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Cost of living, pay and housing

34.45° N · 119.78° W · GEOID 0620574

Eastern Goleta Valley

Santa Barbara County, California · part of the Santa Maria, CA metro

Computed by Citytistics from 13 public sources · Data bundle checked 2026-11-14 · How we calculate

CaliforniaEastern Goleta Valley, CAEastern Goleta ValleyEastern Goleta Valley

The short answer

Eastern Goleta Valley is home to 28,295 people. Median household income is $146,284 a year and median rent is $2,964 a month, 24.3% of income (a ratio of two medians, not any one household's burden). Rent pressure is lighter than in most places. The median home is valued at $1,361,700, about 9.3x annual median household income.

Eastern Goleta Valley stands out on how people work. Counting remote workers as zero, the average worker spends about 90 hours a year commuting, less than in 99% of places its size. It is the 2nd-lowest of 614 California places we track. Also notable: Home value growth is 9.8% a year, against 7.5% a year in its closest peers.

76OF 100

CTXCitytistics Index

Strong

Eastern Goleta Valley scores better than 76% of the 6,612 places we rate, and ranks 32nd of 654 in California.

How the CTX is built

Category ratings · 0 to 100, typical place 50

Affordability 20%13
Economy 20%81
Safety 20%n/a
Amenities 15%54
Education 10%84
Commute 10%96
Growth 5%n/a

Not rated: safety, growth, for want of data (the city police department does not report a full year to the FBI). The other weights are spread over the categories rated.

Median gross rent
$2,964
117% above the median place
Median household income
$146,284
82% above the median place
Median home value
$1,361,700
326% above the median place
Unemployment
4.0%
19% below the median place

Compared with the median of the 6,645 places we track. The bundle was checked 2026-11-14; each measure may refer to an older release.

What stands out about Eastern Goleta Valley

  • AffordabilityAfter the median rent, with other prices set to the US average, the median household keeps about $110,600 a year, more than in 87% of the 907 places of 25,000 to 50,000 people we track.
  • HousingOwning with a mortgage costs about $1,037 a month more than the median rent, a wider gap than in 88% of the 987 places of 25,000 to 50,000 people we track.
01

Moving to Eastern Goleta Valley

Santa Barbara County loses about 10.0 residents per 1,000 a year to moves between counties.

Moved in12,033
Moved out15,543
Net−3,510

Where people come from and where they go, top counties

Los Angeles County, CA1,4741,295+179
San Luis Obispo County, CA1,2441,471−227
Ventura County, CA9531,350−397
San Diego County, CA421638−217
Orange County, CA374391−17
Kern County, CA246357−111
Riverside County, CA239272−33
Maricopa County, AZ286

Within California, other states or abroad

Arrivals
Leavers
Within CaliforniaOther statesAbroad

Income per tax return

Arrivals$115K
Leavers$84K

People on tax returns who moved between counties, from IRS migration data, 2022 to 2023. Figures are for all of Santa Barbara County; flows under 20 returns are not published.

Who moves here
3.5% of residents arrived from another county in the past year, 1.3% from another state.
Who arrives and who leaves
Households moving into Santa Barbara County report $115,200 a year in income on average; those leaving, $84,300, so newcomers earn more than leavers.
Income you would need
$118,600 a year to rent the median home at the 30% line. From your city
Rent or buy
Median rent is $2,964 a month; owners with a mortgage pay $4,001 a month including taxes and insurance, on a median home of $1,361,700.
Getting to work
15 minutes each way on average; 24.9% work from home; 2.2% take transit.
If it is close but not quite
North Tustin, CA matches it on character for less of your income. Compare the two
Moved here in the past year1
3.5%
39% below the median place
Moved from another state1
1.3%
33% below the median place
Income of households moving in7
$115,238
63% above the median place
All 5 moving measures
MeasureEastern Goleta ValleyAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Moved here in the past year13.5%39% below
Moved from another state11.3%33% below
Net movers per 1,000 people7County figure-10.0below (median -0.6)
Income of households moving in7County figure$115,23863% above
Income of households moving out7County figure$84,26120% above
02

What it costs to live here

The median home costs 9.3 years of the median household's income, more than in 97% of the 987 places of 25,000 to 50,000 people we track.

Eastern Goleta Valley24.3%
Typical place20.4%

Share of the median household income that goes to the median rent. Above 30% is the usual stress line.

