Sentinel staff report–
The dilapidated and boarded-up home at the corner of Old Auburn Road and Mariposa Avenue is now in escrow, after being listed in February at an asking price of $400,000.
Ken Dick, a broker associate with Keller Williams who is representing the Sacramento County Conservator’s Office in selling the home through the probate process, confirmed the news on Tuesday, but said he couldn’t disclose the purchase price or the buyer’s name until escrow closes, likely at the end of April.
“At this point I’m not going to go forward with the [name],” Dick told The Sentinel, although he confirmed the buyer is a private party rather than a governmental agency. He also hinted “there could be some good news that could be tied to it,” apparently referring to plans the new buyer may have for the property, but he declined to give any more information.
In January, the City of Citrus Heights had shown interest in potentially purchasing the property for a bargain price through a tax-defaulted sale process, but backed off when it was discovered that heirs for the property’s former resident, James Wheeler, had been located.
Wheeler passed away inside the home last year, leading to the property being boarded up and then entering probate — a court-supervised process of administering a deceased person’s estate.
A real estate listing for the property describes it as a “very unique” parcel at 7716 Old Auburn Rd., with 2.74-acres of land and potential for residential development, or possible zoning change to allow a church, school or other business. The listing says the home was constructed in 1940, with a 1,368-square-feet floor plan that includes three bedrooms and one bathroom.
However, the home will likely have to be demolished due to its poor condition.
“I think that we have active mold in the house, and for health reasons no one is allowed in the property,” Dick previously told The Sentinel, noting water damage from leaks in the roof. “Basically what we’re saying is that the condition of house is questionable and that the real value is in the land.”
The broker associate said as part of probate, two bids had been submitted to purchase the property, and “the winner is the one that went to court for the confirmation and nobody showed up to overbid at court.”
Although not disclosing the winning bid price, Dick said “for any bid to have been valid it would have had to have been within 10% of the list price,” meaning a minimum price of $360,000.
To learn more about the history of the property and the probate sale process, see story: Q&A: what’s going on now with the boarded-up home on Old Auburn?
