tell me about palm springs CA

[chitownbber]

i was watching HGTV the other night and a couple was house hunting for a new home not far from palm springs and i was struck by the beauty and so i went on line

i have never been but i think its on my short list of places to get to. anyone on here know anything about it?

where to stay?
where to lift?
whats the culture?
activities and night life?

thanks all

[arpeejay]

Palm Springs is a great gay destination. About 40% of the residents are gay and it has a very pleasant, relaxed, laid-back approach to life, plus (almost always) glorious weather and dramatic mountain and desert views.

Warm Sands is where most of the gay resorts are located but over the years they've crept out from there (at least a couple now in Deep Well, for example); they range from sleazy to upscale, depends on what you like. Even the tame ones (INNDulge, for example, one of our faves) tend to be clothing optional. Look here (http://www.palmspringsgay.com/hotels.htm) for other choices.

Gay nightlife is centered on Arenas Road, just a couple of blocks off the main drag (S. Palm Canyon Drive); several bars plus 2-3 gay-themed stores. As with the resorts, there's been some migration but I'm not familiar with those. Check here (http://www.palmspringsgay.com/nightlife.html) for nightlife.

For workouts:

http://www.goldsgym.com/gyms/califor...lm-springs/360

The resident gay population is pretty much middle-aged and up but it's a popular weekend getaway for the "aren't-we-fabulous" younger gay guys from Los Angeles, Orange County, and San Diego. So plenty of eye candy.

Noteworthy events:

November: Palm Springs Pride (http://www.pspride.org/)

January: Palm Springs International Film Festival (http://www.psfilmfest.org/index.aspx)

June: Palm Springs Int'l ShortFest (http://www.psfilmfest.org/festival/)

Plus...

Tons of great restaurants, LOTS of shopping, more golf courses per capita than any place else in the U.S., a noteworthy art museum, and easy access to nature areas (Joshua Tree National Monument, Idylwild, Arrowhead, etc.)

Definitely worth checking out -- and Naoyuki and I do about once a year on average. At this point we're overdue for a visit but once February in Upstate NY rolls around I don't think we'll be able to resist any longer.

Hope this helps!

xoxo

Richard

[Ragetiger]

Now you got me curious about Palm Springs. Maybe I should look fo a job down there, since they do have a Gold's down there, I can be a trainer in there.

[CelticMuscle]

Originally Posted by chitownbber

where to lift? thanks all

If you go to Palm Springs, hire this fellow without a second thought. Dennis Mason is a in person trainer, fitness columnist and thanks to the internet a fitness radio presenter and what he doesn't know about training is quite frankly not worth knowing.

[condemned88]

I live in Palm Springs. One piece of advice... Don't come during the summer. It SUCKS ASS HERE! I've been escaping to the coast on the weekends lol

[arpeejay]

Originally Posted by condemned88

I live in Palm Springs. One piece of advice... Don't come during the summer. It SUCKS ASS HERE! I've been escaping to the coast on the weekends lol

We visited in August once! I quite liked 120 degree heat! :-)

xoxo

Richard

[big14muscle]

One other thing about PS. There are some MAJOR hot MUSCLE DADDY types there, which is really my thing. I really dig muscle guys and bodybuilders who are over 45. It's a great place for that kind of eye candy too <G>

Also, check out the World Gym, really nice, VERY gay.

[Ragetiger]

Originally Posted by arpeejay

We visited in August once! I quite liked 120 degree heat! :-)

xoxo

Richard

Yeah being as close to Death Valley and the Sana Anna Winds, it's not a shocker, least it's more of a dry heat.

[condemned88]

Originally Posted by arpeejay

We visited in August once! I quite liked 120 degree heat! :-)

xoxo

Richard

Could we please swap cities? hahahaha

[arpeejay]

Depends! Do you like 7 months of winter?

xoxo

Richard

[chitownbber]

thanks all....i appreciate your time in responding - - - id much rather have 100 degrees in dry heat over 85 degrees with high humidity.

[indygary]

i've lived here for almost three years now, and i love it. i really feel at home and i'm so glad i relocated here from the midwest. i agree with everything RPJ posted, except World Gym is my preference (and i'm not just saying that because i might be employed there soon).

