Palm Springs Redeveloping A Trailer Park

Fuck no

Possibly

Ugly.

Wait until 5 years go by and it ages in the fucking Palm Springs sun. It will become a gay dump

Palm Springs isn't that expensive (particularly compared with the rest of CA). If you can't afford there why not just try another desert town a few miles from there?

Great idea, but not actually tiny houses at 600-1200 sq. ft and over $100K, space rent additional. Still, that's entry level for new housing in Plam City.

A lot of gay port shoot in those trailer parks.

Sounds like a little bit of heaven!

I love Palmy and I think those are very cute. But in the yt comments someone said he looked at them and loved them until he found out you still have to pay 600 a month for the land rental in the park, so no thanks.

I live in PS and I ride my bike through there often.

It's REALLY nice. The homes have all the latest energy efficient windows, and doors. The insides are fantastic. They are remodeling the entire old trailer park.

You would be very surprised. I love it.

aka 'frying in a tin can'

No. Live in the Hollywood Hills, so not far away. Still, just, no.

From some of the "Tasteful" posts, These are far superior that say some things populating the Hollywood Hills.

It's a trailer park r13.

It's already cheap there, so no. Unless you can afford an extra place in the winter- it's shit year round.

Looks nice.

[quote]I love Palmy and I think those are very cute. But in the yt comments someone said he looked at them and loved them until he found out you still have to pay 600 a month for the land rental in the park, so no thanks.

I agree.

no thanks # 2

also to live in PS without a pool gets a "gurl, no!" from me.

$135,000 - $200,000 with about $650 per month for "land rent"

I actually been in side one of those. A friend took me there when I was staying in PS for the weekend. They are surprisingly nice light and well built feeling for a trailer. Very mid-century modern typical of PS. If you forced me to live in a trailor park, that would probably be the one.

However, way too many downsides. First of all, they run about 200K for the nicer ones. No back will give you a loan or it will be next to impossible. Its not a house its a vehicle. Secondly, it will not appreciate like a house either, not to mention mobile homes are always the first to go in an earthquake, flood, or any natural disaster. $650 a month is really high. That's more than most HOA fees in a typical condo community. And don't get me started with the heat. A couple of days ago it was120F. One shitty community pool with no covering is not going to cut it. Sure you could rent it out but only for pennies on the dollar. No one wants to move to PS during the summer so renters are slim pickings. Finally, its not a gay mobile home park. Sure they might be some gays since PS is so gay but vast majority will still probably be straight white trash. And not the hot kind, think Fraus with 5 spawn voting for Trump.

On the up side, Mid-Century modern. On the down side, Mid-Century modern.

That style has become so cliche in the last 10 years and Palm Springs is ground zero for that. Literally every queen that lives there thinks they have cornered the market on style when in reality all they did was fallow the sheep. I know Fraus that have started to decorate this way. That is when you know the fad is OVER!

Trailers and trailer parks are just terrible ideas however you look at it.

How much is the electric bill?

The average electric bill in Palm Springs is $228 a month. It's hot in the desert you know!

Is there lots of rough trade?

Looks cute. I’m from the east coast so it’s odd to see a place without any grass and trees

In England, we used to call these PREFABS.

During college summers I lived in a trailer (refused to call it a mobile home) at the beach. It was great. Costs were low and I was lucky to have quite retiree neighbors. Have always thought it's a great mode of living, the only drawback is the typical trailer park denizen. This looks like a fantastic idea.

Thanks for posting, OP.

Now even the trailer parks are gentrified, wtf

I know a few guys who live in trailer parks in PS. Its not so bad for elder gays living in this small supportive gay community, but they paid no where near 200k for their homes - more like 49k - and the land rental fees are only 350 a month.

Every gay in Los Angeles seems to end up there. I hear you can purchase a decent double wide for around $40k and find some with rent controlled land for about $400 a month. That's probably my best future considering my finances.

Just the gays short of funds.

Wrong r32, there's tons of gays in Palm Desert and Rancho Mirage.

I wouldn't want to do it, but I don't think this is a terrible idea.

It's priced right and the land rental is similar to what an HOA fee would be. (Don't know if there are HOA fees on top, though?)

It works for snowbirds and others who just want a small home to stay in for when they visit, and that's an affordable price for people who are middle to upper middle class and aren't millionaires, but might still have that much to sink into a second home.

