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Moving to
Oak Park.
Oak Park is an unincorporated community in Ventura 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 Oak Park
Oak Park 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. Oak Park 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
- Hot summers
How Oak Park compares
Median household income
Median rent (per month)
Median home value
What it takes to move to Oak Park
Based on Oak Park's median rent, home value and household income
To rent
$6,298
up front: first month plus a typical one-month deposit
- Income to keep rent under 30%: $125,960 a year
- 45% of Oak Park renters spend 30% or more of their income on rent
To buy
$207,380
a 20% down payment on the median home
- With 10% down: $103,690
- Homes cost 6.4× the typical local household income (US: 4.1×)
Moving costs, closing costs and taxes not included.
The details
Cost of living▲ 123% above US
$3,149/mo median rent
Rent is expensive here, at $3,149 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 $1,036,900. Renting first to get a feel for the city before buying is often the more practical route.
Median home value $1,036,900 · 45% of renters cost-burdened
Job market
4.8% county unemployment
Unemployment in Ventura County is 4.8%, somewhat above the national average of 4.3%. Lining up work before the move is the safer route. That's the county-wide rate; BLS doesn't measure a place this size on its own.
Ventura County (county-wide)
Safety
214 violent crimes per 100k, whole jurisdiction
Oak Park doesn't have its own police department, so there's no crime rate for it alone. The figures shown are for the Ventura County Sheriff's Office jurisdiction as a whole, which runs below the national average for violent crime and covers many communities. Individual neighborhoods can differ a lot from that overall rate.
Property crime 709/100k · Policed by Ventura County Sheriff's Office (county-wide rate) · 2025 data
Getting around▲ 20% above US
31 min average commute
Traffic is a real factor here. The 31.1 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. 7 in 10 workers drive to work; 31% work from home.
How workers get to work
Climate
Summers are hot and humid, with highs regularly hitting 94°F, and winters are mild, with lows rarely dropping below 43°F. It's a dry climate with limited rainfall.
Average month
30-year averages, 1991–2020
Education & workforce▲ 75% above US
63% 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
8 public schools inside the boundary
There are 8 public schools inside the boundary. The student-to-teacher ratio is 24:1, above the national average of 16:1.
Parks & recreation
The nearest national park or historic site is Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area (6 miles away). There are 4 national parks and sites within a day's drive.
Bottom line
Oak Park'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. A year of median rent ($3,149/mo) equals 23% of the median household income here, about the same as the 21% typical nationwide. It tends to suit remote workers (31% of workers here already work from home) and college-educated professionals. It may be a harder fit for renters on a tight budget.
Other places near Oak Park
All California guides →Moving to Agoura Hills →
2 mi away · pop. 19,721
Rent $3,218/mo · Income $171,302
Compare with Oak Park →Moving to Simi Valley →
6 mi away · pop. 125,634
Rent $2,579/mo · Income $122,081
Compare with Oak Park →Not sure Oak Park is the one?
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