Garden Grove, CA — Momentum Score, Home Values & Best-For

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Orange County · Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim · population 172,361

Garden Grove, CA
Image: Wikipedia · Garden Grove, California
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69
Rising
Momentum score · 0–100

Where Garden Grove stands

At or near all-time high.

Median home $1,012,728
1-year +1.9%
5-yr CAGR +6.8%
vs 5-yr peak +0.0%
Population +0.1%/yr

Home value trajectory · last 10 years

Zillow ZHVI · monthly
peak 2026-04$1013k$446k$649k$851k$1053k201620182020202220242026

Lifestyle scores

🚶
Walkability
40/100
Car-dependent
Estimated from population density. Higher = denser, more amenities within walking distance.
🚉
Public transit
30/100
Minimal transit
Curated list of major US transit systems + population-based estimate. Higher = real subway/rail/bus options.
💻
Remote work fit
52/100
Workable for remote workers
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
$2,597/mo$1,831$2,292$2,753202220242026

Home value vs rent · indexed to 100

Both rebased at first month of ZORI data (~2015)
Home valueRent139133100120140202220242026

Rent vs buy

Price-to-rent ratio: 32.5
Rent

At a 32.5 price-to-rent ratio, renting beats buying in Garden Grove for most shorter holds. The premium you pay to own would take many years of rent savings to recoup, and that's before maintenance, taxes, and opportunity cost on the down payment.

How the momentum score breaks down

methodology →
Home YoY
59 · w22%
Home 5-yr CAGR
73 · w22%
Distance from peak
90 · w18%
Population growth
46 · w16%
Rent YoY
72 · w12%
Home 10-yr CAGR
79 · w10%
Long thesis

Garden Grove has held up across the cycle: home values at $1,012,728 with +6.8% 5-year CAGR. The bull case is structural — population, location, employer base — and holds even if next year's print is soft.

Short thesis

Garden Grove carries a $1,012,728 median home with only +1.9% YoY. Premium pricing in a flat tape is the bear setup — you're paying for the trend that already ran while new buyers can't afford to extend it.

About Garden Grove

Garden Grove is a city in Orange County, California, with an estimated population of 172,361. It anchors the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim metro area. The median home value in Garden Grove is $1,012,728 as of 2026-04, up 1.9% over the last 12 months. Over the last five years, home values have averaged +6.8% annual growth, with prices at or near the 5-year peak. Rents in Garden Grove average $2,597 per month, up 4.0% year-over-year. The composite momentum score is 69 of 100 (Rising). The market is healthy with prices supported by underlying demand.

Bull case

Healthy 5-year run: +6.8% annualized over 5 years, outpacing US inflation.
Held the highs: currently +0.0% from the 5-year peak — this market refused to give back gains.

Bear case

Expensive AND not growing: median home $1,012,728 with only +1.9% YoY. You’re paying premium pricing for a flat trend.
Local nuance: city-level data smooths over neighborhood differences. School zones, HOA rules, and street-level character matter — visit before deciding.

About Garden Grove (Wikipedia)

Garden Grove is a city in northern Orange County, California, United States. The population was 171,949 at the 2020 census. State Route 22, also known as the Garden Grove Freeway, passes through the city in an east–west direction. The western portion of the city is known as West Garden Grove.

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

City facts

Mayor Pro TemStephanie Klopfenstein
Founded1874
Motto''Absit Invidia'' (Latin), 'Let there be no ill will'

Extracted from the Wikipedia infobox. Values may be slightly out of date relative to the latest sources.

Playbook

Buyer

You're not in a frenzy but you're not getting bargains either. Make a competitive offer with normal inspection terms. Don't lowball — the listing will move with or without you.

Seller

Price at fair market value; expect movement in 30-45 days. Don't get clever with terms (rent-back, contingencies) — buyers in a Rising market have options.

Investor

Appreciation tailwind exists but cash flow requires discipline on price. Run the numbers conservatively and confirm rent comps before committing.

Local safety & alerts

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

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

Cities like Garden Grove

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 Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim 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 Garden Grove 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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