Not for everyone, though. I personally wouldn't want to buy a home without a pool, and the lack of shade trees nearby is also a deal killer. For me, having more space outdoors is part of the appeal of PS, so this wouldn't work.

But it's good to have multiple options. And PS doesn't always have a lot of options - they seem to have found a few types of houses and then built fucktons of each one.

R33, no one really lives there year round if they have money.

I had millionaire friends there that lived there year round, they traveled a lot and they had a cabin in Idyllwild they went to on many weekends but they do have a.c there.

This is a glorified trailer within a pseudo-elegant trailer park.

Like all trailers, it will turn to rubbish within 5-10 years. The fabulous mid-century modern interior will become dated. The lot rent will increase along with the condo fees.

It’s a terrible investment with very diminishing returns. In 15 years, the trailer will be dumped into a recycling facility.

Gays in PS. How much is it to rent a one-bedroom there. I actually live 70 miles away from Palm Springs.

R37. So what if it turns to dust in 15 years (which is ridiculous). Most resident gays are elders and they'll be dead by then.

R38. I know a few guys who rent near City Hall. One bedroom is 900 a month. And the apts are fairly nice.

Is there a/c in these things?

R34 You may a good point about the lack of shade trees. Those tall Mexican Fan Palms don't cut it. They're too wispy. Keeping in mind that it is Palm Springs, the Casablanca Palms or the Fishtail Palms would be a great addition since both have wonderfully large canopies that provide excellent shade. Some innovative landscaping here would really help sales, contribute to city beautification, and would store and cycle carbon.

^^grrrr, I meant Canary Island Palms not Casablanca Palms

Condos in Palm Springs for under $150,000, no need for a mobile home...

Those $150,000 condos may be on leased land with a monthly lease payment as well as HOA and property taxes. Some of those leases are now coming due. Look for huge renegotiated lease payments.

Condos for 150K in PS would be old stinky 80s monstrosities.

Lease payments can be increased only so much - don't recall the percentage - once the lease expires.

When I look at these trailers MCM is not exactly what comes to mind, from materials to construction.

I've seen them and as above, passed. $200K to buy, with cash (financing is available but it's not like getting a mortgage - shorter terms, higher interest rates, tougher to qualify for), that depreciates as quickly as a car. Looks nice now but they're tiny inside. You'd have to be in love - madly deeply in love - to share it with anyone for more than a week. The $650 land rent doesn't start to include the entire cost. And it's not capped because it's not a senior (over 55) park. There is no shade. There might be some if and when the Canary Island Palms are planted and grow, but it'll be a while. There are 100 vacant lots in the park, and they might fill them with more tiny homes if they can find enough people to pay these prices for them. OTOH, they might not. If they don't, they're spreading the costs over fewer owners, hence it'll cost more. The cost of electricity in PS is a lot higher (different supplier) than in some of the other desert cities. Trailer parks are dense, this one is denser (smaller lot sizes) than most. I assume if you're next to two drunk queens or one meth head (because the existing tenants, some in their 1950's trailers, are still there) going on and on, it'd be amusing for maybe ten minutes but after that?

And read the FAQ's on the parks' site, in particular, "Tell me more about the owners of the park?" The parent company, Ravinia Communities, is "engaged in the acquisition, development and management of manufactured housing communities across the country. Ravinia specializes in acquiring and repositioning well-located manufactured housing communities that are under-performing the surrounding market. Many of their communities suffered from a lack of attention by the prior owner causing deferred maintenance, infrastructure problems and occupancy loss. The most common underlying cause of these issues has been limited access to capital by the prior owner. [bold]When they take over management, they develop a game plan to make necessary improvements including aesthetic and infrastructure upgrades. Their goal is to improve our communities every year.[/bold] With your money.

All this means the real cost, year round, with the land rent, the fees California levies, the taxes Riverside County levies, insurance (and don't forget earthquake cover - the San Andreas fault goes right down the Valley and there was a 4.5 magnitude quake in Cabazon in May - and the Coachella region is said to be long overdue for the big one), electric for a/c, cable, internet, etc. is at least $1K/mo. Then there's repairs, like if the a/c or the dishwasher doesn't work. Twelve grand a year for something you'll be comfortable living in for half the year at most after dropping $200,000 that's depreciating as it bakes in the sun? No AirBNB/nightly rentals either: 30 day minimum rentals.

