What it's like to live in Tehachapi
Tehachapi is a small city in California with rent below the national average. Those factors carry real weight for anyone weighing where to move next.
The tradeoffs are worth naming plainly. Tehachapi deals with county unemployment above the national average, crime rates above the national average, air quality that falls short of national benchmarks, and college degree attainment below the national average.
The good
- Rent below the national average
The not so good
- Above-average unemployment in the county
- Crime above national average
- Air quality concerns
- Low college degree attainment
- Shrinking population
- High student-teacher ratio
How Tehachapi compares
Median household income
Median rent (per month)
Median home value
What it takes to move to Tehachapi
Based on Tehachapi's median rent, home value and household income
To rent
$2,590
up front: first month plus a typical one-month deposit
- Income to keep rent under 30%: $51,800 a year
- 39% of Tehachapi renters spend 30% or more of their income on rent
To buy
$71,100
a 20% down payment on the median home
- With 10% down: $35,550
- Homes cost 4.9× the typical local household income (US: 4.1×)
Moving costs, closing costs and taxes not included.
The details
Cost of livingNear US average
$1,295/mo median rent
Cost of living works in this city's favor. Median rent sits around $1,295 a month, nothing that raises eyebrows. Solid value overall. Home prices run above average, with a median around $355,500. Buyers should expect to stretch their budget here.
Median home value $355,500 · 39% of renters cost-burdened
Job market
9.0% county unemployment
Unemployment in Kern County is 9.0%, well above the national average of 4.3%. Moving with a job already lined up matters more here. That's the county-wide rate; BLS doesn't measure a place this size on its own.
Kern County (county-wide)
Safety▲ 22% above US
402 violent crimes per 100k
Crime is worth weighing seriously here. Rates run above the national average, and while plenty of residents live comfortably, neighborhood selection matters a lot more than it does in a safer city.
Property crime 1682/100k · Tehachapi Police Department · 2025 data
Getting aroundNear US average
27 min average commute
Commutes run about average, at 27 minutes. Fine day to day, but it adds up over a year, and where someone lives relative to where they work starts to matter. 9 in 10 workers drive to work; 7% work from home.
How workers get to work
Climate
Summers are warm, with highs around 84°F, and winters are cold, with lows around 31°F and snow a regular occurrence. It's a dry climate with limited rainfall.
Average month
30-year averages, 1991–2020
Healthcare
1 hospital
There's one Medicare-certified hospital inside city limits, rated 3.0 out of 5 by Medicare. Hospitals in neighboring towns aren't counted here.
Medicare-certified hospitals
Education & workforce▼ 57% below US
16% bachelor's degree or higher
This is a working-class city, and college degree rates reflect that. Trades, manufacturing, and service industries tend to dominate the local economy, which is a strength for some fields and a real constraint for others.
Schools
6 public schools inside the boundary
There are 6 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 César E. Chávez National Monument (8 miles away). There are 2 national parks and sites within a day's drive.
Bottom line
Tehachapi's strongest point is rent below the national average; the main tradeoffs are county unemployment above the national average and crime rates above the national average. A year of median rent ($1,295/mo) equals 21% of the median household income here, about the same as the 21% typical nationwide. It may be a harder fit for anyone moving without a job lined up.
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