Previously, we visited the model home at Vista Palms, a community of 95 single-family midcentury-inspired homes being built in Desert Hot Springs.
See post: Model Home Brings Alive Midcentury Design at Vista Palms
The development will feature three floor plans, each with three bedrooms, dubbed The Cosmo (1,918 square feet), The Manhattan (2,054 square feet), and The Martini (2,108 square feet).
Twelve of the 95 homes will soon be completed and another six will rise before the end of the year. Buyers can now choose among all three floor plans, although The Cosmo is still the only fully furnished model home that can be toured. (Eight of the 12 homes have been sold and the remaining 77 lots will take four to five years to complete depending on sales.)
And The Cosmo is proving to be the most popular floor plan. “Most of our buyers are getting ready to retire in the next five years and want to downsize from their current larger home,” says Sales Manager Lisa Perry.
“Buyers also like the layout of The Cosmo with the courtyard being the focal point from almost every room of the house.”
The Cosmo 1A model home. All of the homes’ front yards will include drought-tolerant landscaping.
And she notes that since the third bedroom has its own private entrance from the exterior it’s ideal for out-of-town guests. The Cosmo is also the only floor plan with a detached garage.
Prospective homeowners have the option to choose their own flooring and many are deciding to go with a vinyl plank floor throughout the entire house. “Most buyers do not want carpet and [those who] do only want it in the bedrooms,” says Perry.
As for the kitchen, buyers seem to be opting for a more dramatic look. “Our standard cabinets are beechwood with slab panel doors available in a Java or wheat stain,” says Perry. “So far, Java has been the favorite.”
The current price range for the homes runs from $310,000 to $320,000. “Our midcentury-inspired homes are extremely popular and very sought out,” says Perry. “People love the high ceilings, clerestory windows, and mountain views.”
A Martini home — with 2,108 square feet, three bedrooms, and three bathrooms — is nearing completion.
“The challenging part of the sale is fighting the reputation of Desert Hot Springs being a low-income, high-crime-rate city,” she adds. “I have been at the Vista Palms community for over a year and in September of last year I moved to Desert Hot Springs from La Quinta and found that reputation not to be true. [It] is definitely an area in transition and hopefully more people will see that and give it a chance.”
Vista Palms, 68-483 Panorama Drive, Desert Hot Springs, 760-424-2003, vistapalmshomes.com
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