of 2010.

Less Than 10% Of Inventory Bank Owned Homes

Less than ten percent of the homes offered for sale in September were bank owned homes. That’s a 39 percent drop in bank owned homes listed compared to September of 2010. The Coachella Valley's shrinking for-sale inventory parallels a trend in California and throughout the nation.

From Sheri Dettman
In Sheri's Palm Springs Area Blog
September Palm Springs Area Home Sales Up 9.4%

September Palm Springs Area Home Sales Up 9.4%

Golf Course homes at Mountain View Country Club, La Quinta

Coachella Valley home sales rose 9.4% in September compared to September 2010, outpacing home sales throughout other parts of Southern California, a new report from Data-Quick Information Systems shows.

The valley's strength as a second-home market continues to help drive sales. One positive sign was that the percentage of distressed sales continues to fall, said Greg Berkemer, executive vice president of the California Desert Association of Realtors. “A recovering market needs to see that continue every month,” said Berkemer, noting, “The desert had a better-than-expected summer.”

Since January of this year, 8,399 valley homes and condos have sold in the Palm Springs area desert communities. That’s nearly 5% more than in the first nine months of the previous year of 2010, DataQuick reported. The Coachella valley is on track to see more than 10,000 home and condo sales this year.

Monthly Sales By City Zip Code: September 2011 versus 2010

  • Palm Desert (zip code 92211) +60.9%
  • La Quinta (92253) +34.1%
  • Indio/Bermuda Dunes (92203) +11.7%
  • Palm Desert (92260) +10%
  • Cathedral City (92234) +4.2%
  • Palm Springs (92262) +1.4%
  • Indian Wells (92210) +0%
  • Rancho Mirage (92270) -11.3%
  • Palm Springs (92264) -9.1%

From Sheri Dettman
In Real Estate Market Updates, Sheri's Palm Springs Area Blog
Loonie Rides Past Parity With US Dollar. Canucks Follow!

Loonie Rides Past Parity With US Dollar. Canucks Follow!

The Canadian Dollar rose above par with the US Dollar today as investors cheered an agreement reached by European leaders on a plan to resolve the euro zone’s debt crisis.

The strengthened Canadian Dollar represents a five percent savings to Canadian buyers versus just 30-days ago when the loonie had tumbled as low as just 95 cents US.

The last time the loonie was at par, our sales of Palm Springs area properties to Canadian buyers increased substantially.

Luxury buyers do especially well when the loonie is at par. One luxury buyer exclaimed to me earlier this year when the loonie was above par, "We saved an additional $100,000 on our $2 million golf course home."

Related Article: Information For Canadian Buyers

From Sheri Dettman
In Real Estate Market Updates, Sheri's Palm Springs Area Blog

Luxury Sold For Less At Mountain View Country Club, La Quinta

Mountain View Country Club luxury golf home

My team and I continue to find great opportunities in all price segments here in the desert. In the luxury segment though, a large discount percentage (40% in this case) from the original sales price of a property can add up to some really big savings.

As an example, here's a property that just sold at Mountain View Country Club in La Quinta. At 4,449 square feet this is one of Mountain View Country Club's largest and most luxurious homes.

Located on the golf course with numerous upgrades, this popular Ventana plan home sold new for $2.1 million in '07. Today's buyer's received a discount of $850,000 resulting in a sale price of $1,250,000. This was a regular sales transaction that was priced to compete with bank-owned listed homes! This home is sold but check with me about others.
Desert Area MLS #21420289. Photo courtesy MJC Properties

From Sheri Dettman
In Golf Communities, Sheri's Palm Springs Area Blog
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