Trying to choose between Desert Highlands and Desert Mountain for a second home? It is a smart comparison, because both are private North Scottsdale club communities, but they serve seasonal owners in very different ways. If you want a clearer path to the right fit, this guide will help you compare lifestyle, travel convenience, club structure, and lock-and-leave practicality. Let’s dive in.
Why This Comparison Matters
Desert Highlands and Desert Mountain are often grouped together because both offer private club living in North Scottsdale. Still, the day-to-day experience can feel very different once you look past the shared desert setting and golf reputation.
Desert Highlands is the smaller, more integrated club-home environment at the base of Pinnacle Peak. Desert Mountain is a much larger master-planned community farther north, with multiple villages, broader amenities, and more layers to ownership and membership.
For a second-home buyer, that difference matters. Your ideal fit may come down to whether you want a more compact, simplified club lifestyle or a larger, more resort-like campus with more variety.
Desert Highlands at a Glance
Desert Highlands describes itself as a private community of 563 families in North Scottsdale. One of its most important distinctions is that all owners are members and all members are owners, with membership tied directly to property ownership at the time of purchase.
That structure creates a very direct relationship between buying a home and gaining access to the club. For many second-home buyers, that can feel simpler and easier to understand than a more layered membership process.
Desert Highlands Amenities
The amenity package in Desert Highlands is focused rather than sprawling. The club includes:
- An 18-hole Jack Nicklaus Signature golf course
- A separate 18-hole putting course
- A racquet club with 13 tennis courts and 4 pickleball courts
- A fitness center
- A pool
- Dining venues
- Member services
This gives the community a boutique feel. You have a strong set of amenities, but the environment is centered around a tighter club rhythm rather than a large campus with many separate activity zones.
Desert Highlands for Seasonal Living
For second-home use, Desert Highlands stands out for its service-forward approach. The club says its in-house security department operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and residential services can help watch over homes while owners are away.
Those services also include practical support such as changing filters, salting water softeners, and assisting with home-inspection style needs. If you expect to come and go seasonally, that kind of oversight can be a major advantage.
Desert Mountain at a Glance
Desert Mountain is larger in almost every way. The community spans 8,300 acres in North Scottsdale and is home to more than 5,000 residents across 35 villages.
That scale shapes the lifestyle. Instead of one central club experience, you have a broad private-club campus with multiple settings, home types, and membership considerations.
Desert Mountain Amenities
Desert Mountain is especially strong if you want variety. According to current club materials, the community includes:
- Six Jack Nicklaus Signature Championship golf courses
- A seventh championship short course called No. 7
- Seven clubhouses
- Ten restaurants and grills
- A 42,000-square-foot Sonoran Clubhouse with fitness, spa, and wellness facilities
- A racquet complex with 9 tennis courts and 8 pickleball courts
- 25 miles of private hiking trails
- More than 40 member-led social clubs
For many second-home owners, that means you can spend extended time in the community without feeling limited in your routine. There is simply more range in how you structure your time.
Desert Mountain Home Choices
Desert Mountain also offers a wider real estate mix. Official materials show custom homes, villas, cottages, patio homes, future estates, and Seven Desert Mountain residences designed specifically as lock-and-leave homes.
That broader inventory can be helpful if your second-home goals are very specific. You may want a lower-maintenance residence, a custom estate, or a property with a certain village setting, and Desert Mountain gives you more ways to match the home to the lifestyle.
Travel Convenience for a Second Home
If you plan to fly in and out often, travel time should be part of your decision. Phoenix Sky Harbor is the main commercial airport to evaluate, with more than 130 domestic and 26 international nonstop destinations.
Scottsdale Airport serves a different role. The City of Scottsdale describes it as a general aviation reliever facility with no commercial commuter or airline service.
Which Community Is Closer?
Desert Highlands sits at 10040 East Happy Valley Road and has been described in official materials as roughly 40 minutes from Sky Harbor and about 25 minutes to Old Town Scottsdale. Desert Mountain, located at 37700 Desert Mountain Parkway, has been described in official materials as about 50 minutes from Sky Harbor.
Taken together, that suggests Desert Highlands is the closer-in option if you expect more airport trips or more frequent drives into central Scottsdale. Desert Mountain may appeal more if you prefer a more secluded base and do not mind being farther from the urban core.
Golf Culture and Daily Routine
Both communities are golf-oriented, but the golf experience is not the same.