I couldn't see how it would work. Palm Springs is a resort community. A lot of the residents don't have to live there. When the next crash comes, the prices will tank. Look at condo listings on Zillow or Trulia to get an idea what places used to sell for - not trailers for the most part, either: condos or houses. Today? $150K. Ten years ago? $300,000K. It's not like LA or NYC where the prices only rise.

Mobile home, trailer, a tin box is a hot tin box.

My dad was looking at a weekend place 20 years ago, and prices have gone up and down over the years but the condos are selling for the same price now as 1998. He's happy he chose to pass.

R38, I live right on Palm Cyn. at the bend. It's a remodeled complex, from the late 50'sand about 30 units and very nice. 1 bedroom is 1100, and I just moved into a two bedroom with a gigantic patio, and it's 1250. I am the tasteless gay that rides the bike through the soon to be gay mid-century slum some are predicting. It will not become a slum. The 650 is the lot rent and that includes street cleaning and HOA common space upkeep and all the pool areas.

PS electricity is cheap. These new units have split systems. Mine does also. My electric bill even when it was 123 was 45 a month.

There are not many nice places to live in Palm Springs that are relatively affordable. These also are in an excellent area of PS. Very nice neighborhoods around it.

[R52] Thanks for you response. That helps puts things in perspective.

[R38]

You missed the point, R52. These are not affordable. You have to drop over $100K for your home, then pay rent and fees. An apartment is a lot less money. If you have the money you're going to spend it on something that you own, something that has a chance of appreciating in value. Trailer park management companies are as fly-by-night as any other (apartment) property management company. This type of community only works if they are tightly managed and to a large degree carefully monitored by interested parties, i.e., the people who live there.

Management gets lazy and disinterested in carefully managing their properties. The park manager gets paid mostly commission for selling/renting homes. They don't get paid to spend money on repairs. They are financially incentivized to be stingy with budgets. Things go downhill. They remove trash cans from community spaces and when things break, they leave them broken or remove them.

They love collecting the lot rent and all the extra fees (there will be water, sewer, trash pickup, maintenance and possibly other fees added to the lot rent), but after awhile, management won't do anything they don't have to. Your effective monthly rent and taxes will be easily over $800/month, and it will go up every year. That's not much less than an apartment. As people realize management doesn't give a shit, they will also stop giving a shit, and the community will begin to crumble.

Everything will go downhill and people will move out faster than people move in. Then management'll open the doors wide to people who don't qualify, people with criminal records, people without verifiable income, Mexicans living 8 to a single wide, because mgmt is desperate for renters. Trashy people will trash their homes and lots, and management won't do anything about it when you complain. People will deal drugs and there will be sketchy randos knocking on your door at 2 am, or rifling through your car looking for anything to gank. Management will complain that there is no money in the budget for security, or maintenance or cleaning people. Cars will be parked up and down every street and on people's front lawns.

When this happens, people will flee, and home values will drop even faster than they would through depreciation alone. Manufactured homes, even well built ones in the US, do not appreciate in value. They drop in value. People will walk away from their valueless homes and there will be bank auctions and prices will drop even more. Desperate to maintain some occupancy, management will start renting abandoned homes for the price of lot rent to anybody who shows up. Methheads will trash some of these places and the bombed out single-wide shells will sell for $3000-$5000, or they will sit empty for years, becoming crack houses. Within 10 years, most properties in the community will sell for less than $20,000. Single-wides are the cheapest of manufactured housing. Their small size limits their appeal and resale value. You can buy a high quality one brand-new for about $25K. But they're too small to split the lot rent with a roommate.

The only manufactured parks I've seen survive as quality communities are those that are co-ops or fully resident owned. If the management company goes bankrupt or gets bought out by another company, it's anybody's guess what will become of the park. We are in the midst of another real estate bubble - of course nobody wants to admit it - and this time it has spread to fucking trailers. There are people in cities across the US trying to make money flipping fucking trailers. And the property management company is hoping to flip the entire park eventually.

They look fun and I would actually consider it if the rest of the development were set up in a way that encouraged other owners to keep their property up to standard. But if it gave even a hint that it might devolve into a trashy trailer park, I would pass.

