---
title: 31. La Palma, CA
description: 'Top 50 rank: 31 Population: 15,879 La Palma, about 20 miles from Los Angeles, is the archetypal California suburb: Think palm trees, sunny weather, and…'
authors:
  - name: timestaff
    url: https://money.com/author/timestaff/
    articles: 459
    covers:
      - Banking
      - Career Advice
      - Credit
      - Credit Cards
      - Housing
      - Identity Theft
      - Insurance
      - Investing
      - Lifestyle
      - Loans
      - Mortgages
      - Personal Finance
      - Professional Services
      - Retirement
      - Shopping
      - Taxes
    former_staff: true
published: '2014-05-30T15:14:35.000Z'
modified: '2014-05-30T15:14:35.000Z'
section: Everyday Money
tags:
  - buying a home
  - California
  - home prices
  - Housing Market
  - La Palma
  - real estate
  - selling a home
canonical: https://money.com/collection-post/31-la-palma-ca/
type: Article
source: structured-blocks
---

> **Disclosure:** We research all brands listed and may earn a fee from our partners. Research and financial considerations may influence how brands are displayed. Not all brands are included. [Learn more](https://money.com/page/disclaimer/).

![201309_BPL_LAPALMA](https://img.money.com/2014/05/201309_bpl_lapalma.jpg)
*La Palma, CA*

**Top 50 rank**: 31

**Population**: 15,879

La Palma, about 20 miles from Los Angeles, is the archetypal California suburb: Think palm trees, sunny weather, and easy access to the beach.

But these attractive amenities come at a cost. With a median home sales price of $500,000, La Palma is an example of why Orange County has a rep as one of the most expensive counties in California.

Yet some are willing to invest for access to La Palma's high-ranking schools and safety: The town has the lowest police response time in the O.C. *\--H.L.*

<table style="height:53px"><tbody><tr><td><h3 class="collection-subhead">La Palma, CA</h3></td><td><h3 class="collection-subhead">Town stats</h3></td></tr></tbody></table>

<table style="height:177px"><tbody><tr><td>Median family income (per year)</td><td>$97,531</td></tr><tr><td>Job growth % (2010-2012)</td><td>2.81%</td></tr><tr><td>Median home price (2012)</td><td>$458,500</td></tr><tr><td>Reading test scores (% above/below average)</td><td>45.6%</td></tr><tr><td>Math test scores (% above/below average)</td><td>34.1%</td></tr><tr><td>Personal crime incidents (per 1,000)</td><td>1</td></tr><tr><td>Property crime incidents (per 1,000)</td><td>16</td></tr></tbody></table>

<table style="height:237px"><tbody><tr><td><h3 class="collection-subhead">Financials</h3></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Median family income (per year)</td><td>$97,531</td></tr><tr><td>Family purchasing power (annual, cost-of-living adjusted)</td><td>$80,154</td></tr><tr><td>Sales tax</td><td>8.00%<sup>II</sup></td></tr><tr><td>State income tax rate (highest bracket)</td><td>12.30%<sup>I</sup></td></tr><tr><td>State income tax rate (lowest bracket)</td><td>1.00%<sup>I</sup></td></tr><tr><td>Auto insurance premiums (Average price quotes, for the state)</td><td>$1,478</td></tr><tr><td>Job growth % (2010-2012)</td><td>2.81%</td></tr></tbody></table>

<table style="height:103px"><tbody><tr><td><h3 class="collection-subhead">Housing</h3></td></tr><tr><td>Median home price (2012)</td><td>$458,500</td></tr><tr><td>Average property taxes (2011)</td><td>$3,441</td></tr></tbody></table>

<table style="height:153px"><tbody><tr><td><h3 class="collection-subhead">Education</h3></td></tr><tr><td>Colleges, universities and professional schools (within 30 miles)</td><td>101</td></tr><tr><td>Reading test scores (% above/below state average)</td><td>45.6%</td></tr><tr><td>Test scores math (% above/below average)</td><td>34.1%</td></tr><tr><td>% students attending public/private schools (located within town limits)</td><td>97.6/2.4</td></tr></tbody></table>

