PHOENIX — Bristol Palin, the 20-year-old daughter of Sarah Palin, has bought a five-bedroom house in Maricopa, a modest community south of Phoenix, setting off a flurry of speculation as to exactly what her plans — and those of her famous mother — are for the desert dwelling. The Palin family, which calls Wasilla, Alaska, home, offered no comment. But the sale certainly created plenty of buzz in Maricopa, where for-sale signs are everywhere and celebrity buyers are rare.
“That a ‘Dancing With the Stars’ phenom by the name Palin would invest there is a bolt of lightning for the housing industry there,” said Jason Rose, a publicist in nearby Scottsdale.
Edward Farrell, Maricopa’s vice mayor and a fourth-generation resident, gave Todd Palin, Ms. Palin’s father, a tour of Maricopa earlier in the year and was under the impression that he was looking for a house for the entire family.
“I left the meeting thinking that maybe he and Sarah were looking for a place to live,” said Mr. Farrell, who was surprised when he learned that Ms. Palin was listed as the buyer.
Property records from Pinal County show that Ms. Palin bought a brown stucco house in the Cobblestone Farms development several weeks ago for $172,000 in cash. The price was not bad considering the house has 3,900 square feet and a three-car garage and sold for almost $330,000 four years ago.
The house went into foreclosure in January and was bought by investors from North Dakota for $137,200. They spruced it up for resale.
“I’m not sure why she wanted to buy that home, but we are real happy for her,” Michael Smith, who owned the house with his wife, told The Arizona Republic. “She seems like a nice girl. We’re excited for her.”
Mr. Farrell said Cobblestone Farms happened to be the same neighborhood he lives in. “It’s not about glitz and glamour, but about quality of life,” he said. “I think she bought in the best neighborhood that Maricopa has to offer.”
Maricopa is nearly an hour’s drive from the fashionable communities of Scottsdale and Paradise Valley, home to most of the Phoenix area’s well-known residents, including former Vice President Dan Quayle.
An article in The New York Times called Maricopa a “boomtown mirage” in 2008 as tract home after tract home began to go into foreclosure. A real estate Web site notes that Ms. Palin’s new neighborhood has a community park and a swimming pool and is “an easy walk to Ace Hardware and several eateries.”
Poster Comment:
Maybe Bristol will meet up with Red Jones and teach him how to "tap dance" more professionally on the Internet.