R54. What are you going on about.? Palm Springs has a number of nice trailer park communities that have been established for 50+ years and have waiting lists to buy.

This development will become the same over time.

I like R54 and his comments. He makes a lot of good points. As for R56 claiming their is a waiting list for 50 years old trailer parks denoting desirable housing, you might want to take note that there is also a 2 year waiting list for section 8 housing for the poor.

I have been to PS many times, have different sets of friends there of all income levels. Because its so much cheaper than LA, you can live like a kind in comparison. A 2 million dollar house there is like a 15 million dollar house in the Hollywood hills. A 500k home is LA is almost in ghetto land, but in PS its very upper middle class with a pool in a nice area. 200k for a trailer might seem like a great deal to outsiders but to anyone who lives there its really over priced.

Plus, I am sorry, old trailer parks are mostly all trash. Maybe you like that style, maybe its camp for you, but must people with decent taste, especially gay people would not want to live in Shady Pines for more than a weekend of tacky exploits.

[quote]the cost of electricity in PS is a lot higher (different supplier) than in some of the other desert cities.

Where the hell did you get that from? Palm Springs' electricity is provided by Southern California Edison, which powers most of southern California.

Space rent prices me out of nice trailer parks. It’s like owning your home and paying for an apt at the same time.

Don't have sex with men named Todd.

At 63 I am too young to move to Palm Springs.

r58 Southern California Edison provides power to PS and the neighboring cities, but the eastern end of the Coachella valley is served by Imperial Irrigation District, which provides electricity at half the price of SoCal Edison. (La Quinta, Indio, and points eastward)

Like previously mentioned, buying trailers or manufactured housing is like buying a car. They depreciate, not appreciate.

I LOVE the idea of a trashy Jerry Springer style trailer park populated by gays

For most of us Angeleno gays that is our future. Basically buying our coffin in the desert to live out our remaining days.

I'm kind of in love with R54. I thought this whole idea was charming until he laid out the long-term, worst-case scenario (in detail so elaborate that I felt I was watching the time lapse before my eyes). If I sound facetious, I don't mean to.

Except we're talking about a trailer park in Palm Springs, a major resort, not a trailer park skirting some random city or town.

Honey, you don't get it. Palm Springs is a shitty investment. If you plan on living out your dying days there- enjoy.

I will look like this in a few years.

Why not just move to Desert Hot Springs? Meth is cheaper, and add in the hot Marines there...

[quote] Imperial Irrigation District, which provides electricity at half the price of SoCal Edison. (La Quinta, Indio, and points eastward)

All the areas eastward where NO ONE wants to live.

I live in La Quinta. Quiet, tranquil, golf and tennis. My electric is half what other desert communities pay.

R58

"Where the hell did you get that from?"

My electric bill. Thank you, R62 and R72

To live surrounded by Jews and fags, no thanks.

Ciao r74. Ciao piccolino. FF

..sorry to bump, but just got back from first ever visit to PS and loved it and LOVED the mobile club at Palm Canyon!. I went on this trip hoping to hate it so as to move on from the idea of moving there, but the spark has been re-ignited to move, just after my partner and I had decided to stay put in our comfy rehabbed home in KC. We are mulling it over again. We met Paul Kaplan , the guy in the video and liked him. For us, we feel a move there would be entail a healthy lifestyle change that would be most welcomed from a somewhat hum-drum, yet very predictable and comfortable retired life in KC! ( we do have a summer escape hatch to avoid year round living there)

GOOD GAWD!

This queen's MILLENNIAL UPSPEAK is making me want to tear my head off! WHY is he talking like that EVERY SENTENCE ends uuuuuP???

I was enjoying the homes, but I couldn't LISTEN to him anymore!!!

Too close to the neighbors. No.

Those are cute. I would definitely consider this.

Palm Springs, etc is a great place to live because anti-gay groups avoid these places. And, gay people who dislike gays avoid these places as well.

63 is chicken in PS. R61. Palm Springs is a great place to visit for a few weeks in January/February, How anyone can live there full time is beyond me.

Yep, only liveable with a second home in a cooler climate.

It’s a mule in a horse’s harness.

We just arrived in Palm Springs last night for a six week stay. I will have to check this out.

We made it over Grapevine just before they closed it due to the snow. I was surprised at the amount of rain the storm brought.

tell us what you find, R84

We did it. Close on property in 1 week. Cash offer on a 2 bedroom unit , we will live in from Oct-May. Now to sell primary residence in KC!

