Category: Business

By Mike Hazlip—
A business in the Grand Oaks shopping center along Auburn Boulevard was a front for an illegal gambling operation, according to police and nearby business owners.

Citrus Heights police announced Friday that officers serving a search warrant at the location on June 9 uncovered an illegal gambling operation. Two individuals were arrested for outstanding felony warrants and possession of an illegal firearm. Illegal drugs and electronic gambling devices were also reportedly found at the location.

A visit to the center on Friday found the front door of the suite boarded up with two code violation notices posted, both dated June 9.

The Sentinel spoke with several nearby sources who did not want to be identified, but confirmed police activity at the location.

One source said the illegal activity was concentrated during overnight hours behind the Grand Oaks center with heavy vehicle traffic. Sentinel staff observed one awning behind the center painted red. An IT business initially moved into the space several months ago and soon built a wall just inside the front door, according to the source.

A sign at the front door of the suite says “Welcome to IT Training” but does not give a business name. The sign reads: “Entrance behind this building, door with red umbrella.”

Another source told The Sentinel the suite had been occupied for three or four months. Multiple law enforcement agencies were involved in the operation, the source said.

Police said officers from the department’s IMPACT team worked with the Department of Justice Bureau of Gambling Control to investigate the operation. Further investigation is ongoing.

By Mike Hazlip—
More and more homes in Citrus Heights and the Sacramento region are seeing reductions in prices from original list price, as interest rates rise and the housing market begins to cool.

A two-bedroom, two-bath home at 6624 Oak Branch Ct. was originally listed at $519,000 last month, but now that same home is $489,990. Another three-bedroom home on Merlindale Drive was listed two weeks ago at $525,000, but has already been reduced to $499,990.

Real estate appraiser Ryan Lundquist of the Sacramento Appraisal Blog says it’s a different market today than just a few months ago. As of June 2, he said Citrus Heights had 64 active listings, with 19 of them having a price reduction, equating to 29.6% of homes on the market seeing a price drop.

“The housing market sizzle has faded and we’ve entered a different season. We’ve basically said goodbye to the most aggressive housing market ever, and we’re in a new market now,” Lundquist says.

A top factor influencing the slower the market, Lundquist says, is a return to normalcy. He sees the increased demand for larger homes fueled by pandemic work-from-home orders beginning to wane, saying the “mad rush to the market has subsided.”

What Citrus Heights is seeing is on par with the region, where 33% of all active listings in the Sacramento region have seen price reductions, according to Lundquist.

Listings for Citrus Heights on Zillow show a home at 8446 Robie Wy., has seen three price reductions since first being listed in April for $845,000. The home is now listed for $750,000.

Another home in the newly developed Mitchell Village is up for sale with two price reductions since April. The four-bedroom, three-bath home built in 2021 is currently on the market for $649,000.

Citrus Heights real estate broker Cara Richey says price reductions should not necessarily be a “red flag” for buyers. Richey says listings priced above comparable homes are now above market value as values return to normal.

“When a market begins to shift, it’s not uncommon to see the price reductions happen, but often these reductions are simply reflecting homes that were listed at a progressive pricing – above actual sold comp value,” Richey said. “When the market suddenly stops increasing, those homes are suddenly above market value and often the price reductions are bringing them back to actual sold comps prices.”

A June 1 report by CNBC says mortgage demand nationally has reached its lowest level since 2018.

By Mike Hazlip—
With prices for a single-family home in Citrus Heights often going for well-over $500,000 in today’s market, here’s what buyers can find in the $700,000 range.

For $699,900, buyers can get a 2,446-square-foot, four-bedroom, three-bath home on Kingswood Drive, located a block away from Kingswood K-8 school. The single-story home sits on a large lot with a third of an acre and space for a small RV, according to the listing.

The home was built in 1960, according to Sacramento County Assessor’s Office records. It last sold in 2011 for $214,000.

Other homes can still be purchased in the half-million-dollar range, typically three-bedroom, two-bath homes that were well-below $500,000 a few years ago. One listing on the low end of a search by Sentinel staff shows an 881-square-foot, two-bedroom, one-bath home on a quarter-acre for $399,000. A 1,068-square-foot home on Alma Mesa Way is listed at $455,000, with three bedrooms and two baths.

At the top end are three homes listed in the $900,000 range, and one at $1.25 million.

Local real estate broker Cara Richey says she is seeing a change in the market compared to six months ago.

“Buyers in the $500,000 price range are beginning to feel relief as inventory ticks up,” Richey said. “As inventory has begun to rise (along with interest rates), sellers are being checked on their pricing and demands as buyers have more homes to choose from.”

Richey expects homes on the market to be selling closer to comparable homes, rather than going for significantly above asking price. She expects rising interest rates to give buyers a little more leverage, but said sellers can still expect multiple offers.

Ryan Lundquist of the Sacramento Appraisal Blog published data indicating a potential downward trend in the monthly median home price for the Sacramento, Placer, Yolo, and El Dorado County region. Lundquist sees the market “decelerating” but says the monthly median home price remains above previous years.

