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GreatPlacesToRetire |

Your comparison of popular California retirement cities is provided below. Use the drop down box to make another state comparison.
| California Cities | |||||||||
| blank | Monterey | Napa | Palm Springs | South Lake Tahoe | San Luis Obispo | Newport Beach | Half Moon Bay | Bishop | 99-City Avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| City Type | |||||||||
| City Type | West Coast, Wine Country | Wine Country | Mountains, Golf | Lakes & Rivers, Mountains, Casinos | West Coast, College Town, Wine Country | West Coast | West Coast, Mountains, Wine Country | Mountains, National Parks | na |
| Population (2007) | |||||||||
| Population (Current) | 28,478 | 74,247 | 47,906 | 23,374 | 43,516 | 79,554 | 12,336 | 3,457 | 64,621 |
| Population (1990) | 31,954 | 61,842 | 40,181 | 21,585 | 41,958 | 66,643 | 8,886 | 3,475 | 45,518 |
| Land Area (sq mi) | 8 | 18 | 94 | 10 | 11 | 15 | 6 | 2 | 31 |
| Persons Per Square Mile | 3,560 | 4,125 | 510 | 2,337 | 3,956 | 5,304 | 2,056 | 1,729 | 2,035 |
| Home Prices | |||||||||
| 2010 | $494,827 | $372,810 | $310,775 | $356,084 | $465,113 | $1,359,832 | $733,796 | $327,179 | $329,000 |
| Total Appreciation ('01 to '10) | 5.3% | 4.2% | 46.8% | 29.6% | 47.4% | 74.3% | 10.1% | 38.9% | 36.0% |
| Annual Appreciation ('09 to '10) | -22.1% | -9.4% | 4.5% | 2.4% | -1.8% | 8.6% | 19.6% | -5.6% | 2.0% |
| Avg Annual Appreciation ('01 to '10) | 0.6% | 0.5% | 4.4% | 2.9% | 4.4% | 6.4% | 1.1% | 4.2% | 3.9% |
| Big City Prices ('09) | $560,000 | $518,000 | $331,000 | $181,000 | $331,000 | $487,000 | $518,000 | $181,000 | $213,000 |
| Affordability Index | 88% | 72% | 94% | 197% | 141% | 279% | 142% | 181% | 155% |
| Big City | San Jose | San Francisco Bay area | Los Angeles | Reno | Los Angeles | Anaheim-Santa Ana | San Francisco Bay area | Reno | na |
| Cost of Living (2010) | |||||||||
| Cost of Living | 172% | 143% | 128% | 139% | 165% | 381% | 230% | 132% | 127% |
| Air Quality - Annual Avg (2001-2008) | |||||||||
| Good Days | 98% | 80% | 26% | 68% | 80% | 58% | 88% | 73% | 79% |
| Moderate Days | 2% | 18% | 41% | 24% | 18% | 36% | 11% | 20% | 19% |
| Unhealthy for Sensitive Persons Days | 0% | 2% | 24% | 7% | 3% | 5% | 0% | 2% | 2% |
| Unhealthy Days | 0% | 0% | 9% | 1% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 5% | 1% |
| Water Quality (2002-2006) | |||||||||
| Good | 7% | 7% | 47% | 28% | 33% | 3% | 8% | 3% | 40% |
| Threatened | 0% | 21% | 20% | 3% | 1% | 17% | 13% | 11% | 4% |
| Impaired | 93% | 73% | 34% | 70% | 67% | 80% | 79% | 87% | 56% |
| Nearest Large City | |||||||||
| Distance to Nearest City | 75 miles | 42 miles | 109 miles | 100 miles | 122 miles | 14 miles | 30 miles | 204 miles | 97 miles |
| City | San Jose | Oakland | Los Angeles | Sacramento | Bakersfield | Santa Ana | San Francisco | Reno | na |
| Recreation | |||||||||
| National Parks | 12 | 12 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 13 | 5 | 7 |
| National Campgrounds | 5 | 13 | 37 | 106 | 15 | 64 | 3 | 96 | 26 |
| State Parks | 30 | 18 | 5 | 18 | 10 | 14 | 63 | 1 | 11 |
| Medical Care (2009) | |||||||||
| Accredited Hospitals | 1 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 12 | 2 | 1 | 4 |
| Building Permits (single family homes) | |||||||||
| 2009 | 3 | 17 | 59 | 23 | 29 | 46 | 6 | 1 | 151 |
| 2008 | 7 | 75 | 61 | 20 | 69 | 82 | 15 | 1 | 185 |
| Gain ('00 to '09) | -85.7% | -92.5% | -67.0% | -47.7% | -14.7% | -57.4% | -84.2% | -75.0% | -63.9% |
| blank | Monterey | Napa | Palm Springs | South Lake Tahoe | San Luis Obispo | Newport Beach | Half Moon Bay | Bishop | 99-City Avg |