I'm watching a documentary right now on Amazon Prime about HIV+ eIdergays moving to Palm Springs. It's called Desert Migration.

Sounds like a great affordable place to stash away soulmates!

I think this is a great idea, op. It accommodates singles, couples and small families in our society who are struggling to become homeowners. It's also a nostalgic, Americana design scheme with charm that will make these communities visually interesting. Secure, downsized, low maintenance housing is a good investment. You'll always be able to sell these things if you have to.

I like the style, too but would love it if they brought back the fun of the 50's design main color palettes. It easy to go adventurous in design and color schemes (and change them when you get sick of them) with small houses.

No risk of tornadoes, so looks good to me and to Dorothy!

I don't see this as much of a change in space for most people who live in cities. The change is the feeling of space around the living area and a sense of ownership.

I think this community design will be an excellent investment for places like Palm Springs but it could even be slightly modified for colder regions, like places in The Northeast with cabin/mountain culture. I'm sure they're very efficient to heat and cool, as well.

Lots of singles, DINKS and small families, these days. Good investment.

Only a fool would pay that kind of money for those little places. All they've done is slap up some wood siding to cover up the "trailer" look, and done some repainting and decorating inside. They've probably put no more than 10-12k into each of those units that wouldn't go for more than 40k tops before the renovations.

There's room for tiny gardens, too. You could grow some vegetables.

But R92, if you're living in the city you're paying twice as much for a lower quality of life. At least here, you have a little bit of green space, air around you and no neighbor jumping on the ceiling at 3 am.

[quote]No risk of tornadoes, so looks good to me and to Dorothy!

No, but you're directly on top of the San Andreas fault line.

[quote]There's room for tiny gardens, too. You could grow some vegetables.

You need water to do that.

600.00 Is dirt cheap for a land lease in a trailer park, especially with a club house & pool.

People ought to check out Green Valley AZ

Palm Springs has nice areas where condos haven't appreciated in 20 years.

Those parks are a great refuge for people who can't afford brick and mortar homes and have limited incomes. True, they don't appreciate like regular real estate, but where I live in CA they are far more affordable than anything else, including apartments. I've been in a few and they can be very spacious and feel like real homes inside. I have a friend who lives in a park for retirees and he also owns the land. His HO fee is only $150 a month and they have a pool and well kept grounds with trees. The mobile homes where you own the land cost more but are still a bargain compared to regular real estate. The average price of a homes here is around $600,000, condos are $300,000 to 400,000, and manufactured (most newer ones are not mobile) run $90,000 - $250,000. Fees at places where you rent the land go for about $500 plus utilities. Many people sell a regular home and pay cash for the mobiles, and are only stuck for the HO fees. With a newer home could be paying $10,000 or more in taxes.

I got to know a lot about this after helping an elderly relative to sell hers.

Most don't appreciate AT ALL. They are like cars- they only depreciate. A step.above renting.

R100, Not always. My relative sold hers for twice what she paid (in cash). Bought in 2001 for $85,000, sold in 2018 for $170,000.

[quote]Most don't appreciate AT ALL. They are like cars- they only depreciate. A step.above renting.

These are pretty fucking special. If they maintain and run the place properly it should go up.

R101, her timing was very good. She bought after the dot com bust and sold possibly at the peak. Well done. Was it a trailer or a condo?

That's why I said MOST. There are always exceptions, but they are shitty investments.

Congratulations R76, R86.

I was there late November for 4 days. Stayed in the Best Western just down from the trailer park in the video. I hiked Indian Canyons, Joshua Tree National Park and the Cactus to Clouds Trail from the Museum Trailhead and looped back to the North Lykken Trailhead. It was chilly especially in the morning. Also, visited Shields Date and Garden and went up the aerial tram.

There's a lot of restaurants in the area to choose from but not much else to do. I think I would get bored very quickly and spend most of my money on gas traveling around the area.

[quote]and went up the aerial tram.

I SO want to do this. Next time.

Thanks R105. I may go back to work , maybe at the PSP airport pushing wheelchairs(runners). In summer we will tend to a vegetable garden and fruit orchard in Leelanau County. With the two contrasting environments , I think it will be the best of both worlds.

You're very lucky, R107.