Just returned from a week in the Coachella Valley California.
Cities in the valley include Palm Springs, Palm Desert, Indian Wells, LaQuinta and Coachella.
It's nestled between the mountain of Joshua Tree National Park and San Jacinto Mountains.
The valley is 100 miles east of Los Angeles and 140 miles north east of San Diego.
This area is a dry rocky desert between 2 Mountains that has been converted into a Golf & Hiking mecca.
There is also great diversity of the resident & attitude with people from all over US and world migrating here over the past decades. 40% of Palm Springs permanent residents identify themselves as part of the LGBT community - A haven for all those who love and want to just be themselves. Being gay here is normal, as it should be.
Deb and I stayed at an Airbnb condo in Indian Wells. Our patio over-looked the pool and we were surrounded by mountains. Just so peaceful and quiet - really enjoyed that.
They said the population of the area goes from 200,000 to 800,000 - and Jan/Feb was the peak. We didn't find the area very congested at all. While hiking, we seldom saw another person.
Weather was in the 70s during the day, and 50s at night. Wonderful for the hiking and horse back riding we did throughout the week. Looking at the monthly weather - summers rough with June to Sept averaging over 100 degrees.
The decision to come to Palm Springs driven entirely by my desire to go someplace warm in January, my lack of desire to drive a long way and I thought that if a direct flight - Deb would go with me. So aside from Florida, Phoenix, Los Vegas and Los Angeles - all places we had visited before, Palm Springs was the last option for us out of Des Moines airport. It was a winner & a place Deb and I would visit again with family.
Of Course, also looked at real estate there - which like the rest of US is up 30% over the past year - and very limited in supply. Add onto this horrible state California taxes & $5/gallon for gasoline - this appears to fall into a great place to visit vs consider a "base" camp (for someone retired like me)... However if you lived & found work here that could cover the areas higher cost of living - I think it would be a great spot to call home.
This all has me thinking of the benefits of living somewhere that has:
1. Low to No state taxes.
2. Airport with direct flights near the cities where are families live.
3. Weather above freezing but summer averages below100F.
4. Outdoor activities, hiking, biking, horses
5. Near fitness center or have one in home.
6. Near community college/university
8. Nice, Friendly people.
So - this is where are search begins. For us - our job has driven location all our lives. The only driver beyond that was to not live too far from work to minimize the commute. however - even then - we made some exceptions. what about you? what is the criteria you use to define where you live? It's definitely something to think about - and it will change absolutely change over time.
This is all part of building & living your best life!
