Santa Cruz County
- County in California
County
Santa Cruz County
- grade A minusOverall Grade
- County in California
- Rating 4.11 out of 5 133 reviews
Report Card
- Public Schoolsgrade A
- Housinggrade D
- Nightlifegrade A
- Good for Familiesgrade A minus
- Diversitygrade A
- Jobsgrade C+
- Weathergrade A+
- Cost of Livinggrade D minus
- Health & Fitnessgrade A+
- Outdoor Activitiesgrade A
- Commutegrade A minus
editorial
About
Real Estate
Median Home Value
$826,500
National
$244,900Median Rent
$1,925
National
$1,163Sponsored Mortgage Options for Santa Cruz County
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Map
Map
Home Listings
Santa Cruz County Rankings
Niche ranks thousands of places to live based on key statistics from the U.S. Census and expert insights.
Crime & Safety
Violent Crimes
- Calculated annually per 100,000 residents
- Assault320national 282.7
- Murder2.1national 6.1
- Rape77national 40.7
- Robbery134.2national 135.5
Property Crimes
- Calculated annually per 100,000 residents
- Burglary531.9national 500.1
- Theft3,258.6national 2,042.8
- Motor Vehicle Theft620.2national 284
Residents
Working in Santa Cruz County
Jobs
grade C+
Based on employment rates, job and business growth, and cost of living.
Median Household Income
$96,093
National
$69,021Top Public Schools Serving Santa Cruz County
Top Private Schools Near Santa Cruz County
- grade A+
Kirby School
- Rating 4.58 out of 5 45 reviews
- grade A+
St. Francis High School - Salesian College Preparatory
- Rating 4.52 out of 5 86 reviews
- grade A
Monterey Bay Academy
- Rating 3.98 out of 5 80 reviews
- grade A
Mount Madonna School
- Rating 4.86 out of 5 14 reviews
- grade A
Monte Vista Christian School
- Rating 4.15 out of 5 149 reviews
Santa Cruz County Reviews
Rating 4.11 out of 5 133 reviews
From Watsonville all the way to Davenport. The area is so diverse ecologically speaking. Rolling hills along the coast to gigantic Redwood trees. Lovely mountain towns of Felton, Ben Lomond, and Boulder Creek to oceanic sweet coastal towns of Capitola, Rio del Mar, Seacliff, Seascape and up to the city of Santa Cruz. The most beautiful of coastlines I have ever seen. The weather is unbeatable. Never too hot, never to cold. daytime to long sleeve shirts with a light sweater during the day. Summers are lovely as much of the coast gets fog to keep it cool. The water is cold, but swimmable 60-65 degrees in the summer, and the marine life is out of this world. Monterey Bay boasts some of the most diverse marine life in the country!
I have lived in Santa Cruz County for most of my life. I really like that there is a huge community of talented artists, unique restaurants and shops, and of course the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk. Santa Cruz is known for its natural beauty with the oceans, redwood forests, with close proximity to both Monterey and San Francisco. There are world famous surfing locations in the Santa Cruz area, and it is well known for attracting tourist travelers visiting from all over the world. Summer months in Santa Cruz County offers many outdoor music events for dancing that are family friendly and free.
The downside for Santa Cruz County is the vast homeless situation that has gotten out of control. Several businesses are affected negatively due to the homeless population on nearly every street corner. Some people are afraid to shop or dine along Pacific Avenue, as you can always see and hear homeless people screaming, talking to themselves and camping out in public.
The downside for Santa Cruz County is the vast homeless situation that has gotten out of control. Several businesses are affected negatively due to the homeless population on nearly every street corner. Some people are afraid to shop or dine along Pacific Avenue, as you can always see and hear homeless people screaming, talking to themselves and camping out in public.
I moved to Santa Cruz from Sacramento around 3 years ago. I enjoy living in Santa Cruz and find it to be a safe and pleasant place to live. I like how everything is relatively close, there is plenty to do outdoors, and that it is not too far away from my hometown. The beaches are beautiful and the city is full of nice people. Although there all these great things about it, there are some negatives as well. It is a very expensive place to live and seems to get worse the longer I live here. I have finally found a place that is relatively affordable but is still a lot of money for a student to pay. I would like to see more affordable housing built for students and families in need as it seems that only well off residents can live comfortably here. I wish there was more diversity as well, I think that a large portion of Santa Cruz residents are Caucasian, myself included and I wish that there were more people of color living here. Even so I think Santa Cruz is a great place to live.