HK Lane Real Estate, with offices in La Quinta (my home office), Palm Desert, and Palm Springs, has won the prestigious Christie's International Affiliate of the year award for 2014. A great honor for a relatively new real estate company in the Palm Springs Valley. I joined HK Lane about five years ago in its first year!  There were originally about 35 agents and two brokers; very experienced brokers. There are now about 150 agents between the three office locations. I love doing deals with other HK Lane agents because they are always done well.  I've been in real estate for 13 years and I firmly believe that an agent can only be as successful as the brokerage behind them. HK's owner, Harvey Katofsky (HK), and it's two brokers, Ron Gurlich, and Gene Darr, are always available for consu... 05/22/2014

The Grill On Main (760) 777-7773 Enjoy the relaxed, casual atmosphere, a fresh take on Classic American Fare, specialty micro-brews, an interesting wine list and full bar. The menu includes a wide variety of cuisine including appetizers, fresh salads, traditional American favorites, seafood, pasta, steak, gourmet sandwiches, burgers and desserts. Open daily at 11 a.m. and at 10 a.m. on weekends, we serve Lunch & Dinner, offer daily specials and comfortable dining on our beautiful patio. Happy Hour daily from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. featuring food and drink discounts. Weekend Brunch served on Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Enjoy Live Music every Friday & Saturday night featuring popular local bands. Open Monday-Thursday 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.Friday 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.Saturday 10 a.m. to 1... 05/13/2014

   TRADITION GOLF CLUB- LA QUINTA'S HIDDEN GEM      When you follow Washington Drive south in La Quinta and come to the end... you have reached the Tradition Golf Club.  As you enter the hacienda style guard gate a surprising amount of land opens up beneath the mountains. Tradition Golf Club  is a private club nestled at the base of the Santa Rosa Mountains which is rated as one of America’s top 100 golf communities by Travel and Leisure magazine. Tradition Golf Club boasts an 18-hole championship course and a 9-hole par 3 course, each impeccably designed by Arnold Palmer for a rewarding golf experience regardless of one’s skill level. In fact, Arnold Palmer has his home here!  When designing the course, Palmer took the nearby mountain and incorporated it into the design.  There are hug... 05/09/2014

    Here in California, and in my own local area of La Quinta and the Palm Springs Valley, Canadian Sellers MUST know the rules!  (Courtesy of WCR President's Message, 2014) The general Rule is the IRS requries the purchaser of any foreign owned property to wihhold 10% of the sales price for the IRS and an additional 3.3% of the sales price for California State taxes.  All Canadian and foreign investors must procure a taxpayer ID# with the form W-7.  Do this Early (at least 1 month is estimated to get the ID#!) Secondly, form 8288-B, CA state forms 593 & 540nR, as well as tax returns, must be submitted to the IRS, along with a copy of the sales contract.  (The IRS may take up to 8-12 weeks to return an approved withholding certificate.)  What I've learned as the Agent for a foreign own... 05/03/2014

La Quinta CA Short Sale La Quinta, California real estate has seen some drastic swings in prices, conditions and inventory. First, when the La Quinta housing crashed in 2007, no one could sell a house. Anyone trying to only chased La Quinta home buyers with dropping prices. Then came all the La Quinta CA foreclosures. This attracted many cash buyers and investors. As banks realized that flooding the La Quinta real estate market with foreclosures drove prices down even further, they began holding on to their La Quinta foreclosed homes. This brought a new wave to the La Quinta real estate market: La Quinta CA Short Sales! The La Quinta CA Short Sale Yes, La Quinta California has seen the rise and fall of the short sale, and this type of transaction helped many distressed La Quinta homeown... 05/01/2014

Coldwell Banker La Quinta CA - REALTORS La Quinta CA - La Quinta Realty Are you buying or selling a La Quinta home? When hiring a La Quinta REALTOR make sure you use an agent with experience, and works for a trusted name, like Coldwell Banker, in La Quinta, California. We are Todd and Devona Garrigus, Garrigus Real Estate, and we work under the trusted Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters brokerage that has been serving the Southern California area for decades. If you're buying or selling a La Quinta house, we have extensive experience in short sales, standard sales, foreclosures, and home purchasing. We can help you avoid the many pitfalls of selling, and help you find the right home and deal when buying. Give us a call and interview us to see if we are the right La Quinta CA real estate age... 04/17/2014

