A decades-old, black-and-white print advertisement, complete with a vintage-scrolly font reads “Casa Blanca, Near Majestic Camelback Mountain – A Desert Paradise Where Summer Spends the Winter”.<br /><br />The Casa Blanca in question—an iconic Moroccan-inspired construction in Arizona’s Paradise Valley —pre-dates the Oscar-winning, Morocco-set Casablanca (1944) by some stretch. Built in the 1920s by architect R.T. (Bob) Evans, the script for this Casa Blanca meanders through a fascinating past and present.<br /><br />Two years ago, Phoenix-based Haute House Design and Interior's Jessica Ellingford and Jasmine Gray purchased one of the enclave’s townhomes with full intention to renovate, remodel and sell. <br />This 2,125 square foot fully redesigned home is now on the market and creating quite a stir, listed for $3.25 million by agents Jennifer Burgess and Siena Koppelman of RETSY. <br /><br />“Buyers’ agents have consistently told us that in all their years of selling homes in the Casa Blanca development, no one has taken a remodel to the level of this listing,” says Burgess.<br /><br />The design duo hired architect Lab Design Collaborative to gut outdated areas like the galley kitchen, open up closed-off spaces and maintain the integrity of the Moroccan-Mediterranean style as created by the gated community’s original architect. <br /><br />In the case of Casa Blanca, the original gate, with its "White City" whitewashed walls and domes, is somewhat of a landmark in Paradise Valley, proudly marking the entry into this storied property. <br /><br />Approaching the grounds, you notice rose and cactus gardens lovingly tended by professional landscapers, three heated swimming pools, plus tennis and pickleball courts—amenities you’d expect at a resort. All set against the dramatic tableau of Camelback Mountain.<br /><br />Read the full story: https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbes-global-properties/2025/06/04/playing-casa-blanca-again-at-a-reinvented-riad-style-retreat-in-arizona/ <br /><br />Subscribe to Forbes Life: https://www.youtube.com/c/ForbesLife?sub_confirmation=1<br /><br />Stay Connected<br />Forbes on Facebook: http://fb.com/forbes<br />Forbes Video on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/forbesvideo<br />Forbes Video on Instagram: http://instagram.com/forbesvideo<br />More From Forbes: http://forbes.com<br /><br />Forbes covers the intersection of entrepreneurship, wealth, technology, business and lifestyle with a focus on people and success.