[FuzzyKB]

Originally Posted by chitownbber

i was watching HGTV the other night and a couple was house hunting for a new home not far from palm springs and i was struck by the beauty and so i went on line

i have never been but i think its on my short list of places to get to. anyone on here know anything about it?

where to stay?
where to lift?
whats the culture?
activities and night life?

thanks all

- - - - - - - - - -
Unlike some of my Brothers here I am not going to endorse or recommend a move to the Palm Springs/Coachella Valley area. I lived there until 2008 and by the time I left I had endured enough.

Right now, the Coachella Valley and Riverside County area is one of the worst hit areas for the economy and the job losses in this area continue at an incredible rate. Homes that sold 5-7 years ago for $750,000 are sitting vacant and they are having trouble getting $299,000 for them. If you want real bargains go to the other side of the valley (Desert Hot Springs) because there are homes over there that are Foreclosures that were valued at $250,000 a few years ago. Look hard with lenders and you will find decent homes in DHS going for $55,000!

Palm Canyon has a "street fair" every Thursday Night where they close off the blvd for vendors to come in. It started out great but more recently has turned into the same garbage you can get cheaper at a swap meet. A far better swap meet is on weekends at College of the Desert in Palm Desert.

Electric rates are handled by two companies depending on where you are. Palm Springs, Cathedral City, Rancho Mirage, Palm Desert, Desert Hot Springs and a few small parts of LaQuinta are under Southern California Edison. If you like it cool, be prepared for a $500 electric bill for a single month in the summer months. If you get East of Washington Bl in LaQuinta you are under Imperial Irrigation District which is far cheaper on electric rates.

If you plan on purchasing be very careful. Most of the land in Palm Springs is on Indian Leases. These were 100 year leases and many are starting to expire. The Indians are expected to raise lease rates a great deal over time on this land. If you decide to purchase, make dead certain that you are on Fee Simple land, protect yourself on this one! Be very careful in that Riverside County also has many properties which have what is called a "Mello-Roos". This is where a developer comes in and under a con-job to various City Councils the developer cons that City Council into creating this financial package "for the public good" this creates an assessment on the property tax bill of the surrounding properties to pay for sewer and other utility connections for the new development. Some of these are tacked on to Property Tax statements and some have exceeded $30,000 to be paid off over a prescribed period of time.

California bases property tax on .0125% of the sale price of the home. That would mean that your BASE property tax rate for a $100,000 home would be $1,250 per year. That is the base, any and all city and county user fees are added to that rate. Property tax payments are halved and the two halves are due in April and December respectively.

In California, there are two different sets of rules. There is one set of rules if you are a private seller listing a home. If you are a bank listing a foreclosure, disclosure rules do not apply to you in any manner and they do not by law have to tell you anything. In the 1950's to 1970's many smaller places had additions that were done without building permits. If you are financing do not count on the lender or appraiser to find this. You need to go to both Riverside County and to the City checking both sets of records to assure that what you are buying is represented accurately.

In general the cost of living in the Coachella Valley and in particular the resort Cities is considerably higher than it appears to be. Medical care is questionable. If you are dealing with HIV many of the specialists in the area have full practices, and will not take new patients. If you bought in to the area fifteen years ago and have a great steady job it is a great place to be IF you can survive the economy.

For Gyms there are an assortment with both World Gym and Gold's Represented very well. There are a ton of Personal Trainers at most of these facilities which are grossly underpaid because there are many seeking this kind of job. It keeps the wages way down for this line of work. The only way you make anything on this down there is to hold bodybuilding titles and to open your own small gym independent of the chains.

As far as hotels there are a number of good gay resorts in what the locals call "warm glands" (Warm Sands).

The night life if you are younger (under 40) is great and there are a ton of places to go. If you are over 40, you are cut to only a few with the best being the Barracks and Tool Shed.

The main thing is not to go in to that area without a good solid and guaranteed job unless you are retired with a very good income. Jobs other than service jobs are hard to get and even some of the big resort hotels have been laying off employees. The area also has a transient population of "snowbirds" who emerge starting in late September from Canada and the frigid northern States to spend the snow days in Palm Springs. The population swells from the end of September to the first part of April and then the snowbirds vacate. When they make their exit there are usually job layoffs.

There was a time that the area became a mecca for gay people. It does have a very high population by percentage of gay individuals. At the same time Political representation is for the most part Republican Red Neck Conservative because many in the gay community there are totally disinterested.

Unless you have a medical out, one of the largest things to do in Riverside County is Jury Duty. In Riverside County it is based totally on DMV records so you are guaranteed to serve as soon as they get your number and you'll serve again and again and again. When I was there I found that for every case that was interesting that I served three dealing with drunk drivers. They usually would waste your time for a number of days and then it would be "bargained" and your time was totally wasted.

