Moving to
Coto de Caza.

All Coto de Caza data Compare Coto de Caza

15,190people live here $243,816median household income▲ 202% above US $3,500+median rent per monthCensus top category $1,535,600median home value▲ 362% above US

The Census tops out at $3,500+ for rent; it doesn't publish exact figures above that.

Coto de Caza is an unincorporated community in Orange County, CA. It has no city government: the county runs it, and the Census counts it as its own place.

What it's like to live in Coto de Caza

Coto de Caza is an unincorporated community in California with household incomes running above the national average and a highly educated workforce. Those factors carry real weight for anyone weighing where to move next.

The tradeoffs are worth naming plainly. Coto de Caza deals with rent well above the national average, home prices well above the national average, commute times longer than most cities, and air quality that falls short of national benchmarks.

The good

Higher-than-average incomes
Highly educated workforce

The not so good

Rent well above the national average
High home prices
Above-average commute times
Air quality concerns
High student-teacher ratio
High rent burden for renters

How Coto de Caza compares

Median household income

Coto de Caza$243,816

California avg$99,122

US$80,734

Median rent (per month)

Coto de Caza$3,500+

California avg$2,036

US$1,413

The Census tops out at $3,500+ for rent; it doesn't publish exact figures above that.

Median home value

Coto de Caza$1,535,600

California avg$734,700

US$332,700

What it takes to move to Coto de Caza

Based on Coto de Caza's median rent, home value and household income

To rent

$7,002

up front: first month plus a typical one-month deposit

Income to keep rent under 30%: $140,040 a year
58% of Coto de Caza renters spend 30% or more of their income on rent

To buy

$307,120

a 20% down payment on the median home

With 10% down: $153,560
Homes cost 6.3× the typical local household income (US: 4.1×)

Moving costs, closing costs and taxes not included.

The details

Cost of livingCensus top category

$3,500+/mo median rent

Rent is expensive here, at $3,500+ a month median and well above the national average. This is the kind of city where housing costs deserve serious budgeting before committing to a move. Home prices are steep, with a median around $1,535,600. Renting first to get a feel for the city before buying is often the more practical route.

Median home value $1,535,600 · 58% of renters cost-burdened

Job market

4.1% county unemployment

Unemployment in Orange County is 4.1%, close to the national average of 4.3%. That's the county-wide rate; BLS doesn't measure a place this size on its own.

Orange County (county-wide)

Safety

290 violent crimes per 100k, whole jurisdiction

Coto de Caza doesn't have its own police department, so there's no crime rate for it alone. The figures shown are for the Orange County Sheriff's Office jurisdiction as a whole, which runs close to the national average for violent crime and covers many communities. Individual neighborhoods can differ a lot from that overall rate.

Property crime 576/100k · Policed by Orange County Sheriff's Office (county-wide rate) · 2025 data

Getting around▲ 21% above US

32 min average commute

Traffic is a real factor here. The 31.5 minute average means plenty of commuters are pushing 45 to 60 minutes on a bad day. Proximity to work matters more here than it might elsewhere. 6 in 10 workers drive to work; 34% work from home.

How workers get to work

Drive alone

61%

Work from home

34%

Carpool

2.3%

Other

1.6%

Walk

1.2%

Public transit

0.3%

Climate

Summers are warm, with highs around 87°F, and winters are mild, with lows rarely dropping below 48°F. It's a dry climate with limited rainfall.

Average month

High °FLow °FPrecip (in)

30-year averages, 1991–2020

Education & workforce▲ 86% above US

67% bachelor's degree or higher

This is a highly educated city, with over half the adult population holding a college degree. That tends to shape the job market and the broader culture, and it's a solid indicator of a strong professional scene.

Schools

1 public school inside the boundary

There is 1 public school inside the boundary. The student-to-teacher ratio is 22:1, above the national average of 16:1.

Parks & recreation

The nearest national park or historic site is Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail (28 miles away). There are 3 national parks and sites within a day's drive.

Bottom line

Coto de Caza's strongest points are household incomes running above the national average and a highly educated workforce; the main tradeoffs are rent well above the national average and home prices well above the national average. It tends to suit remote workers (34% of workers here already work from home) and college-educated professionals. It may be a harder fit for renters on a tight budget.

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