Income needed to rent
$118,560
a year, at the 30% line
Rent to income
24.3%
19% above the median place
Home price to income
9.3x
145% above the median place

Could you afford it?

The median rent would take
24%
comfortably under the 30% line
Left after rent, in US prices
$110,300
a year
Vs the typical household here
Same
as the median household

Uses the median rent in Eastern Goleta Valley, $2,964 a month, and local prices for everything else (100.1 against a US average of 100). It runs in your browser and stores nothing.

Like Eastern Goleta Valley, but easier on the budget

Places that match Eastern Goleta Valley on character (size, age, education, homeownership, household size, housing age, remote work and climate) but where rent takes a clearly smaller share of income. Cost was left out of the match on purpose.

PlaceMatchRent to incomeMore left a year
North Tustin, CA9216.7% vs 24.3%$34,400Compare
Livermore, CA9020.0% vs 24.3%$18,800Compare
Mount Vernon, VA8911.9% vs 24.3%$33,400Compare
Half Moon Bay, CA8918.5% vs 24.3%$18,800Compare

Moving from somewhere else? Work out the salary you would need in Eastern Goleta Valley.

Sponsored · exampleMoving to Eastern Goleta Valley? Compare quotes from licensed movers. No partner is signed yet. Sponsored offers are always labelled and never change the data.
Median home value1
$1,361,700
326% above the median place
Owner costs with a mortgage1
$4,001
114% above the median place
Property tax paid (median)1
$7,847
140% above the median place
All 16 cost and housing measures
MeasureEastern Goleta ValleyAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Median gross rent1$2,964117% above
Rent to income124.3%19% above
Property tax rate10.6%36% below
Home price to income19.3x145% above
Prices vs US average2Metro figure108.88% above
Fair market rent, 2 bedrooms3County figure$3,10692% above
HUD area median income4County figure$118,60011% above
Property tax paid (median)1$7,847140% above
Median home value1$1,361,700326% above
Home prices, 1-year change5County figure3.3%2% above
Home prices, 5-year change5County figure56.3%9% above
Homeownership174.6%12% above
Renters paying 30%+140.9%19% below
Owner costs with a mortgage1$4,001114% above
Vacant homes15.4%24% below
Median year built119690% below
03

Work and pay

25% of workers skip the commute by working from home, which keeps total commuting time lower than in 98% of places.

Mean commute1
15 min
39% below the median place
Income per person1
$72,713
81% above the median place
Median household income1
$146,284
82% above the median place

More on work and pay, against the typical place

Works from home24.9% 2.0×
Unemployment4.0% −19%
Poverty rate7.9% −26%
All 10 work and pay measures
MeasureEastern Goleta ValleyAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Median household income1$146,28482% above
Income per person1$72,71381% above
Unemployment14.0%19% below
Average annual pay6County figure$73,06411% above
Pay growth, 1 year6County figure4.9%32% above
Jobs6County figure214,94743% above
Poverty rate17.9%26% below
Mean commute115 min39% below
Works from home124.9%100% above
Commutes by transit1County figure2.2%159% above
04

Who lives here

Median age is 45.7, 17% above the median place.

Median age1
45.7
17% above the median place
Bachelor's or higher1
54.1%
69% above the median place
No health insurance1
3.6%
44% below the median place

More about who lives here, against the typical place

Born abroad16.1% +83%
Household size2.7 +6%
High school or higher93.8% +2%
Homes with broadband92.9% +1%
All 8 people measures
MeasureEastern Goleta ValleyAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Population128,2951626th largest
Median age145.717% above
Bachelor's or higher154.1%69% above
High school or higher193.8%2% above
Household size12.76% above
Born abroad116.1%83% above
No health insurance13.6%44% below
Homes with broadband192.9%1% above
05

Life in Eastern Goleta Valley

The nearest National Park Service site is Channel Islands National Park, about 55 miles away.

53 sites are on the National Register of Historic Places, 8 of them National Historic Landmarks. Its history on Wikipedia

Out the door, against the typical place

Parks per 10k residents11.0 +8%
Playgrounds per 10k5.3 −44%
Grocery stores per 10k1.4 −33%
Restaurants, cafes and bars per 10k6.4 −43%
Libraries per 10k0.7 −18%
Named paths and bike trails18 km 9.2×
Bus and rail stops per sq mi4.2 19.8×

Mapped by volunteers in OpenStreetMap inside the city limits (Census boundaries), so coverage is fuller in some places than others. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.

