Sale prices, rents going up up up with the Palermo turnaround

Of the many improvements witnessed at Palermo Palm Springs has been home and rental prices. A wave of short sales and foreclosure brought down prices for two-bedroom town homes to the mid and even lower $100,000s. According to our emails and "intell" from real estate sources, we think a few more short sales and foreclosures will hit this year still. But we have learned that the first non-distressed homes on the market and have offers in the low to high $200,000s — which represent huge increases if they go through. It will be interesting if these go through how this will have an impact when the banks take control of the expected few forecloses to come and set prices. On the rental side, units are snapped up quickly and prices have a record of steadily going up. At one point, two-bedroom units were going for less than $1,000 but now are anywhere between $1,200 and $1,450. There rarely are empty units, although with the slow season of summer, and unusual situation in which all month-to-month tenants of all the 34 bank-owned former Enterprise units were made to sign long-term leases or leave, there is a unit or two available. We are told that the macro factors for the big improvements include the overall economy and the Palm Springs real estate market and inventory shortage. The micro factors include the buzz in the community about the change in the Palermo management situation, resolution of the bank-owned situation for the old Enterprise units and vacant land, a settlement from the bank that will give the HOA the ownership to the clubhouse and pool and a financial settlement for reserves and operating costs, and general "feeling" of the community, including not having vehicles parked in fire lanes and beautiful grounds and pools. Miss Penny Lane says: She's been waiting for these days for a long time. Life is good for the jolly crew of good spirits at Palermo.