<table style="height:203px"><tbody><tr><td><h3 class="collection-subhead">Quality of life</h3></td></tr><tr><td>Air quality index* (% of days AQI ranked as good)</td><td>60.4%</td></tr><tr><td>Personal crime incidents (per 1,000)</td><td>1</td></tr><tr><td>Property crime incidents (per 1,000)</td><td>16</td></tr><tr><td>Median commute time (in minutes)</td><td>26.3</td></tr><tr><td>% population with commute 45 mins. or longer</td><td>21.8%</td></tr><tr><td>% population walk or bike to work</td><td>1.6%</td></tr></tbody></table>

<table style="height:253px"><tbody><tr><td><h3 class="collection-subhead">Leisure and culture</h3></td></tr><tr><td>Movie theaters (within 15 miles)</td><td>71</td></tr><tr><td>Restaurants (within 15 miles)</td><td>10,122</td></tr><tr><td>Bars (within 15 miles)</td><td>600</td></tr><tr><td>Public golf courses (within 30 miles)</td><td>246</td></tr><tr><td>Libraries (within 15 miles)</td><td>135</td></tr><tr><td>Museums (accredited by AAM; within 30 miles)</td><td>18</td></tr><tr><td>Ski resorts (within 100 miles)</td><td>N.A.</td></tr><tr><td>Arts funding (Dollars per person of state funds spent on arts)</td><td>0.1</td></tr></tbody></table>

<table style="height:153px"><tbody><tr><td><h3 class="collection-subhead">Weather</h3></td></tr><tr><td>Annual rainfall (inches)</td><td>12.94</td></tr><tr><td>% clear days in the area</td><td>76%</td></tr><tr><td>High temp in July ° F</td><td>82.9°</td></tr><tr><td>Low temp in Jan ° F</td><td>46°</td></tr></tbody></table>

<table style="height:178px"><tbody><tr><td><h3 class="collection-subhead">Meet the neighbors</h3></td></tr><tr><td>Median age</td><td>40.6</td></tr><tr><td>Completed at least some college (% of residents)</td><td>70.4%</td></tr><tr><td>Married %</td><td>55.1%</td></tr><tr><td>Divorced %</td><td>6.5%</td></tr><tr><td>Racial diversity index (100 is national average; higher numbers indicate greater diversity)</td><td>507.8</td></tr></tbody></table>

```json
{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@graph": [
    {
      "@type": "WebSite",
      "@id": "https://money.com/#website",
      "url": "https://money.com",
      "name": "Money",
      "publisher": {
        "@id": "https://money.com/#organization"
      }
    },
    {
      "@type": "WebPage",
      "@id": "https://money.com/collection-post/31-la-palma-ca/#webpage",
      "url": "https://money.com/collection-post/31-la-palma-ca/",
      "name": "31. La Palma, CA",
      "isPartOf": {
        "@id": "https://money.com/#website"
      },
      "datePublished": "2014-05-30T15:14:35.000Z",
      "mainEntity": {
        "@id": "https://money.com/collection-post/31-la-palma-ca/"
      },
      "inLanguage": "en-US",
      "dateModified": "2014-05-30T15:14:35.000Z"
    },
    {
      "@type": "Article",
      "headline": "31. La Palma, CA",
      "articleSection": "Everyday Money",
      "image": [
        {
          "@type": "ImageObject",
          "url": "https://img.money.com/2014/05/201309_bpl_lapalma.jpg",
          "width": 2100,
          "height": 1514,
          "caption": "201309_BPL_LAPALMA"
        }
      ],
      "author": [
        {
          "@type": "Person",
          "name": "timestaff",
          "url": "https://money.com/author/timestaff/",
          "@id": "https://money.com/author/timestaff/#author"
        }
      ],
      "publisher": "https://money.com/#organization",
      "datePublished": "2014-05-30T15:14:35.000Z",
      "description": "Top 50 rank: 31 Population: 15,879 La Palma, about 20 miles from Los Angeles, is the archetypal California suburb: Think palm trees, sunny weather, and&hellip;",
      "abstract": "Top 50 rank: 31 Population: 15,879 La Palma, about 20 miles from Los Angeles, is the archetypal California suburb: Think palm trees, sunny weather, and&hellip;",
      "@id": "https://money.com/collection-post/31-la-palma-ca/",
      "inLanguage": "en-US",
      "dateModified": "2014-05-30T15:14:35.000Z",
      "keywords": [
        "buying a home",
        "California",
        "home prices",
        "Housing Market",
        "La Palma",
        "real estate",
        "selling a home"
      ]
    }
  ]
}
```