  Buying a home here in the Palm Springs Valley can be daunting.  My buyers need to zero in on a particular City in our Valley, a particular lifestyle, search for amenities, location within the Valley and location within their area..these are just the larger considerations.  Next we get to the property itself! In my former career, I coached newbies, intercollegiate players, women and men, adults and children in the game of Polo.  First, clients had to learn the basics of horsemanship as polo is 80% riding.  Second, the basics of HORSES..they are not all the same and you are entrusting your life to them.  Then came introduction to the game itself.  Four players..each with distinct jobs.  Now learning to meld each individual players skills into a cohesive Team.  Coaching is coaching.  He... 04/10/2014

 LA QUINTA COVE HOME FOR SALE...JUST REMODELED!    La Quinta Cove home that has been newly remodeled and has that "new home smell"!  Close to Old Town La Quinta shops, restaurants, bars, and local events.  Farmer's Market on Sundays, Art Under the Umbrellas, and much more! Great starter home or a great rental for an investor.  You won't be disappointed!   3BD / 2BA, with approximately 1502 sq. ft. Charming La Quinta Cove home newly refurbished and ready for move-in! This home with recently renovated kitchen, granite counter-tops, tile backsplash, stainless appliances including a Samsung stove and microwave Ceiling fans and new molding throughout the home, along with new tile, 6-inch baseboards, and carpet in the bedrooms Master suite has a walk-in closet and a dual vanity in the new bat... 03/31/2014

My desert Valley is notorious for much, much more than supurb winter weather and REALLY hot summers!  This weekend Music & Theatre has some really interesting line ups as we head into the Coachella Valley Music Festival! Us locals start preparing early for the masses of Music Festival attendees.  It's a double edged sword because we LOVE them on the one hand as they bring new bodies, buyers, and visitors to the Valley floor, but along with that is an increase in the traffic.. The Finals of the Governors' Cup and also the Skins Game at the Eldorado Polo Club, in Indio, tomorrow at noon and 2 pm. The weather is gorgeous, season is still going strong and there are still some great property deals in the Palm Springs valley. 03/29/2014

Whew..dodged a bullet.  Wait a minute, two bullets!  Helped my buyers slow down and SEE what they were buying. Buyer 1.  "This is the MOST beautiful home of this floorplan in the development!  The granite, the backsplash choices, the lighting fixtures, and that Furniture..let's write an offer, I LOVE it." Me: "It IS a great home.  How about we arrange a night showing?  Let's spend a little more time here..just to make sure." We went and guess what???  The home looked and felt very different the second time around for my Buyer.  We were able to take a breath, discuss the homes' obvious virtues, but also the lack of LOCATION., and several other things that she needed to think about, outside of all the bells and whistles.  We wrote on a completely different home and a much better fit for ... 03/22/2014

If you would like to see any of the properties listed below which are homes for sale in The Tradition in La Quinta , please call us at the numbers below. Were committed to helping you find the home of your dreams. Elaine Stewart has been in the Real Estate Business for over 20 years and has extensive experience in La Quinta Real Estate, Elaine truly enjoys helping people in the process of buying or selling a home. Elaine Stewart - Remax Real Estate Consultants Mobile: (760) 668-2399Email: desertrealestate1@yahoo.com 03/22/2014

If you would like to see any of the properties listed below which are homes for sale in Andalusia in La Quinta , please call us at the numbers below. Were committed to helping you find the home of your dreams. Elaine Stewart has been in the Real Estate Business for over 20 years and has extensive experience in La Quinta Real Estate, Elaine truly enjoys helping people in the process of buying or selling a home. Elaine Stewart - Remax Real Estate Consultants Mobile: (760) 668-2399Email: desertrealestate1@yahoo.com 03/22/2014

If you would like to see any of the properties listed below which are homes for sale in Mountain View Country Club in La Quinta , please call us at the numbers below. Were committed to helping you find the home of your dreams. Elaine Stewart has been in the Real Estate Business for over 20 years and has extensive experience in the Palm Springs, and the surrounding cities Real Estate market, Elaine truly enjoys helping people in the process of buying or selling a home. Elaine Stewart - Remax Real Estate Consultants Mobile: (760) 668-2399Email: desertrealestate1@yahoo.com 03/21/2014

