Are you considering relocating to Orange County? Santa Ana, one of the county’s most popular cities, deserves your attention!
Santa Ana is a well-known city in Orange County on the southwestern coast of California. It is the second-largest city in Orange County and is among the most populated, ranking fourth behind the big cities like New York City, San Francisco, and Boston.
The city is also the youngest urban area in the United States, with 31% of the population under 18 years old.
To guarantee that you have a good experience in the city, we will discuss the pros and cons of living in the town of Santa Ana to make an informed decision about whether or not this is a beautiful place to call home.
Let’s get started!
List of Contents
Is Santa Ana a Good Place To Live In? – The Heart of Orange County
The Good Side
Santa Ana Provides Access To Various Activities
Though it is possible to travel to Hollywood for a good time, residents of this city don’t even leave the region because they have access to all the entertainment they need.
People who live in metropolitan Santa Ana experience the best possible quality of entertainment throughout the year.
Locals are never at a loss for things to do within the region’s limits, thanks to the abundance of museums, music venues, performing arts centers, and theaters. Throughout the year, they engage in outdoor activities, such as playing a round of golf or attending a collegiate sporting event.
The people who live here frequently visit the Historic French Park and the Santa Ana Zoo for recreation and exercise.
Brew at the Zoo is one of its most popular summertime events, with live music, beer tasting, craft tables, and animal appearances. Following the wishes of the zoo’s founder, the Santa Ana Zoo is always home to at least 50 monkeys.
The City’s Climate Is Ideal
Are you interested in discovering what it is like to reside in an area where it never snows and only rains 23 days a year? Santa Ana will make sure you know that!
The climate in this part of California is ideal. Summers and winters are two of the most beautiful seasons of the year because of the perfect weather.
From June through September, the average daily high temperature is 82°, while the average nighttime temperature is 62°. From December through March, the average daily high temperature is 70°, while the average nighttime temperature is 48°.
Residents rarely get rained out because only about 14 inches of precipitation falls annually; thus, they can remain dry and comfortable during all four seasons.
When you reside here, compared to other parts of Southern California, you won’t have to worry about scorching days or cold nights as the city’s climate is perfect!
The City Offers World-class Shopping and Dining Opportunities
Santa Ana offers its residents great weather and top-notch food and shopping options.
If you want to go shopping, the South Coast Plaza Village is your one-stop destination for a never-ending supply of retail therapy options.
If all that shopping leaves you feeling worn out and hungry, the city also has a wide variety of eateries for your consumption.
Santa Ana offers several restaurants with a variety of cuisines. Favorite eateries such as Antonello Ristorante and Playground offer Italian, traditional American, Mexican, and Asian cuisine.
The Playground is a one-of-a-kind fine dining establishment in Santa Ana that is perfect for those passionate about cuisine.
The menu in this restaurant is constantly evolving, but the maple-glazed pork chops and toffee pudding are two signature dishes you should not miss. Also, this is the best venue in town to sample homemade beer.
The Place Has Reliable Public Transportation
Santa Ana, California, has a public transportation system similar to many other major cities in the United States. However, Santa Ana residents are fortunate because their system is among the most comprehensive and widely utilized.
Most commuters use some form of public transit, rather than driving their cars, to travel to and from work each day. Because of this, they can avoid car ownership, saving themselves the financial burden and stress of traveling in heavy traffic.
Therefore, if you live in this area, you won’t also need a car to go around the city.
If you ever need a ticket to a place other than this, you can head to the nearby Amtrak station and board the next train. The Metrolink also runs through for commuters to Los Angeles, which is only forty minutes away.
With seven lines and 55 stops, the railroad provides residents with numerous transport options for Monday through Friday commutes and weekend activities.
Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA) , which s the primary public transit provider in Santa Ana, is an additional regional transportation mode. With 591 buses operating on 77 routes around the region, there is no excuse for arriving late to every event.
Last but not least, John Wayne is not only a well-known actor who portrayed a cowboy in numerous Hollywood blockbusters; it is also the name of the airport that serves the city of Santa Ana and flies both residents and tourists in and out.
The Bad Side
Santa Ana’s Crime Index Is Extremely High
According to data from the FBI, Santa Ana is not one of the safest communities in the United States of America. When compared to the rest of California, Santa Ana has a higher rate of violent and property crime than 76% of the state’s cities and towns of all sizes combined.
Even though the city has a lower property crime index than the overall index for the United States, it has a higher index for violent crime than California and the United States.
The total rate of violent crime in the city is 29.3%, which is much higher than the national average of 22.7%. This high rate indicates a 1 in 37 possibility that a person living in Santa Ana can become a victim of either a violent or a property crime.
