CitytisticsShortlist

Lucerne Valley, CA vs West Clarkston-Highland, WA

Lucerne Valley

California

vs

West Clarkston-Highland

Washington

Across 36 directional measures we can compare, Lucerne Valley leads on 14 and West Clarkston-Highland on 22. Counting measures is not an overall verdict: their importance depends on your priorities. Median rent is 6% higher in Lucerne Valley, and so is median household income.

Median gross rent
$1,181$1,114
Lucerne Valley is 6% higher
Median household income
$54,788$51,860
Lucerne Valley is 6% higher
Median home value
$269,100$282,500
Lucerne Valley is 5% lower

The Citytistics read

  • After the median rent, with other prices set to the US average, the median household has about $39,900 a year left in Lucerne Valley and $40,500 in West Clarkston-Highland. Money goes further in West Clarkston-Highland, by about $600 a year.
  • A household earning Lucerne Valley's median of $54,788 would need about $51,500 in West Clarkston-Highland to keep the same money after rent and local prices.
  • Between the 2019 and 2024 surveys, pay outran rent by 5.4 points a year in Lucerne Valley, and rent outran pay by 2.4 points a year in West Clarkston-Highland.

How these are calculated

CaliforniaWashingtonWest Clarkston-Highland, WALucerne Valley, CALucerne ValleyWest Clarkston-HighlandLucerne ValleyWest Clarkston-Highland

Which fits you?

Both start on the Citytistics Index (CTX). Move the sliders to weigh what matters to you and the score becomes your own mix.

Your weights

Top 2 of 2 matching places. Places in the top 1% show their national rank.

#PlaceCTXAffordabilityEconomyEducationSafetyCommuteAmenitiesGrowth
01West Clarkston-Highland, WAComposite 31.7 / 100
10
174012n/a999n/a
02Lucerne Valley, CAComposite 25.0 / 100
3
211724n/a258n/a

CTX is the Citytistics Index: better than that share of the places we rate. It tops out at 99, so the top 1% show their national rank (#1 is best). Change any weight to rank on your own mix. How the CTX is built

Every measure

The dots show where each place sits among the 6,645 places we track. The bar is the median. A small dot after a value marks the better one.

MeasureLucerne ValleyWest Clarkston-HighlandAmong all places
Cost of living
Median gross rent1$1,181$1,114
Rent to income125.9%25.8%
Property tax rate10.7%0.7%
Home price to income14.9x5.5x
Prices vs US average2106.491.2
Fair market rent, 2 bedrooms3$2,103$1,234
HUD area median income4$106,500n/a
Housing
Property tax paid (median)1$1,764$2,102
Median home value1$269,100$282,500
Home prices, 1-year change51.2%4.4%
Home prices, 5-year change552.2%52.6%
Homeownership175.5%67.8%
Renters paying 30%+158.5%57.4%
Owner costs with a mortgage1$1,902$1,247
Vacant homes119.2%6.8%
Median year built119731977
Jobs and income
Median household income1$54,788$51,860
Income per person1$24,640$32,182
Unemployment17.1%4.2%
Average annual pay6$63,749$57,299
Pay growth, 1 year62.2%5.1%
Jobs6848,9616,693
Poverty rate121.9%18.1%
Mean commute139 min13 min
Works from home111.0%9.5%
Commutes by transit10.9%0.3%
People
Population15,9575,444
Median age145.546.5
Bachelor's or higher121.1%16.2%
High school or higher184.1%88.6%
Household size12.92.3
Born abroad114.5%2.7%
No health insurance19.6%7.4%
Homes with broadband187.3%84.8%
Moving
Moved here in the past year14.4%7.5%
Moved from another state11.1%5.1%
Net movers per 1,000 people7-2.00.6
Income of households moving in7$60,585$62,918
Income of households moving out7$62,895$54,626
Local life
Restaurants and bars per 10k818.015.6
Shops per 10k824.418.7
Arts, recreation and fitness per 10k82.63.6
Doctors' offices and clinics per 10k818.516.5
Child care centers per 10k81.23.1
Parks per 10k910.17.3
Playgrounds per 10k913.40.0
Grocery stores per 10k91.70.0
Restaurants, cafes and bars per 10k918.53.7
Libraries per 10k93.40.0
Named paths and bike trails90.70.0
Transit stops per sq mi90.10.0
Nearest National Park Service site1073.911.8
National Park Service sites within 60 miles1001
National Register listings111138
Schools
Public schools12612
Public school students126,0773,152
Students per teacher1224.118.4
Climate
July average high13101°F85°F
January average low1339°F26°F
Average temperature1367°F49°F
Annual precipitation136.6 in16.8 in
Hazards and air
Natural hazard risk1499.817.9
Hurricane risk140.0n/a
Tornado risk1478.86.9
Wildfire risk1499.989.4
Heat wave risk1498.453.8
Median air quality index157742
Good air days1512.6%61.9%

Data bundle checked 2026-11-14; individual source vintages vary. Rent needed at the 30% line: Lucerne Valley $47,240, West Clarkston-Highland $44,560 a year.

Sources and methods

The small numbers beside each measure point here. 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).

Survey figures are estimates with margins of error. Formulas and definitions: methodology.

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