Contributed by: Debi La Rosa
Desert Ridge Resident
Time seems to me like water flowing through your fingers. I wish I could squeeze a little tighter to slow it down. Memories are bits and pieces of good times and bad, in chunks of a decade at a time.
I moved in search of sunshine from Chicago to Arizona in 1998; purchasing a home about 7 miles Southwest of Desert Ridge. I remember discovering the Desert Ridge Marketplace seeing it from the 101; thinking the signs looked so cool, I had to stop and check it out. The neighborhoods were relatively new with a lot of building going on. Before too long, Desert Ridge was the place I knew I wanted to live. As I watched Desert Ridge grow it became more and more beautiful, then I saw the new promising “City North” now called High Street being built. I knew the area had a lot of potential for growth, great neighborhoods and increased housing values.
2005 was a promising year; jobs were good, incomes high, life in general for everyone I knew was pretty good. An opportunity presented itself to purchase my dream home in Desert Ridge, right on a golf course, watching the amazing sunsets every night with hawks and owls soaring by. Needless to say, my “crystal ball” was a bit clouded; I did not see the market crash coming, or the job loss, severe decrease in household income, or the personal disappointments that were to come. I purchased my home in February 2006; one year later…well we all know what happened to our home values, to the housing market and to our entire economy over the next 8 years to come.
I kept telling myself, “You don’t lose until you sell”. The one thing I was crystal clear on was that I loved my home and the Desert Ridge area. I knew if values were ever to come back, they would come back in Desert Ridge and in my mind there was no better place in Arizona to live. Here I feel safe, I like how everyone in our neighborhood take pride in their homes and maintain them beautifully, I like and respect the COA and all they do for our community. I appreciate the easy access to the 101, 51 and 17 for the times I need to get downtown, or to the airport with ease or get out of town for a fun Sedona day of play.
I did everything I could to keep my home through those rough times, and it was so, so worth it.
Fast forward to 2016 – Wow – a decade gone! Poof just like that! I just finished a beautiful remodel and celebrated with family, friends and close neighbors. A beautiful “new” home in fantastic neighborhood.
Desert Ridge is back! New houses are popping up like crazy, the housing values are recovering nicely, High Street is coming to life, and we have a new park and are building a new dog park, too! So many new exciting things to come…Next decade – BRING IT ON!
