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Tiny town

Living in Ridgecrest Heights, CA

Ridgecrest Heights is a tiny town of 370 people in Kern County, California. It's about 77 miles from Bakersfield, CA and 116 miles from Riverside, CA, the nearest major city. Summer highs average 103°F and winter highs 60°F, with almost no snow. The typical home is valued around $251k and rent runs about $1k a month.

370people
$251kTypical home
$1,300/moRent
103° / 60°Summer / winter
1"Snow
336Sunny days
21Rain/snow days

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Size & setting

  • Tiny town of 370
  • Its own small hub, not a suburb
  • About 613 people per sq mi
  • 116 mi to Riverside, CA
  • 77 mi to Bakersfield, CA
  • 3 mi to the nearest town of 10k+

Money

  • Typical home $251k (≈$1,585/mo)
  • Median rent $1,300/mo
  • Median household income $74k
  • Property tax about 0.5% of value
  • 11.0% unemployment

Weather

  • Summer highs around 103°F
  • Winter highs around 60°F
  • Dry summers (dew point 36°F)
  • 336 sunny days a year (234 totally clear)
  • 29 cloudy days a year
  • 16 of 90 winter days are gray
  • 21 days a year with rain or snow
  • Basically no snow
  • Snow days are rare
  • 74 days a year over 100°F
  • Rarely drops below 10°F
  • Breezy

Safety

  • Above-average violent crime (646 per 100k), county-wide
  • About average property crime (1,864 per 100k), county-wide

People

  • Median age 42
  • 33% of households have kids
  • 17% are 65 or older
  • 16% have a college degree
  • Mixed community
  • 10% of residents are college students

Getting around & homes

  • Average commute 22 min
  • 1% walk or take transit to work
  • 77 mi to BFL airport
  • 104 mi to BUR (major hub)
  • 75 mi to the nearest Amtrak station
  • 61% single-family homes
  • Typical home built around 1976
  • 92% of homes have broadband

Outdoors

  • Hilly terrain
  • Elevation 2,435 ft
  • 118 mi to the ocean
  • 145 mi to a big lake
  • 28 mi to the nearest trailhead
  • 49 mi to the nearest ski area
  • 6 mi to the nearest campground
  • 1 golf course within 25 mi

Things to do

  • 18 sit-down restaurants within 25 mi
  • Few or no bars within 25 mi
  • 9 coffee shops within 25 mi
  • No music venues & clubs within 25 mi
  • 7 museums within 25 mi
  • 1 brewery or distillery within 25 mi
  • 3 mi to the nearest farmers market

Everyday

  • Schools in the bottom 43% of California districts (reading)
  • 2 mi to the nearest grocery store
  • 2 mi to the nearest ER hospital
  • 102 mi to a 4–5★ hospital
  • 2 mi to the nearest vet
  • 3 mi to the nearest dog park
  • 3 congregations per 10k people
  • 69 mi to the nearest college

Politics

  • Kern County: R+21 in 2024
  • California: D+20 in 2024

Natural hazards

  • Very low hurricane risk
  • Very low tornado risk
  • High wildfire risk
  • High earthquake risk
  • Very low flood risk
  • High drought risk
  • Low winter storm risk
  • Moderate heat wave risk
  • Very low volcano risk

Limited data: this place is small enough that most of its Census numbers (rent, home value, income, age) are blended with county figures. Treat its match as a rough guide.

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