Robbery, aggravated assault, murder, unintelligent manslaughter, and rape are the four offenses that make up violent crime. On the other hand, property crime includes arson, burglary, and car theft.
The City’s Traffic Is Backed Up
The great majority of people who live in the city and have jobs here commute each day to get to and from work.
Due to the significant number of people who commute to Santa Ana daily, the city has considerable traffic during rush hour; therefore, living here, you should prepare to encounter bumper-to-bumper traffic every day.
What Is the Cost of Living in Santa Ana? – Say Hello to Reduced Taxes!
The Good Side
Santa Ana Has Low Tax Rates
Santa Ana, being the county seat of Orange County and the largest city in the county, has sales tax rates and real estate tax rates that are lower than those of many other cities in Southern California.
The total rate of the state and the city’s sales tax comes to 9.25% in this city. This tax is the total combined rate of the sales taxes set by the state, the county, and the city.
This tax rate is one whole percentage point lower than that of the neighboring city of Los Angeles, which results in savings of approximately $250 per year for the typical taxpayer in the middle class.
The Bad Side
Santa Ana Is an Expensive City
When selecting a new residence, the cost of living is essential. Santa Ana has a higher cost of living than the national average and most California towns. This place has a 46.3% higher cost of living than the rest of the country.
The city tends to have a higher overall average of housing costs, utilities, grocery items, transportation, health care, and miscellaneous products and services, even though some locations can be more expensive on a state and federal level for various reasons.
Santa Ana’s housing expenses are among the highest in the country, although they do not compare to those in California’s priciest municipalities.
The town has a median home cost of $687,800, and the home appreciation rate over the past decade was 115.6%. The average price to rent an apartment with a 1-bedroom is $1,690, while a 2-bedroom unit costs $2,080. These rent costs rank Santa Ana as the twelfth most expensive city to rent in the United States.
There is also a high expense associated with transportation, with monthly transit passes costing around $69 on average.
Comparable to the national average, people of the Greater Los Angeles area spend 12.4% of their household budget on food. 52.9 % of this food budget is spent on meals at home, while dining out expense is 47.1%.
Therefore, if you want to live a comfortable life once you move to the city, you need to think about this before you get here.
Why Work in Santa Ana? – It Is the County’s Commercial Hub!
The Good Side
Santa Ana Has a Wide Range of Career Possibilities
More than 13,000 companies call Santa Ana, California, home. Most of these companies are in the retail trade, the service industry, or the manufacturing sector.
As the county’s capital, the city has county, state, and federal offices, making the government a significant employer in the city. The city is also a financial center with 25 banks and 57 savings and loan institutions.
Aside from being a financial center, it is also home to major employers in the aerospace and electronics industries, including Textron’s Cherry Division, ITT Cannon, and Xerox, as well as other Fortune 500 companies.
In Santa Ana, tourism is also a significant industry. Several of California’s most popular tourist destinations, including Disneyland, Knott’s Berry Farm, and southern California beaches, are within 10 miles of the city. Each year, forty million tourists visit the Orange County region and spend over $6,4 billion.
If you live here, you won’t have trouble finding a job that suits your skills and experience!
The City’s Labor Force Is Diverse
Santa Ana is not predominately either a city of white-collar or blue-collar workers, as is the case in several other cities. Instead, the city’s economy consists of a combination of both types of workers.
People who work in service-related industries, sales, offices, and professional occupations make up most of this city’s population.
There are a disproportionately significant number of people who make their home in Santa Ana and are employed in sales jobs (9.55%), maintenance occupations (10.34%), and office and administrative support jobs (11.62%)
It Offers Competitive Wages and Benefits
With an average pay of $52,519, the City of Santa Ana is an excellent location to work due to its generous remuneration. Aside from that, the city also provides its employees with a wide range of benefits.
The city provides its employees with a competitive and extensive benefits package. It consists of medical, dental, and vision insurance; flexible spending accounts for health and dependent care needs; paid vacation, sick, and holiday leave; life insurance, pension, deferred pay, tuition reimbursement, wellness program, and ridesharing program.
Along with providing paid time off for vacation, sick days, and holidays, it also offers employee help programs, leaves of absence, and paid time off for career-related emergencies.
The Bad Side
Santa Ana Has a High Jobless Rate
Like most other cities in California, Santa Ana is dealing with an issue of high unemployment rates.
The unemployment rate in the city is 7.0%, more significant than the national average of 6.0 %.
The number of available employment in Santa Ana has grown by 0.6% over the past year. The city expects an employment rate of 31.7% over the next ten years. Unfortunately, this job expectation is lower than the national average of 33.5%.
After reading our summary of the pros and cons of living in this city, do you think it would be a good decision if you made the city of Santa Ana your permanent home?
Tell us exactly what you think about this city by leaving a comment below.