In a recent Realtor’s Column for The Sentinel, real estate broker Beth Moran said the Citrus Heights market saw a decrease in total sales of just over 10 percent from March to April.

Moran also said mobile home sales have been higher, as buyers are priced out of conventional homes. She said 20 mobile homes closed in April with an average price of $135,819.

By Mike Hazlip—
An expansive mobile home park in Citrus Heights is seeking to make room for another 20 homes, adding to the 500-plus mobile homes already located in the park.

Plans submitted to the city on behalf of Lakeview Village Mobile Home park show a five-acre parcel currently being used as RV parking would be shifted to make room for a new row of mobile homes along Hidden Brook Lane and Daisy Lane. The current RV parking area would be expanded to the east, allowing for a total of 116 parking spots, documents show.

Citrus Heights Economic Development and Communications Manager Meghan Huber told The Sentinel Thursday the proposal was reviewed by city staff, but it was “deemed incomplete.” She said additional information is required from the applicant before the proposal can go to the Planning Commission.

The Sentinel’s request for comment from Lakeview Village corporate owner, Bessire & Casenhiser, Inc., was not returned by press time Thursday.

Huber said when a hearing date has been determined, all residents of the mobile home park as well as properties within 300 feet of the site will be notified by mail.

Lakeview Village is a 55-and-up housing community located between Van Maren Lane and Interstate 80. The park was owned by the Catholic Diocese of Sacramento until it was sold in the early 2000s to help pay a $35 million settlement alleging sexual abuse by priests.

With home prices showing no sign of dropping anytime soon, mobile home ownership is becoming a more attractive option for some buyers, according to local real estate broker Beth Moran. In a recent column for The Sentinel, Moran said the mobile home market gets little attention, but sales have been increasing on par with traditional home sales.

“As prices rise and people get priced out of conventional housing these more affordable homes have a greater allure,” Moran said.

LendingTree senior economic analyst Jacob Channel told Realtor.com mobile homes are appealing to first-time home buyers. Because of their lower initial price, mobile homes offer young buyers a potential upside as prices rise at a faster rate, Channel said.

Realtor.com reports the median value of a mobile home nationally was $53,300 with a 39% increase from 2014 to 2019. In Citrus Heights, mobile homes currently on the market range in price from as low as $77,000 to over $200,000.

Sentinel staff report–
The Rite Aid store at the corner of Auburn Boulevard and Van Maren Lane in Citrus Heights reopened Thursday after being closed for several days due to a water pipe breakage.

A notice dated Monday, May 23, was observed posted on the front door of the store at 6661 Auburn Blvd. on Wednesday, stating that the store was temporarily closed “due to a burst water pipe.” The notice stated that the drive-thru pharmacy at the location remained open.

In a phone call Thursday morning, an assistant manager confirmed the store had reopened with normal hours of 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. He could not provide specific details about the damage, but said the store had been closed for more than one day due to the incident and that insurance is handling all the damage.

By Mike Hazlip—
The Citrus Heights Planning Commission last week approved plans for a 200-seat event center in the Citrus Plaza shopping center near Greenback Lane and San Juan Avenue.

The commission voted 6-0 in favor of approval during a May 11 meeting last week. Chair Marcelle Flowers absent, according to the city.

Plans show the currently vacant 10,840-square-foot space at 6240 San Juan Ave. will have room for about 19 tables with 10 chairs each. The applicant is listed as Stonewater Holdings, LLC, with public records listing a mailing address for the business in Roseville.

Proposed uses for the space include church gatherings, weddings and receptions, and similar events, according to the document. Kitchen facilities are not included in the plans, and no structural modifications are required, according to the document.

A spokeswoman for the property owner, Stefaniya Trach, confirmed plans to use the space as an event center. Trach owns Citrus Plaza Catering, also located in Citrus Plaza, but said the new event center is under a separate owner.

The applicant’s proposed uses for the site are not during normal business hours, minimizing impact to surrounding businesses, according to the plans. There are no plans to modify or expand the existing parking lot.

Records show the commission found the project to be exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) because it uses an existing facility.

The shopping plaza recently received a face-lift, after exterior work at the center was conducted last year to repair dry rot and improve the look of the building.

Records from the Sacramento County Assessor’s office indicate structures on the 2-acre parcel were originally built in 1985 and transferred ownership in March 2021, after originally being listed for sale at $2.5 million. The property has a total leasable area of more than 26,000 square feet.

The plaza currently has a mix of tenants including a market, bookstore, dentist, and salon. The plaza’s main anchor tenant was once Jo-Ann’s fabric store, but it reportedly closed in 2008. Vacant portions of the building have been a frequent location for homeless individuals to sleep in front of, as the building has an overhang covering a front walkway.

San Juan Unified School District had most recently leased the former Jo-Ann’s site in 2019 for temporary use as a storage facility.