National Park Service sites nearby

  • Channel Islands National Park 55 miles
  • Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area 72 miles
  • Cesar E. Chavez National Monument 88 miles

Businesses per 10,000 residents (county figures)

Restaurants and bars25.0 +20%
Shops33.3 +10%
Arts, recreation and fitness6.8 +66%
Doctors' offices and clinics24.4 +21%
Child care centers3.3 +43%

Counts businesses with paid staff, so small owner-run shops are not included.

Nearest National Park Service site10
54.9
78% above the median place
Arts, recreation and fitness per 10k8
6.8
66% above the median place
Students per teacher12
20.6
34% above the median place
All 18 schools and local life measures
MeasureEastern Goleta ValleyAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Public schools12County figure126above (median 9)
Public school students12County figure66,191above (median 4,897)
Students per teacher12County figure20.634% above
Restaurants and bars per 10k8County figure25.020% above
Shops per 10k8County figure33.310% above
Arts, recreation and fitness per 10k8County figure6.866% above
Doctors' offices and clinics per 10k8County figure24.421% above
Child care centers per 10k8County figure3.343% above
Parks per 10k911.08% above
Playgrounds per 10k95.344% below
Grocery stores per 10k91.433% below
Restaurants, cafes and bars per 10k96.443% below
Libraries per 10k90.718% below
Named paths and bike trails918.3above (median 2.0)
Transit stops per sq mi94.2above (median 0.2)
Nearest National Park Service site1054.978% above
National Park Service sites within 60 miles10150% below
National Register listings11County figure53308% above
06

Safety, weather and risk

Hurricane risk is 0.0, below the median place (median 70.7).

No crime figure yet. Either the city police department did not report to the FBI for the latest year, or our monthly fetch has not reached Eastern Goleta Valley. Larger places are fetched first.

Hurricane risk14
0.0
below the median place (median 70.7)
Tornado risk14
5.4
93% below the median place
Wildfire risk14
99.2
62% above the median place
All 11 weather and risk measures
MeasureEastern Goleta ValleyAmong 6,645 placesVs median
July average high13County figure82°F5% below
January average low13County figure40°F59% above
Average temperature13County figure59°F7% above
Annual precipitation13County figure18.9 in57% below
Natural hazard risk14County figure99.07% above
Hurricane risk14County figure0.0below (median 70.7)
Tornado risk14County figure5.493% below
Wildfire risk14County figure99.262% above
Heat wave risk14County figure75.416% below
Median air quality index15County figure5221% above
Good air days15County figure44.9%34% below
08

Eastern Goleta Valley in 2030: where the trends point

If recent trends hold, the median rent will take about 25% of the median income in 2030, about the same as 24% now.

Citytistics projections to 2030: each figure's own trend, blended with the typical trend across the places we rate, eased toward long-run US growth and carried forward from the latest release. The range is where 80% of places landed when we tested the same method on past releases. On projected 2030 affordability, Eastern Goleta Valley does better than 12% of places. Its projected home value growth beats 65%.

MeasureLatest2030 projectionLikely rangeAvg. per year
Median rent$2,964/mo (2024)$3,800/mo$3,120 to $4,630/mo+4.2%
Median household income$146,284 (2024)$185,500$156,500 to $219,500+4.0%
Median home value$1,361,700 (2024)$1,972,000$1,432,000 to $2,717,000+6.4%

The median home would be worth 10.6 years of the median income in 2030, against 9.3 now.

A projection of recent trends, not a prediction of the economy or advice to buy or sell. How we project.

09

Places like Eastern Goleta Valley

The closest matches on income, rent, home value, education and age, and the places nearby.

PlaceRentIncome
Dana Point, CA$3,106$141,520Compare
Kailua, HI$3,093$148,582Compare
Pacifica, CA$3,098$160,523Compare
Laguna Niguel, CA$2,903$140,452Compare
Laguna Niguel, CAPacifica, CAKailua, HIDana Point, CAEastern Goleta Valley, CADana PointKailuaPacificaDana PointKailuaPacifica

Places built like Eastern Goleta Valley

Its statistical peers: the closest matches on size, age, education, homeownership, household size, housing age, origin and remote work, in the same part of the country. Cost and outcomes are left out of the match, so the table shows how Eastern Goleta Valley performs against places like it.

