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Taft Heights vs Taft

Next-door neighbors. The biggest differences: jobs per worker (57.5× in Taft) and street grid (7.8× in Taft Heights).

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Taft Heights, CAOne of the healthiest townsCalifornia · 1,291 people
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Taft, CAHomes around $207KCalifornia · 7,125 people
Swap order
Where each one shines

Two towns, two different strengths

What each town does better than most of its state (not better than each other). Tap one to see the page behind it.

Taft HeightsOne of the healthiest towns
Health86% of U.S. towns are healthieron CDC estimates All about Taft Heights →
TaftHomes around $207K
Housing$207K typical home73% below the CA typical home SafetySafer than 12%of U.S. towns we grade Schools#243 for schools in CAof 574 towns All about Taft →
The biggest differences

Where they part ways

The rows below where the towns are furthest apart, beyond the Census margin of error. The full table is further down.

Jobs per worker57.5×
Taft is more of a job hub
Taft 1.15Taft Heights 0.02
Street grid7.8×
Taft Heights has the more walkable street grid
Taft Heights 153Taft 19.7
Size5.5×
Taft is the bigger place
Taft 7,125Taft Heights 1,291
Work in town+27.1 pts
More of Taft’s workers stay in town
Taft 27.6%Taft Heights 0.5%
Growth since 2010+11 pts
Taft Heights has grown faster since 2010
Taft Heights +2.6%Taft -8.4%
Typical home built24 yrs
Taft Heights’s homes are older
Taft 1971Taft Heights 1947
★ What stands out · Report cards

Grades and rankings, side by side

Our letter grades for safety, schools and health, then every California ranking list both towns are on. A grade is one measure; read the page behind it.

Safety
–Taft HeightsNot graded DTaftSafer than 12% of U.S. towns
Schools
–Taft HeightsNot graded C+TaftBetter than 36% of districts in the state
Health
DTaft HeightsHealthier than 14% of U.S. towns CTaftHealthier than 32% of U.S. towns
Where they are

Taft Heights and Taft share a border

And the people who already live in one and work in the other.

Taft HeightsTaftTaft HeightsTaft
Taft Heights ↔ Taft2.7 miles apart · They share a border
Who commutes between them
131 Taft Heights residents work in Taft (22.5% of its workers)
Work & commute in Taft Heights →
Monthly cost

A typical home costs about the same each month

A typical home in each town, bought with 20% down at 6.3% for 30 years, plus property tax at the town’s own rate and insurance. Change the numbers to fit you.

Taft Heights$1,210/mo
Typical home $194K (Census) · tax rate 1.20% · or rent about $1,066/mo · Housing →
Taft$1,240/mo
Typical home $207K (Zillow) · tax rate 0.89% · or rent about $1,069/mo · Housing →

Within $50 a month of each other.

Estimates, not a quote: your price, rate, tax bill and insurance will differ. Tax rate = the Census median tax bill over the median home value.

Life in each

What daily life feels like in each

The weather, the land, the history and the people, row by row. None of it is a grade: more snow is a plus to a skier.

Seasons
Taft HeightsTaft
Snow a year0″0″
January low41°F41°F
July high99°F99°F
Growing season (days)330d330d
Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)83rd85th
Outdoors & history
Taft HeightsTaft
Trails—18 mi
Conserved land—0.3%
National Register places—1
Archive photos1—
Community
Taft HeightsTaft
Library hours a week—20 hrs
Colleges in town—1
Posts this month00
Neighbors joined00

A dot marks the most on each row. Climate: NOAA 1991–2020 normals at the nearest station. Hazard risk: FEMA National Risk Index, expected yearly damage vs U.S. towns.

Everything, side by side

What matters to you?

Pick a few. Those rows jump to the top and the best fit on each is marked. There’s no overall score: what matters is up to you.

Taft HeightsTaft
People
Population 1,291Lowest 7,125Highest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census +2.6%Highest CA: +6.1% -8.4%Lowest CA: +6.1%
Median age 31.4±5.1Lowest 17% below CA 37.1±5.2Highest about the CA average
Taft and Taft Heights are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18 26.3%±9.6Highest CA: 22% 19.1%±5.6Lowest CA: 22%
Taft Heights and Taft are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+ 8.4%±4.4Lowest CA: 15.7% 14.4%±6.4Highest CA: 15.7%
Taft and Taft Heights are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 15.5%Highest CA: 37.1% 9%Lowest CA: 37.1%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 3.5%±2.6Lowest CA: 7.6% 6.8%±2.6Highest CA: 7.6%
Taft and Taft Heights are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian $54,034±$9kLowest 45% below CA $72,772±$22kHighest 27% below CA
Taft and Taft Heights are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $193,800±$48kLowest 74% below CA $252,600±$22kHighest 66% below CA
Taft and Taft Heights are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Rentmedian gross, monthly $1,066±$189Lowest 48% below CA $1,069±$189Highest 47% below CA
Taft and Taft Heights are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly $2,321Highest 55% below CA $2,244Lowest 56% below CA
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 48.8%±29.1Lowest CA: 55.3% 52.6%±17.6Highest CA: 55.3%
Taft and Taft Heights are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line 16.2%Lowest CA: 12% 16.9%Highest CA: 12%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes 51.7%Lowest CA: 55.9% 55%Highest CA: 55.9%
Typical home builtmedian year 1947Lowest 29 yrs older than CA 1971Highest 5 yrs older than CA
Getting to work
Average commuteone way 21 minHighest 26% below CA 19 minLowest 34% below CA
Work from home 0%±3Lowest CA: 17.2% 4.4%±4.6Highest CA: 17.2%
Taft and Taft Heights are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Work in townworking residents 0.5%Lowest 27.6%Highest
Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 29.8 miHighest 27.3 miLowest
Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 0.02Lowest 1.15Highest
Top workplaceoutside town Taft (23%)Bakersfield (17%)
Between these townsresidents who work in the others 23% work in TaftFew work in Taft Heights
Outdoors
Conserved landshare of the town 0%Lowest 0.3%Highest
Trailsmapped miles 0.0 miLowest 18.3 miHighest
Trail densitymiles per sq mi 0.0 miLowest 1.2 miHighest
Parks & preservesnamed on the map 0Lowest 3Highest
Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 153Highest 19.7Lowest
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading —#243 of 574 in CA
School district —Taft City · Taft Union High
High school in town —Taft Union High
Students per teacherat that high school — 18.3
California average“±” Census margin of errorACS 2020–2024
Deciding?

Ask the people who live there

The numbers stop at the town line. Neighbors can tell you about the commute at 7am, the schools, the winters and the feel of the place.

Taft Heights neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Taft Heights’s Town Square.

Taft neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Taft’s Town Square.

Add a town

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Bordering Taft Heights

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South Taft2,939 people · $185K homes

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Not sure which town to add? Find your place ranks California towns on what matters to you.Find your place →

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2010 & 2020 censuses, LEHD commute flows; Zillow Home Value Index; NCES Common Core of Data; FBI crime reporting; CDC PLACES; FEMA National Risk Index; NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020; USGS PAD-US and OpenStreetMap. “±” is the Census margin of error; differences inside it are never called. Property tax is top-coded by the Census at $10,000+. There is no overall score: which town is better depends on what matters to you.

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