Highland, CA — Momentum Score, Home Values & Best-For

All states·California·Highland

San Bernardino County · Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario · population 56,499

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

Where Highland stands

At or near all-time high.

Median home $548,510
1-year +0.2%
5-yr CAGR +5.2%
vs 5-yr peak -1.2%
Population -0.2%/yr

Home value trajectory · last 10 years

Zillow ZHVI · monthly
peak 2025-01$549k$257k$364k$471k$577k201620182020202220242026

Lifestyle scores

🚶
Walkability
52/100
Somewhat walkable
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
76/100
Strong remote-work fit
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
$2,234/mo$1,961$2,185$2,40920242026

Home value vs rent · indexed to 100

Both rebased at first month of ZORI data (~2015)
Home valueRent10210310020242026

Rent vs buy

Price-to-rent ratio: 20.5
Lean rent

At a 20.5 price-to-rent ratio, the math is starting to lean toward renting in Highland. Owner-occupier ROI requires longer holds and the assumption that prices keep appreciating roughly at the rate of rent.

How the momentum score breaks down

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

Highland has held up across the cycle: home values at $548,510 with +5.2% 5-year CAGR. The bull case is structural — population, location, employer base — and holds even if next year's print is soft.

Short thesis

Highland'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 Highland

Highland is a city in San Bernardino County, California, with an estimated population of 56,499. It anchors the Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario metro area. The median home value in Highland is $548,510 as of 2026-04, up 0.2% over the last 12 months. Over the last five years, home values have averaged +5.2% annual growth, with prices at or near the 5-year peak. Rents in Highland average $2,234 per month, roughly flat year-over-year (+0.9%). 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: +5.2% annualized over 5 years, outpacing US inflation.
●Held the highs: currently -1.2% from the 5-year peak — this market refused to give back gains.

▼ Bear case

○Local nuance: city-level data smooths over neighborhood differences. School zones, HOA rules, and street-level character matter — visit before deciding.

About Highland (Wikipedia)

Highland is a city in San Bernardino County, California, United States located 65 miles east of Downtown Los Angeles and roughly 50 miles west of Palm Springs, California. The city's population, inclusive to its neighboring East Highlands community was 56,999 at the 2020 census.

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

City facts

MayorCarlos Zamano
Area18.67 sq mi
Elevation1309 ft
EstablishedNovember 24, 1987Cite web
Density3069.2/sq mi

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

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 San Bernardino County right now.

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

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

Cities like Highland

Apple Valley, CA63 · RisingYucaipa, CA60 · StableBuena Park, CA60 · StableUpland, CA62 · Rising

Run the numbers for Highland

ToolCan I afford Highland?Income → city shortlistToolROI on a Highland rentalCap rate, cash-on-cash, DSCRToolCompare Highland to anywhereSide-by-side up to 3 citiesToolHighland 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 Highland 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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