One of the pleasures of taking a vacation is having the time to read the New York Times in a leisurely fashion. Recently we were at the airport, leaving Palm Springs for a few days on the East Coast, and Dick purchased a copy.  I immediately leafed through to pull out a Life Style section called Escapes, and there we were – Palm Springs – in the lead feature entitled Designed to Rent*, in the company of Savannah, GA, Taos, NM, and Vail, CO. The author was saying that “the owners of vacation homes know that stylish design can be as much of a lure as location”. 

Owners advertising to rent their homes now often go beyond touting the location, by adding descriptions of “their own combinations of décor, style and historical accuracy”. This emerging trend began several years ago when luxury amenities such as high thread count sheets and high end appliances were a part of the offer. With these features now standard in most high end rentals, owners are offering the lure of significant design aspects of properties as well as their great locations to lure their clients.

For Palm Springs, the lure of Mid-Century modern design is strong. During the decade from about 1955 to 1965, more than 2500 of these homes were built, and one can find many of them today lovingly brought back to their original style. The name Palm Springs is synonymous with homes offering pools, great outdoor living spaces and spectacular mountain views – all to be enjoyed year round. Special lighting features, designer furniture, and other design elements further enhance the appeal. Not surprisingly the clean, simple design of these homes draws many clients in the fields of architecture and fashion design.

If you’d like to join them – check us out. To get more of the flavor of living here in Palm Springs, renting a private home might just be the best way to do it!

* New York Times, Escapes, Samantha Storey, August 8, 2008