Desert Highlands offers a more concentrated golf identity. Its course opened in 1983, hosted the first PGA Skins Game, and was one of the earliest places to feature a fully realized 18-hole putting course. If you like a classic golf-first environment with a distinct identity, that story may resonate with you.
Desert Mountain offers scale and variation. With seven courses and multiple clubhouses, your routine can shift from day to day with more options for play, dining, and social time. For buyers who want a broader club ecosystem, that flexibility can be a major draw.
Ownership and Membership Differences
This is one of the most important areas to compare before you buy a second home.
In Desert Highlands, membership is tied to ownership and activates at the time of home purchase. That means the ownership-and-club relationship is unusually straightforward, which can reduce the number of separate decisions you need to make after closing.
In Desert Mountain, ownership and club access are not always the same thing. The HOA states that all property owners are HOA members whether or not they are club members, which is an important distinction.
Why This Matters in Desert Mountain
Desert Mountain supports seasonal ownership, but the structure is more layered. Official materials indicate that the HOA oversees security, architectural integrity, and infrastructure, while club-related access and membership can involve separate review timing.
Agent materials for Desert Mountain note that buyers should begin the membership review process before starting a home search or no later than contract acceptance, and that applications are reviewed over about 30 days. Some Seven Desert Mountain homes tie membership to ownership for approved applicants, but that is specific to that village structure rather than a rule across the full community.
For a second-home buyer, this means the details of the specific property matter a great deal. You will want clarity on what ownership includes, what requires separate approval, and how timing may affect your purchase plans.
Lock-and-Leave Living
Many second-home buyers care less about square footage and more about ease. If you are not in Scottsdale year-round, convenience and peace of mind often become deciding factors.
Desert Highlands has the clearest lock-and-leave support structure in its public materials. Between 24/7 in-house security and residential services that monitor and help maintain homes while owners are away, it speaks directly to seasonal ownership needs.
Desert Mountain also works well for part-time living, especially because it offers home types that include lock-and-leave options. Still, the practical experience can vary by village and by whether club membership is tied to the home or handled separately.
Which Community Fits You Best?
If your priority is a more compact club, simpler ownership-to-membership alignment, strong residential support, and easier airport access, Desert Highlands may be the better fit. It tends to suit buyers who want a focused club routine with fewer moving parts.
If your priority is breadth, Desert Mountain may be the better match. It offers more golf variety, more dining venues, more trails, more home types, and a larger private-club campus that can feel almost self-contained during your seasonal stays.
Neither choice is universally better. The right answer depends on how you want your second home to function in real life.
What to Verify Before You Buy
Before making a decision, focus on the details most likely to change the outcome. In these communities, the small structural differences can have a big impact on your ownership experience.
Here are the key points to verify:
- Whether the specific home includes club access or requires separate approval
- How HOA obligations and club obligations are structured for that property
- Whether you prefer a single-course club identity or a multi-course club campus
- How important airport access and trips into Scottsdale are to your routine
- Whether you want built-in home watch support or a broader mix of lock-and-leave home types
When you compare these points clearly, the choice usually becomes easier.
If you are weighing Desert Highlands against Desert Mountain, local insight matters. As long-time Desert Mountain members who live on property, Power+ helps buyers evaluate village nuances, home types, and community logistics with the discretion and precision a second-home purchase deserves.
FAQs
What is the main difference between Desert Highlands and Desert Mountain for a second-home buyer?
- Desert Highlands offers a smaller, more integrated club-home setting with membership tied to ownership, while Desert Mountain offers a larger community with more villages, more amenities, and more variation in home and membership structures.
Which North Scottsdale community is closer to Phoenix Sky Harbor?
- Based on official community materials, Desert Highlands is generally the closer option, at roughly 40 minutes from Sky Harbor, while Desert Mountain has been listed at about 50 minutes.
Does Desert Highlands membership come with home ownership?
- Yes. Desert Highlands states that all owners are members and all members are owners, with membership activated at the time of home purchase.
Does every Desert Mountain home include club membership?
- No. Desert Mountain states that all property owners are HOA members, but club membership can be separate and may require review, depending on the property and village structure.
Which community offers more lock-and-leave support for seasonal owners?
- Desert Highlands presents the clearest public lock-and-leave support through 24/7 in-house security and residential services that watch over homes while owners are away.
Which community offers more golf and amenity variety in North Scottsdale?
- Desert Mountain offers more overall variety, with seven golf courses, seven clubhouses, ten restaurants and grills, private hiking trails, wellness facilities, and a wide range of social clubs.
