Kelseyville/Lakeport possible move (Redding, Napa: for sale, to rent, hotel)

[goinglikesixty]

I am currently living in Ajijic, Mexico where my latest flip goes up for sale next week. Most of the threads on the Clearlake area are very dated. I see opportunity in the area and would like current input from folks on the good, the bad and the ugly. I am retired but still enjoy using the skills I have acquired over a 40-year career in construction to buy, re-imagine and sell properties.

I got the heads-up on the Clearlake area from an investor who was visiting here and has acquired a house in Clearlake. So have been spending research hours in my regular due diligence process and will be there in July. I don't see myself as tied (long term) to almost anywhere but am looking for general input from people who live in the area. I understand that the group who bought the resort have deep pockets and are moving forward on refurbishment and development. Thus seems significant to me. Thanking you in advance for specific input!

[Snort]

I used to live in Potter Valley, which is near the border of Lake County and know people who live in Lucerne and Nice (which isn't!). Neither is Lucerne, for that matter. There's an overabundance of weirdness, including but not limited to drug use (meth, for example).
The general feeling I get from locals is that the only town worthy of a serious look is Upper Lake (if you're thinking of putting down roots).
Very small town with an interesting historic hotel (the Tallman), which is a nice place to hang out on the patio and listen to live music during the summer. The restaurant and bar is on the opposite side of the patio.
"Clearlake" is another misnomer.
If you want a look at an interesting alternative, have a look at Blue Lakes, which is in Mendocino County, just down the road from Upper Lake.

[Mr5150]

Lake county is a dump with the potential of gentrification. Proceed at your own risk.

[Ruth4Truth]

The State dumps early parolees from the prisons it's trying to relieve the congestion in, around the towns of Clearlake and Lower Lake. The entire area is somewhat fire-prone, and had a forest fire sweep through just a couple of years ago. Given the prognosis for further drought in the future, not to mention the presence of a significant number of unemployed ex-cons, I wouldn't make any major investments there.

The status of the land in or around Lakeport may be challenged in the future, as there's a federally-recognized tribe that had a land base in Lakeport until around the 1950's, and hopes to re-establish itself there. Did your investor colleague tell you there are several Indian tribes and a couple of rancherias around the lake? One has a casino. Also, there's mercury pollution in the lake, from old mines. One of the tribes has been trying to get the federal government to clean that up.
http://www.pressdemocrat.com/news/59...-in-clear-lake

Given these realities, it's not a good candidate for the kind of development you (et al.) envision. It may look tempting, on the surface of it, due to the cheap land, but when you take a deeper look, you find out there are issues.

[NoMoreSnowForMe]

You would think that that area would eventually gentrify, but I had that same thought way back in the 1990's, and nothing has changed. It's just not close enough to any major town, and too inconvenient of a drive from them.

It's a poor area and not well-planned. You will have interspersed nice homes surrounded by ugly rusted out trailers. I thought long and hard about buying there, drove around there many times over the years, and chose to rent rather than buy there.

I actually moved to the Ajijic area for a year around 1999/2000 from Davis, CA. I left there and moved back to the Woodland area, and looked at buying in the Clear Lake area, and chose to continue renting instead.

I lived in Crescent City and met a couple who had a home in Hidden Valley Lake, and told me they were unable to sell it. That was a failure of a development, too.

If you are looking for somewhere to invest that is affordable with some potential, I'd look at the Redding area. It's God-awful hot for half the year, but has a lot more going for it than the Clear Lake area. There would be some other possibilities, too. But, if you're looking at "cheap" with the potential for growth, you're limited in CA.

I only know northern CA, so you may be able to find some place in southern CA that can also fit the bill. But, I would advise against Lake County as an investment. It might not be a bad place to live, but I wouldn't invest there.

[Carlyee3]

Clearlake always reminded me as a good place to be on the run from the law and to hide out. Sort of a place where Dr. Kimball, The Fugitive, would pick.

Poor economies, druggie over run, and fire prone. Lake and Napa counties are two of the most burned over areas in No. CA., in terms of frequency and fire size.

[Ruth4Truth]

I think the OP and others like him look at the scenic lake, and the history of the area being a rustic resort location long ago (there are hot springs above the lake, I think), and look at the RE prices, and think they've found an undiscovered diamond in the rough. But there are reasons why it hasn't been developed, other than a few wineries in the area. The lake isn't safe for swimming or for fishing, really, and has an out-of-control algae bloom during some months.

This is why it's so important to do solid research before investing in anything. Not simply crunching numbers, but digging behind the scenes, to see if a property, or a business, or stocks, or whatever, are actually worth acquiring.

[2sleepy]

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

The State dumps early parolees from the prisons it's trying to relieve the congestion in, around the towns of Clearlake and Lower Lake.

That is NOT true. Parolees are released to the same place where they lived when they were arrested, so the inmates released to lake county are in fact, lake county residents. The only exception to that is if an inmate's victim objects to their release to where the victim lives, CDCR can place them in a different county but that does not infer that large numbers of out of county parolees are released to Lake County

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by 2sleepy

That is NOT true. Parolees are released to the same place where they lived when they were arrested, so the inmates released to lake county are in fact, lake county residents. The only exception to that is if an inmate's victim objects to their release to where the victim lives, CDCR can place them in a different county but that does not infer that large numbers of out of county parolees are released to Lake County

This is interesting. Where were you, on the threads bashing Redding, for being a similar parolee dumping ground?

[2sleepy]

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

This is interesting. Where were you, on the threads bashing Redding, for being a similar parolee dumping ground?

If Redding or Lake County have large numbers of parolees it is because large numbers of people are sent to prison in those counties. The law dictating this is in the California Penal Code:

Penal Code Section 3003 (a) – Residential Placement
(a) Except as otherwise provided in this section, an inmate who is released on parole shall be returned to the county that was the last legal residence of the inmate prior to his or her incarceration. For purposes of this subdivision, "last legal residence" shall not be construed to mean the county wherein the inmate committed an offense while confined in a state prison or local jail facility or while confined for treatment in a state hospital.