Desert Hot Springs, CA

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Riverside County · Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario · population 33,917

Desert Hot Springs, CA
Image: Wikipedia · Desert Hot Springs, California
OverviewCost of livingMoving guide
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61
Stable
Momentum score · 0–100

Where Desert Hot Springs stands

Steady, no major recent move.

Median home $379,672
1-year -3.0%
5-yr CAGR +5.5%
vs 5-yr peak -4.3%
Population +1.1%/yr

Home value trajectory · last 10 years

Zillow ZHVI · monthly
peak 2024-11$380k$159k$243k$328k$412k201620182020202220242026

Lifestyle scores

🚶
Walkability
32/100
Very car-dependent
Estimated from population density. Higher = denser, more amenities within walking distance.
🚉
Public transit
22/100
Transit limited
Curated list of major US transit systems + population-based estimate. Higher = real subway/rail/bus options.
💻
Remote work fit
85/100
Excellent for remote work
Composite of city size, housing cost, state tax structure, and region's remote-work track record.

Scores are heuristic estimates from population density, state, and known transit/walkable cities. Not based on a paid Walk Score / Transit Score API — see methodology for the formula.

Rent trajectory · last 5 years

Zillow ZORI · monthly
$1,848/mo$1,570$1,764$1,95820242026

Home value vs rent · indexed to 100

Both rebased at first month of ZORI data (~2015)
Home valueRent10111110020242026

Rent vs buy

Price-to-rent ratio: 17.1
Lean buy

At a 17.1 price-to-rent ratio, Desert Hot Springs is in the 'depends on horizon' zone. Buy if you'll be there 5+ years and value flexibility on the home; rent if you might move, want zero maintenance friction, or expect rates to drop.

How the momentum score breaks down

methodology →
Home YoY
35 · w22%
Home 5-yr CAGR
68 · w22%
Distance from peak
64 · w18%
Population growth
66 · w16%
Rent YoY
68 · w12%
Home 10-yr CAGR
83 · w10%
Long thesis

Desert Hot Springs has held up across the cycle: home values at $379,672 with +5.5% 5-year CAGR. The bull case is structural — population, location, employer base — and holds even if next year's print is soft.

Short thesis

Desert Hot Springs's bear case is the boring one: the cycle is real and any market that's run hard can stall. Watch for slowing population growth, rising days-on-market, or builder discounts as the early warning signals.

About Desert Hot Springs

Desert Hot Springs is a city in Riverside County, California, with an estimated population of 33,917. It anchors the Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario metro area. The population grew 1.1% annually from 2020 to 2024, a moderate gain. The median home value in Desert Hot Springs is $379,672 as of 2026-04, down 3.0% over the last 12 months. Over the last five years, home values have averaged +5.5% annual growth (-4.3% from the 5-year peak). Rents in Desert Hot Springs average $1,848 per month, up 3.4% year-over-year. The composite momentum score is 61 of 100 (Stable). Conditions are neither hot nor cold, so the local fit matters more than market timing.

▲ Bull case

●Healthy 5-year run: +5.5% annualized over 5 years, outpacing US inflation.
●Net positive migration: population up 1.1% per year — demand fundamentals are intact.

▼ Bear case

●Cooling: -3.0% over the trailing year — momentum has stalled.
○Local nuance: city-level data smooths over neighborhood differences. School zones, HOA rules, and street-level character matter — visit before deciding.

About Desert Hot Springs (Wikipedia)

Desert Hot Springs is a city in Riverside County, California, United States. The city is located within the Coachella Valley geographic region. The population was 32,512 as of the 2020 census, up from 25,938 at the 2010 census. The city has experienced rapid growth since the 1970s when there were 2,700 residents. The city is commonly referred to by its initials, DHS.

Source: Wikipedia · this summary is contributed and licensed under CC-BY-SA.

Playbook

Buyer

Lifestyle fit matters more than market timing in a Stable market. Take your time on the home and neighborhood; the macro trend isn't urgent. Negotiate normally.

Seller

Price competitively from day one or risk a 60+ day listing. Staging, photography, and presentation matter more in Stable markets than in Hot ones.

Investor

Stable cap rates, no big appreciation story to lean on. Underwrite this as a pure cash-flow play — the math has to work on rent alone.

Local safety & alerts

No active National Weather Service alerts for Riverside County right now.

NWS active alerts (CA)California Emergency ManagementHow to prepare (NWS)

Public-safety links are official .gov sources, not curated by us. Riverside County routes NWS alerts; check the state EM portal for non-weather emergencies.

Cities like Desert Hot Springs

Palm Desert, CA55 · StablePalm Springs, CA54 · StableYucca Valley, CA56 · StableCathedral City, CA55 · Stable

Run the numbers for Desert Hot Springs

ToolCan I afford Desert Hot Springs?Income → city shortlistToolROI on a Desert Hot Springs rentalCap rate, cash-on-cash, DSCRToolCompare Desert Hot Springs to anywhereSide-by-side up to 3 citiesToolDesert Hot Springs cost-of-livingEquivalent income elsewhere

Sources: Zillow ZHVI (home values), Zillow ZORI (rents), US Census ACS + place population. Updated when source agencies publish revisions.

Climate & natural-disaster risk

Winter (Jan)
60° / 41°
avg high / low
Summer (Jul)
82° / 60°
avg high / low
Sunny days/yr
258
~71% of year
Annual precip
22″ rain
8″ snow
Disaster risk (1=very low, 5=very high)
Hurricane
Very low
Tornado
Very low
Wildfire
Very high
Earthquake
Very high
Flood
Moderate

State-level averages from NOAA Climate Normals (1991-2020) and FEMA National Risk Index. City-level conditions can vary significantly within a state.

Local sports teams

Major professional teams the Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario area cheers for. Detailed stats, schedules, and player pages on intherafters.com.

Current weather

Loading current conditions…

7-day forecast on weather.gov →

Find rentals & listings

Open current Desert Hot Springs listings on the major real-estate sites.

Links open the live search on the destination site — results are always current.

Local news & community

Updated 2026-05-21 from Google News + Reddit RSS. Headlines link to original sources.

Local economy & environment

Humidity
65%
Moderate climate
Median household income
$91,500
California state median
Top industries (state-level)
TechEntertainmentAgriculture

Humidity is annual average relative humidity (NOAA). Income is Census ACS 5-year estimate. Industries are largest employment sectors statewide (BLS); the local mix in a given city may vary.

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