PlaceRent to incomeIncome growthPop. change
Eastern Goleta Valley, CA24.3%5.5%/yrn/a
Pacifica, CA23.2%5.0%/yr-4.6%Compare
Fair Oaks, CA19.6%6.7%/yrn/aCompare
La Verne, CA26.8%3.3%/yr-4.5%Compare
Pleasant Hill, CA21.0%4.0%/yr-1.7%Compare
Martinez, CA22.2%3.5%/yr-1.1%Compare
Benicia, CA22.6%3.2%/yr-2.7%Compare

Common questions

Is Eastern Goleta Valley a good place to live?

It depends on what you need, so here is what the numbers say. Its Citytistics Index is 76 out of 100, better than 76% of the places we rate and 32nd of 654 in California. After the median rent, with other prices set to the US average, the median household keeps about $110,600 a year, more than in 87% of the 907 places of 25,000 to 50,000 people we track. Owning with a mortgage costs about $1,037 a month more than the median rent, a wider gap than in 88% of the 987 places of 25,000 to 50,000 people we track. On cost, space and class size it scores 41 out of 100 for families. See how it ranks with your own weights.

Is Eastern Goleta Valley expensive to live in?

The median rent takes 24.3% of the median household income, against 20.4% in the typical place we track. Housing is a heavier load here than usual. The median home is valued at $1,361,700.

What salary do you need to live in Eastern Goleta Valley?

To rent the median home without spending more than 30% of income on rent, a household needs about $118,560 a year. Work it out from your current city.

What places are similar to Eastern Goleta Valley?

On income, rent, home value, education and age, the closest matches are Dana Point, CA, Kailua, HI, Pacifica, CA and Laguna Niguel, CA.

Sources and methods

The small numbers beside each measure point here. Every dataset is public; links go to the publisher.

  1. American Community Survey 5-year estimates · US Census Bureau · 2020 to 2024 estimatesTables B01002, B01003, B05002, B07003, B08013, B08301, B15003, B17001, B19013, B19301, B23025, B25002, B25003, B25010, B25035, B25064, B25070, B25077, B25088, B25103, B28002, S2701
  2. Regional Price Parities · US Bureau of Economic Analysis · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14
  3. Fair Market Rents · US Department of Housing and Urban Development · Fiscal year 2027
  4. Income Limits · US Department of Housing and Urban Development · Fiscal year 2026
  5. House Price Index · Federal Housing Finance Agency · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14
  6. Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages · US Bureau of Labor Statistics · 2025 annual averages
  7. SOI Tax Stats, county-to-county migration · Internal Revenue Service · Tax years 2022 to 2023Counts tax returns and the people on them; flows under 20 returns are suppressed.
  8. County Business Patterns · US Census Bureau · 2023 data
  9. OpenStreetMap · © OpenStreetMap contributors, available under the Open Database License (ODbL) · Map data as of 2026-11
  10. National Park Service sites · Wikidata (CC0), units operated by the National Park Service · Retrieved 2026-11
  11. National Register of Historic Places · National Park Service · Listings through 2026-05-22
  12. Common Core of Data · National Center for Education Statistics · 2024 release
  13. 1991-2020 climate normals · NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information · Series updated 2026-11-05Averages for 1991 to 2020 computed from NOAA's county climate series (nClimDiv).nClimDiv county series
  14. National Risk Index · Federal Emergency Management Agency · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14NRI data and maps
  15. Air Quality System, annual AQI by county · US Environmental Protection Agency · 2025 dataAirData download files

Derived by Citytistics from the tables above: rent to income (B25064, B19013); property tax rate (B25103, B25077); home price to income (B25077, B19013).

What stands out compares Eastern Goleta Valley with places of a similar size, using only figures measured for Eastern Goleta Valley itself; county and metro figures never count. Survey figures are estimates with margins of error. Formulas and definitions: methodology. API: /api/v1/places/eastern-goleta-valley-california

Citytistics. “Eastern Goleta Valley, California.” Data as of 2026-11-14. https://www.citytistics.com/city/eastern-goleta-valley-california/

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.