California Real Estate & Relocation Guide

Indio, California

Population: 49,116

Located in Riverside County

To the more than 50,000 permanent residents in Indio, there is no place like home. But it's also a choice destination for thousands of visitors and vacationers who come to enjoy the outdoor amenities and the amazing winter climate. With some of the best golf and equestrian facilities anywhere in the world, athletes come to Indio and the Coachella Valley to work and to play.

The largest as well as the oldest city in the Coachella Valley, Indio was incorporated in 1930. But its roots go back much further, from the early tribes who mined salt from the nearby Salton Sink (now the Salton Sea) to the Southern Pacific Railroad. The original commercial area of Indio, now called "Old Town," was the retail and commercial center for the entire valley as well.

As the City of Festivals, Indio regularly attracts many thousands of visitors to each of its eight major events, including Indian Powwows, the Southwest Arts Festival, the Indio International Tamale Festival, the made-for-television Skins golf game, the National Date Festival and Riverside County Fair, the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival and the world-class seven week Indio Desert Circuit Horse Show, as well as numerous smaller fairs and concerts.

With the primary goal of attracting cultural tourism to the city of Indio, the Southwest Arts Festival has proven its success. Each year the reputation of the Arts Festival grows because of the caliber of the returning group of artists and the excitement of new talent.

The Indio International Tamale Festival has grown from a half-day event 11 years ago that drew 2,500 people, to an event which attracted a crowd of 120,000 last year with over 500,000 tamales of every imaginable kind being sold. It is now a two-day extravaganza of food, fun, music and dance. Last year Indio's Tamale Festival was recognized as one of the top 10 Regional Festivals in the nation by USA Today.

Discover a world of brilliant green Bermuda grass fairways with gentle containment mounding leading to modest tiff dwarf greens, which call for precise shot-making skills. Heritage Palms is known throughout the Valley for its greens. This course allows golfers to use all the clubs in their bag. The course offers plenty of variety, with water coming into play on four holes, yet the course is player friendly and inviting to beginners as well as the most seasoned golfers.

Affordable housing, good schools, jobs, and an easy way of life all add to the many reasons people choose to live in this rapidly growing community. Indio offers a wide spectrum of housing - ranging from the affordable entry-level home to the luxury country and polo estates.

A number of housing projects are currently in progress, from entry level homes to those that cost $400,000-plus. Some of the newest include the Indian Springs Golf Course Community with 840 homes, and Heritage Palms, a gated retirement community with 1,000 proposed homes. The Shadow Hills area of Indio will eventually encompass some of the largest communities in the city. Pulte Del Webb's new Sun City Shadow Hills will include over 3,100 single family homes, a golf course, clubhouse and recreation center.

Children in Indio are well served with excellent educational opportunities by two public school districts, and two charter schools. There are also excellent opportunities for continuing education in the Valley. The College of the Desert is a California state community college located in nearby Palm Desert, with an Eastern Valley campus in Indio.

The College of the Desert offers associate degrees and certificate programs in over 90 areas of study and prepares students for successful transfer to many public and private universities. More than 1,400 students are enrolled in the Eastern Valley Center at Monroe Park in Indio.

As a city with a colorful history, a diverse population, a thriving commercial and retail base, as well as an enviable mix of affordable and resort-style housing, Indio is assured of its spot as "Hub of the Valley" well into the future.