| blank | Monterey | Napa | Palm Springs | South Lake Tahoe | San Luis Obispo | Newport Beach | Half Moon Bay | Bishop | 99-City Avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population Distribution (2006) | |||||||||
| Median Age (yrs) | 36 | 36 | 47 | 33 | 26 | 42 | 39 | 40 | 36 |
| White | 80.8% | 85.9% | 78.3% | 75.7% | 84.1% | 89.9% | 77.3% | 84.6% | 83.3% |
| Black or African American | 2.5% | 1.0% | 3.9% | 0.8% | 1.5% | 0.3% | 3.9% | 0.2% | 6.9% |
| Native American Indian and Alaska Native | 0.6% | 1.3% | 0.9% | 1.0% | 0.6% | 0.4% | 0.4% | 2.0% | 0.8% |
| Asian | 7.4% | 2.2% | 3.8% | 6.0% | 5.3% | 6.3% | 3.4% | 1.3% | 3.2% |
| Native Hawaiian | 0.3% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.2% | 0.1% | 0.0% | 0.1% | 0.0% | 0.2% |
| Other Race | 3.9% | 7.8% | 9.8% | 12.5% | 4.8% | 1.8% | 0.1% | 6.5% | 3.3% |
| Multiple Races | 4.4% | 1.6% | 3.1% | 3.9% | 3.6% | 1.4% | 11.0% | 5.4% | 2.4% |
| Hispanic or Latino | 10.9% | 36.1% | 23.7% | 26.7% | 11.7% | 7.1% | 3.8% | 17.4% | 8.7% |
| Income and Housing (2005) | |||||||||
| Family Income | $58,757 | $58,788 | $45,318 | $40,572 | $56,319 | $111,166 | $92,204 | $34,423 | $55,423 |
| Occupied Housing | 94% | 97% | 67% | 67% | 97% | 89% | 97% | 90% | 86% |
| Vacant Housing | 6% | 3% | 33% | 33% | 3% | 11% | 3% | 10% | 14% |
| Home Ownership | 39% | 61% | 61% | na | 42% | 56% | na | na | 54% |
| Persons Per Family | 2.82 | 3.20 | 2.88 | 3.15 | 2.90 | 2.70 | 3.20 | 2.90 | 2.91 |
| Taxes (2009-2010) | |||||||||
| Local and State | 9.1% | 9.1% | 9.1% | 9.1% | 9.1% | 9.1% | 9.1% | 9.1% | 6.8% |
| Local, State and Federal | 104 days | 104 days | 104 days | 104 days | 104 days | 104 days | 104 days | 104 days | 99 days |
| Climate - Average Temperatures (1971-2000) | |||||||||
| Climate Type | Temperate & Dry | Temperate & Dry | Warm & Dry | Cool & Dry | Temperate & Dry | Temperate & Dry | Temperate & Dry | Cool & Dry | Temperate & Humid |
| January Low Temp | 43 F | 39 F | 44 F | 15 F | 42 F | 48 F | 43 F | 19 F | 27 F |
| July High Temp | 68 F | 83 F | 108 F | 79 F | 80 F | 71 F | 65 F | 83 F | 86 F |
| Annual Precipitation | 20 in | 27 in | 5 in | 20 in | 24 in | 12 in | 28 in | 13 in | 35 in |
| Elevation | 385 ft | 35 ft | 425 ft | 6,254 ft | 315 ft | 10 ft | 16 ft | 6,797 ft | 1,660 ft |
| Natural Hazard Risk | |||||||||
| Total Hazard Risk | Higher | Higher | Higher | Higher | Higher | Higher | Higher | Higher | Moderate |
| Earthquake | 70% | 90% | 100% | 70% | 40% | 80% | 80% | 90% | .6% |
| Tsunami | Risk | No Risk | No Risk | No Risk | Risk | No Risk | Risk | No Risk | No Risk |
| Hurricane | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Flood | Very High | Very High | Very High | Very High | Very High | Very High | Very High | Very High | Very High |
| Tornado | Very Low | Very Low | Very Low | Very Low | Very Low | Very Low | Very Low | Very Low | Low |
| Volcano | No Risk | Low Ash Fall | Low Ash Fall | High Ash Fall | No Risk | Low Ash Fall | Low Ash Fall | High Volcanic | No Risk |
| Wildfire | High | High | High | High | High | High | Low | High | Low |
| Crimes per 10,000 Population - Annual Avg (2001-2008) | |||||||||
| Violent Crimes | 59 | 39 | 80 | 66 | 36 | 17 | 17 | 66 | 42 |
| Property Crimes | 409 | 287 | 698 | 250 | 420 | 306 | 191 | 458 | 454 |
| Home Energy Use - Annual Avg (1971-2000) | |||||||||
| Heating Degree Days | 3,092 | 2,689 | 951 | 8,300 | 2,138 | 1,719 | 3,754 | 6,513 | 4,677 |
| Cooling Degree Days | 74 | 529 | 4,224 | 38 | 476 | 543 | 11 | 281 | 1,249 |
| blank | Monterey | Napa | Palm Springs | South Lake Tahoe | San Luis Obispo | Newport Beach | Half Moon Bay | Bishop | 99-City Avg |
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