Second Home Hot Spot Getting Hotter: Palm Springs, California

Cary Grant’s home in Palm Springs, California is on the market for $2,995,000, and I think I am in love. In fact, I think the best cure for any depression might be a second home in Palm Springs. (It’s almost like having a fling!) Yes, I know it’s hotter than hell, and by that I mean hotter than Dallas, in summer. There is no ocean super near by, and I’ve always wanted to be on the water. But Palm Springs is second home Hollywood at it’s finest because this is where all the stars had second, and in some cases, third, homes! There is an area in Palm Springs called The Movie Colony Neighborhood, a fun little ‘hood, all within walking distance of downtown — again, reality check here: you won’t be walking in August without an ice water IV attached to you. The Movie Colony is a neighborhood in Palm Springs, California, named after the many famous movie stars who owned homes there between the 1930’s & 1960’s: Cary Grant, Dinah Shore, Jack Benny, Marilyn Monroe, Elvis Presly and Al Jolson. TMC is located in central Palm Springs, and is comprised of approximately 170 homes and a few hotels, many of them under restoration.

Now I am going to tell you something about Palm Springs: the real estate there, not the temperature, is getting hot. Honestly, I would likely have given an ovary to be there last week.¬† Here’s the deal: lots of PS homes got caught in the California bubble boom, and then prices went kerplop. Famed Dallas Real Estate broker Dave Perry-Miller has a home in Palm Springs. Mark Godson, who sells in Dallas, tells me he is living out there now and selling real estate and the prices are so cheap it’s like going to a darn warehouse sale. Half price in many cases, says Mark, for lovely mid-century modern homes. Here are a few.

But you have to gaze at this, Cary Grant’s home. He hid out here for 20 years, this beautiful, neo 1927 six bedroom/five and a half bath¬†home with 6,000 square feet and pure views of the San Jacinto Mountains. The historical style spread features hardwood and paver floors throughout, as well as French doors and cathedral ceilings. There is just too much wonderful going on here: A replica of a 19th Century Spanish Farmhouse, the home is a two story (rare in this ranch-crazed town) with six bedrooms, five and a half baths, 5 zoned HVAC areas, 6000 square feet on 1.54 acres with lush expansive lawns, guest wing designed by that architect of Hollywood’s Golden Years,¬† Wallace Neff; a studio, walled and gated property and driveways, original tiles and many original architectural details precisely preserved. The sun-filled great room is 40 feet long, the living room soars, and the upstairs master has fireplace and balconies plus built in dressing room. Saline pool, and mountain views are everywhere.

I am loving me some Palm Springs right about now, how about you?