A Vineyard, Homes and Empty Churches: A Bankrupt Diocese Keeps Selling Property

• The Diocese of Santa Rosa filed for bankruptcy in April 2023
• It faces 260 sexual abuse claims
• New listings included a 12.44-acre Napa Valley vineyard and two homes
• Two unused churches sold in 2025 for $450,000 and $275,000

A California Catholic diocese is selling off vineyards, homes and land as abuse claims mount, The Press Democrat reported in February 2026.

The Diocese of Santa Rosa filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in April 2023 and faces 260 sexual abuse allegations. Its latest five listings included a 2.46-acre parcel in Sebastopol, a 12.44-acre Napa Valley vineyard, an 8.19-acre property in Humboldt County, a Napa home listed at $569,000 and a Santa Rosa home listed at $475,000. In autumn 2025 it sold two unused churches: Our Lady of Mount Carmel for $450,000 and St Francis for $275,000.

Agents described the properties’ challenges. “We expect to have a buyer selected by early first quarter,” said listing agent Kris Riley, adding of one site: “It has more challenges, with flood issues that have to be addressed.” Another agent, Cynthia Cunningham, said of a home: “It’s been in the condition of being taken down to the studs for a long time.” For the Humboldt land, agent Marc Matteoli said: “The City of Rio Dell has expressed willingness to work with a developer to create residential development here.”

Church property, from vineyards to houses, is being turned into cash to meet liabilities. Some of it is likely to become new homes, as the Rio Dell comment suggests.

The case is part of a wider pattern of dioceses selling property under legal and financial pressure. It shows how quickly a church’s real estate can become its main source of cash when liabilities arrive, and how much of that estate may be sitting unused.

For Jamaican churches, the takeaway is not about abuse cases but about preparedness: know what property you hold, keep it insured and in good condition, and have a plan for surplus land, so that decisions about sales are made on the church’s terms rather than forced by a crisis.

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