Phelan vs Victobile (Riverside, San Bernardino, Orange: rental, high crime, good credit)

[kevin7777777]

Hello,
We're thinking to buy a property in Phelan which has old manufactured house.
Because it is old manufactured house, it is cash only.
The reason we're thinking to buy the property is because we can use the property for our online business.

However I can't find much information about Phelan.
I heard that Victorville is bad for high crime rate.
Is Phelan safe area, or is Phelan also have issue like high crime, drug ,and gang?



Also I wonder if there is possible development in future in the area, so that I can expect increase in value.
I have seen many properties in the area that value of property stays or down even after 10, 15 years.
So, I want to be careful.
I heard from someone that Tesla will make underground tunnel from somewhere near Victorville to Las Vegas. I'm not sure if it is true or not.


I heard that it is easy to find a tenant there even before pandemic and until now.
However there is not many jobs in the area. So I'm curious what those people who live in the area are doing for living? Do most of them have job in other area, and do they commute from Phelan?

I know the weather is also not very good.
Can you tell me if it is something that most person can bear or not?


Please share any information if you know well about Phelan.

Thank you.

[marino760]

The high desert in general is a magnet for crime. Victorville is not an island. All the towns there run into each other and unless you pay close attention, you don't know where one ends and another begins including Adelanto and Phelan. Phelan is more rural with open acreage but there is still plenty of crime and drugs. Hesperia and Apple Valley are also high in crime and Adelanto is worse than Victorville. Apple Valley for many years has had its very own "felony flats". When considering crime, neighborhoods are more important than what city you are in.
Virtually all the towns also have the same climate depending on how close you are to the mountains. Phelan can butt almost right up to the San Gabriel mountains so it can be colder and with more snow than let's say Victorville. If you come from Orange county, you may think the weather is terrible, but if you come from the Midwest, the climate will seem very mild so it's all your personal perspective. Expect lots of wind, especially in spring and during winter storms.

Don't expect a huge increase in value anytime soon or maybe during your lifetime. Prices do increase but not at a rate like other parts of CA. They've been talking about building a freeway from Palmdale to Victorville for decades but it never happens. Tesla building a tunnel through the San Gabriel mountains or to Vegas is someone's fantasy. It's never going to happen for lots of reasons including astronomical costs and damage to the environment. Nearly everyone who doesn't work from home and has a pretty good job drives down the hill to the Inland Empire for work. That's why the 15 frwy is a traffic nightmare and constantly is riddled with accidents even on weekends.

The high desert including Phelan can be a nice place to live depending on what you are looking for but don't expect it to be like Rancho Cucamonga or Riverside by any means. It's not going to happen.
I lived there for many years and almost bought a place in Phelan back in the 80s. The high desert was a different world then, being low in crime, lots of open space, virtually no traffic and ample natural beauty. Phelan can be a nice place but there are a lot of variables. Do your homework before you buy anything.

[kevin7777777]

Thank you very much for the detail information about Phelan and High desert!!!


I heard from a person who has couple houses in Phelan that it is very easy to make rental income because there is many people who want to get rent. Do you think if it is true? I can see that there is not many available rent in Phelan area.
So it looks like true.
However, I can see many available space for rent in Riverside and Victobile area. So I don't understand why people try to get rent in Phelan area.

By the way, can you tell me the safest area in Phelan?
I'm thinking to get a property near Downtown Phelan area.

Thank you.

[LivingLikeAGradStudent]

One reason people would rent in Phelan is to be in the Serrano HS district. Most other High Desert schools are, to put it mildly, challenged academically and economically.

[kevin7777777]

Thank you for the reply.

I heard that it is not easy to find tenants who has good credit scores. I was told that vacancy rate is high to evict and find new tenants.



By the way, I though Phelan is safe area. However today I saw the crime rate(per 100k people) in Phelan is worse than Victorville, and the rate was 57% increased compared with last year.
Moderator cut: link removed, competitor site
I wonder what is going on the area.

I saw YouTube videos that there is cartels or people growing weeds in the high desert area, and they shoot people who approach to their property.
I heard that home price was increased for couple years because those people purchased houses with cash to grow weed.
The most recent video that I saw is that SB county and other agency raided them and changed a law so that they can accuse to home owner and it worked https://www.youtube.com/results?sear...h+desert+crime

Are there still many dangerous people out there?


Thank you.

[NYSD1995]

I actually like the high desert. It is really a lot closer to LA metro than people give it credit for. And It looks sort of empty but it's not. Yes, there are a lot of weed grows, junk lots, sketchiness in the high desert, period. That is because of LA. A lot depends on how the area is built out. If you are talking about the mini-rancho property of 1-2 acre lots, you will see nice homes and you will see trashy ones. It's mostly going to be quiet. Closer to Victorville you will see typical suburban type developments. My opinion is that the closer you live to the foothills, the farther away your neighbors the better the area out there. Adelanto area is not good. I would rather live in the high desert than San Bernardino or South LA by a long shot. No brainer to sell your house in SB and live over there, you are basically 30 minutes away from friends and family.

Phelan specifically looks pretty low density and spread out, so I think a lot depends on the exact location of your property.

[CowboyWilson]

>Tesla building a tunnel through the San Gabriel mountains or to Vegas is someone's fantasy
The project is closed

[sacreole]

I recall back in the early 90s being solicited on buying land and residential lots in Adelanto. The promoter thought Adelanto would be the next big thing. In hindsight, I'm glad I passed on the proposition.