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
Is Ridgecrest Heights right for you?
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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.