Speechless Sunday: Amazing Southern Views at Andalusia! After our California Lifestyle Realty meeting last Tuesday we toured a few homes in the Andalusia development. Located in the east valley, near PGA West. The southern exposure from this patio and view of the Santa Rosa Mountains are spectacular! SEARCH FOR HOMES IN LA QUINTA 03/16/2014

If you would like to see any of the properties listed below which are homes for sale in The Citrus Country Club in La Quinta , please call us at the numbers below. Were committed to helping you find the home of your dreams. Elaine Stewart has been in the Real Estate Business for over 20 years and has extensive experience in the Palm Springs, and the surrounding cities Real Estate market, Elaine truly enjoys helping people in the process of buying or selling a home. Elaine Stewart - Remax Real Estate Consultants Mobile: (760) 668-2399Email: desertrealestate1@yahoo.com 03/12/2014

Retiring..retirement..retired..all very "tired" words as far as I'm concerned.  I work with many "retired" cleints.  I'm at the age where I qualify for 55+ "retirement" communities myself!  My Buyers are not looking at Retirement homes, they are looking at Homes for the next phase of their lives.  Here in the Palm Springs Valley, there are 55+ communities in the city of Palm Springs, Rancho Mirage, Indio and La Quinta.   One of my favorite 55+ housing developments is Trilogy, in East La Quinta.  Shea Homes has finished the project, (just last year), and it has been extremely successful.  Low HOA's of $288/month that include killer amenities including a state of the art Clubhouse with covered indoor track, covered lap swimming pool, gym, conference rooms, computer stations and spa facili... 03/11/2014

The Citrus is a home where you will have your choice of 3 golf courses.  This can be very different from other communities that may only have one, or two options.  With 3 options, each day of golfing can be different.  You will have more of a challenge as you learn to master each course right from your own neighborhood.  Pete Dye is famous for designing award winning golf courses, and he is behind the design of the courses at The Citrus.  There is even a challenging Mountain Course that is surrounded by the beautiful setting in this outstanding community.  The Mountain View Country Club is where many residents spend a great deal of their time.  Members have unlimited access to all courses, and each course is surrounded by the Santa Rosa mountains.  The views on the grounds are often br... 03/11/2014

If you would like to see any of the properties listed below which are in the The Hideaway Golf Club , please call us at the numbers below. Were committed to helping you find the home of your dreams. Elaine has been a Real Estate Agent for over 20 years and has extensive experience in the Palm Springs, and surrounding cities Real Estate market, Elaine truly enjoys helping people in the process of buying or selling a home. Elaine Stewart - Remax Real Estate Consultants Mobile: (760) 668-2399 - Office: (760) 391-4415 Email: desertrealestate1@yahoo.com 03/10/2014

If you would like to see any of the properties listed below which are in the PGA West Homes For Sale , please call us at the numbers below. Were committed to helping you find the home of your dreams. Elaine has been a Real Estate Agent for over 20 years and has extensive experience in the Palm Springs, and surrounding cities Real Estate market, Elaine truly enjoys helping people in the process of buying or selling a home. Elaine Stewart - Remax Real Estate Consultants Mobile: (760) 668-2399 - Office: (760) 391-4415 Email: desertrealestate1@yahoo.com 03/10/2014

  I've been gone for awhile from my AR blog.  Not exactly sure why, other than I have been busy with real estate here in the Palm Springs Valley, but I also think I just wanted to take a blog break.  Probably not wise, as you write your name in water in the blogasphere so to speak, but sometimes you just need to change it up! The desert during the winter truly is a wonderland of extremely fine outdoor living and a ton of events.  Right now, we have several running, starting with the La Quinta Arts Festival.  Now ranked #1 with the Art Critics, I am heading over today to view the amazing art work by local and international artists!  Sporting events are continual, and the BNP Paribas Tennis Open is in full swing at the newly expanded facility in Indian Wells Tennis Garden.  Both of our w... 03/07/2014