In spite of a heavy gay population there is a great deal of homophobia in the area especially with various law enforcement agencies. Anybody who says otherwise is not telling the truth. Because of the population and desire to make money from drunk driving there is extremely heavy enforcement on this one. There are drunk driving checkpoints on many of the main routes and this is a constant.

Personally, if you are a younger fellow and not completely financially secure it is not a place I would advocate as a destination other than as a visitor right now. In a few years this may all change and things will get a great deal better again. This is an area with a great number of individuals out to take advantage and this came about because as the old saying goes with the Coachella Valley, "It's either gay or grey and sometimes both!"

It can be great, but one mis-step could cost you more than you would ever believe.

Best of Luck. . . .

[condemned88]

Damn, you just kicked all our asses in terms of provided a detailed and informative answer. lol. Nice

[FuzzyKB]

Originally Posted by chitownbber

i was watching HGTV the other night and a couple was house hunting for a new home not far from palm springs and i was struck by the beauty and so i went on line

i have never been but i think its on my short list of places to get to. anyone on here know anything about it?

where to stay?
where to lift?
whats the culture?
activities and night life?

thanks all

If you are interested in relocating I can give you a million suggestions and other places to look. I will also give you some safeguards with regards to your income and money.

When I left the Palm Springs area I made the move to Southwestern New Mexico. I am on a horse ranch of substantial acreage.

The economy in this state (and there are many others that are similar) is not based heavily on tourism. There is a great deal of agribusiness here and there are a number of military bases that the feds cannot close down. This secures the economies of some of the surrounding cities. Look for things like this when you scout a location. Look for an economy that provides something that everyone has to have even if you personally don't want it. Is what the area provides a luxury or a necessity?

Look at the taxation very carefully before you choose a new area. In New Mexico property tax rates are set at the county level and the rate varies with the need to provide services in that area. Currently I pay on average depending on the fuel crisis as little as 40 cents less per gallon than in California and as much as 1.00 per gallon less depending on where we are on the yo yo. My property taxes on my ranch with my barns and wells and a home of nearly 3,000 square feet are less than 1/2 of what I paid for a 1,500 square foot house in the Coachella Valley. In the summer months in California under the joys of Southern California Edison on a sliding scale I paid as much as 28 cents per kilowatt hour for electricity. I think under Edisons sliding scale depending on usage that I was never below about 18-20 cents. In addition there was a surplus fuel cost tagged on the bill.

Here, under a power Co-Op I pay under 9 cents per kilowatt hour no matter how much I use. My usage in actuality is far higher because I am powering well pumps and many other things you would not find in the big city. I am also on a rural ranch so with the exception of propane heat I am all electric. With that taken into consideration I am still paying less than I was in Palm Springs.

California has a VAT (Value Added Tax) on automobile licensing.
When I left California I had a relatively new Ford 4x4 dually turbo diesel pickup. My 2005 license tags cost me $985. When I moved that truck to New Mexico my tags dropped to $119. My older Mercedes was nearly $300 when I left California. I was pleasantly surprised to find my tags on that had gone down to $52. My vehicle insurance to insure myself, my other half and my 24 year old combined for all three vehicles was less than I paid for the pickup alone in California for the same coverage.

Income tax rates are lower than California and if I need something from City Hall it costs me the duplicating costs.

I was in the Palm Springs area in June on business. I was horrified to find that in California I paid as much as $2 more for the same entrees at an IHOP.

There are throughout the United States many incredible places to live with scenery (and I don't mean "Father Nature") that is great. New Mexico has it's gay places too. But you can find a lower cost of living and have a net gain in the end in many places. Right now with a bad economy survival is important to all of us.

The idea for all if you are going to move is to minimize expenses and maximize income in relation to them. There are times when taking a pay cut is just great if when you make the move you reduce expenses far more than the cut. You pay far lower taxes that way.

I am happy to answer any specific questions anybody has. My family owned property in Palm Desert from 1970-1986. I had a condo there myself from 1994 to 1997. I sold that and bought a home and remained there as a full time resident from 1997 to 2006 and was back and forth between there and New Mexico until the end of 2008. I can tell you the good, the bad and the ugly from many years of experience with the area. If anybody absolutely wants to go there and needs some help, I still have many friends there who will help you and I can put you in touch with the right people.