Orange County is the third most populous county in all of California and the sixth most populous in the United States, with a total population of over 3 million people. Within the county are a number of towns that make up the greater Los Angeles metropolitan area, but operate in their own independent way, like Fullerton, which is just north of the more notable town of Anaheim due to the location of Disneyland and a number of popular professional sports stadiums. However, Fullerton has established itself as a quiet, enjoyable suburb over the past few decades, perfect for someone to raise a family and purchase an affordable house with property around it, allowing people to live out their own California Dream without breaking the bank.
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Fullerton has a population of over 135,000 people according to the last census, and was relatively racially diverse by the standards of most towns in Southern California. 53 percent of the population is Caucasian, 22.8 percent were Asian and much of the rest of the population was Hispanic or Latino. Over fifty percent of the population was between the ages of 25 and 65 and most of those individuals owned homes and had families, whose children made up another 23 percent of the Fullerton population, displaying the fact that Fullerton is a place many married couples settle to raise their families outside of Anaheim or Los Angeles.
The economic diversity also stretched the gamut, with the median household income in Fullerton being over $68,000, which is nearly ten thousand more than the median household income average in the state of California. However, nearly fifteen percent of the population of Fullerton lives below the poverty line, which is a surprisingly high number for a population of 135,000 plus people. In other words, just about every economic level is represented in Fullerton, for better or worse.
Despite these stats, the housing market in Fullerton has been booming in recent years, much like it has all over Southern California. Since 2012 home values have risen from a median of $408,000 in Fullerton to a high of $575,000 in 2016. However, experts are predicting that the market will begin to level off this year and into the near future.
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Located north of Anaheim and a good distance East of the main downtown area of the city of Los Angeles, Fullerton is enough removed from the big city bustle and concerns to make it ideal for families who want to live in quiet suburban neighborhoods, but not too far away from all the things that make the metropolis of LA so fun. Depending on traffic, it’s about a thirty minute drive to the picturesque beaches of Newport or Laguna; a fifteen to twenty minute drive to the gates of Disneyland or any of the other family-friendly amusement parks in Anaheim; and a thirty minute drive to the heart of downtown LA.
In Fullerton proper, there are numerous parks within the city limits and a number of more wild state parks and nature reserves just north, making it an ideal place to go hiking to enjoy the natural beauty of Southern California itself. Despite being more inland from the coast, Fullerton’s weather stays relatively mild through much of the year, with averages hovering in the high sixties and low seventies in the winter, Spring and Fall months. In the summer, temperatures can rise on average into the upper 80's, so residents should be prepared to experience true summer days in July, August and September.
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The music scene in Fullerton has a surprisingly rich history. Over the past few decades it has been home to the Orange County hardcore punk music scene, producing groups like Agent Orange, Social Distortion and Gwen Stefani, who later went on to form the internationally renowned punk pop group No Doubt. Much of this has to do with the fact that that the infamous Fender Musical Instrument Company was founded in Fullerton and continued to produce guitars there until the middle of the 1980's.
As mentioned, there are over 50 parks in the Fullerton area, making it a community that loves being outdoors more than most in inland communities in Southern California. This also translates to their love of sports, namely baseball. The University of Cal State Fullerton, located within the city limits, has one of the best collegiate baseball programs in the country, having won and vied for the national championship numerous times.
If you want a quiet and unique suburb where you can purchase a nice house without spending an outrageous amount of money in which to raise your family, Fullerton is an ideal place to start house shopping.
