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Whitethorn, CA

This is a small community in a single neighborhood. As throughout the site, some neighborhood-level data are reserved for subscribers.





Overview


Whitethorn is a very small coastal town (i.e. on the ocean, a bay, or inlet) located in the state of California. With a population of 1,606 people and just one neighborhood, Whitethorn is the 688th largest community in California.

Occupations and Workforce

Whitethorn is neither predominantly blue-collar nor white-collar, instead having a mixed workforce of both blue-collar and white-collar jobs. Overall, Whitethorn is a town of service providers, construction workers and builders, and professionals. There are especially a lot of people living in Whitethorn who work in healthcare suport services (28.99%), computer science and math (10.14%), and business and financial occupations (8.70%).

Also of interest is that Whitethorn has more people living here who work in computers and math than 95% of the places in the US.

One interesting thing about the economy is that relatively large numbers of people worked from their home: 9.59% of the workforce. While this number may seem small overall, as a fraction of the total workforce this is high compared to the rest of the county. These workers are often telecommuters who work in knowledge-based, white-collar professions. For example, Silicon Valley has large numbers of people who telecommute. Other at-home workers may be self-employed people who operate small businesses out of their homes.

Setting & Lifestyle

Another notable thing is that Whitethorn is an extremely popular vacation destination. A significant portion of the population is seasonal. During the vacation season, the town experiences a large influx of people who take up residence in second homes they own in the area. As the vacation season ends, the population drops again, leaving behind a substantially quieter and smaller town.

It is a fairly quiet town because there are relatively few of those groups of people who have a tendency to be noisy. (Children, for example, often can't help themselves from being noisy, and being parents ourselves, we know!) Whitethorn has relatively few families with children living at home, and is quieter because of it. Renters and college students, for their own reasons, can also be noisy. Whitethorn has few renters and college students. But the biggest reason it is quieter in Whitethorn than in most places in America, is that there are just simply fewer people living here. If you think trees make good neighbors, Whitethorn may be for you.

Whitethorn is also nautical, which means that parts of it are somewhat historic and touch the ocean or tidal bodies of water, such as inlets and bays. Such areas are often places that visitors and locals go for waterfront activities or taking in the scenery.

One downside of living in Whitethorn is that it can take a long time to commute to work. In Whitethorn, the average commute to work is 37.38 minutes, which is quite a bit higher than the national average.

Whitethorn is a small town, and as such doesn't have a public transit system that people use to get to and from their jobs every day.

Demographics

In terms of college education, Whitethorn is nearly on par with the US average for all cities of 21.84%: 17.68% of adults 25 and older in Whitethorn have a bachelor's degree or advanced degree.

The per capita income in Whitethorn in 2022 was $29,907, which is lower middle income relative to California, and middle income relative to the rest of the US. This equates to an annual income of $119,628 for a family of four. However, Whitethorn contains both very wealthy and poor people as well.

The people who call Whitethorn home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Whitethorn residents report their race to be White, followed by Black or African-American. Important ancestries of people in Whitethorn include English, German, Irish, Northern European, and Italian.

The most common language spoken in Whitethorn is English. Other important languages spoken here include Italian and African languages.

Notable & Unique Neighborhood Characteristics

The way a neighborhood looks and feels when you walk or drive around it, from its setting, its buildings, and its flavor, can make all the difference. This neighborhood has some really cool things about the way it looks and feels as revealed by NeighborhoodScout's exclusive research. This might include anything from the housing stock to the types of households living here to how people get around.

Real Estate

This neighborhood has wide open spaces, few people, and lots of space to stretch out. If you like locations that fit that description, you may like this neighborhood. Based on NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis, with only 8 people per square mile living here, this neighborhood is less crowded than 97.6% of America. Do you like a coastal setting? If so, this neighborhood may be to your liking. The neighborhood is on the ocean, a bay, or inlet. Often such coastal places have amenities and recreational activities on the waterfront that are attractive to residents and visitors alike. In addition to being coastal, is a very nautical neighborhood, meaning that it is somewhat historic, walkable, densely populated and on the water. This gives the neighborhood a very nautical feel, with some seaside and shipping feel, which some may really enjoy the sights and sounds of. One of the notable things about is that it is one of the quietest neighborhoods in America, according to NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis and quantitative rating of quietness. When you are here, you will find it to be very quiet. If quiet and peaceful are your cup of tea, you may have found a great place for you.

In addition, despite all of the residential real estate here in the neighborhood, NeighborhoodScout has discovered that much of it is vacant. In resort or second-home vacation areas, this naturally occurs because homes and apartments are seasonally occupied, and empty for a portion of the year. In non-vacation or resort areas, however, this can be an indicator of property abandonment or a weak real estate market. The vacancy rate here is 54.1%, which is higher than 99.0% of all U.S. neighborhoods.

People

Of note is NeighborhoodScout's research finding that the neighborhood has some of the lowest rates of children living in poverty of any neighborhood in the United States. In a nation where approximately 1 in 4 children are living in poverty, the community truly stands out from the rest in this regard.

In addition, the types of households in a neighborhood can tell a lot about the character and lifestyle of those living here. NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis reveals that this neighborhood, above nearly every neighborhood in America, has a greater percentage of its residents living alone: 54.6%. This is a higher percent living alone than we found in 97.6% of all U.S. neighborhoods. Often residents who live alone are new arrivals to an area who are single, and often senior citizens who have lost a spouse.

Also, if you're nearing retirement age, or in retirement, the is an excellent choice for you to consider for top-quality retirement living. This neighborhood is rated by NeighborhoodScout as among the top 5.9% of retiree-friendly neighborhoods in California, combining peace and quiet, safety from crime, and offering diverse housing options from which retirees can choose. Maybe it's because of these amenities that a large proportion of the residents here are college educated seniors, mixed with other age groups. For these and other reasons, NeighborhoodScout identifies this neighborhood as a top-notch place to consider if you are thinking of or planning to retire in California.

Modes of Transportation

In the neighborhood, walking to work is a real option for many. In fact, NeighborhoodScout's exclusive research reveals walking to and from work is the chosen way to commute for 14.8% of residents here. This is a higher proportion of walking commuters than we found in 97.0% of American neighborhoods. Get ready to put on your walking shoes if you move here!

Diversity

Significantly, 10.2% of its residents five years old and above primarily speak Italian at home. While this may seem like a small percentage, it is higher than 98.0% of the neighborhoods in America.

The Neighbors

How wealthy a neighborhood is, from very wealthy, to middle income, to low income is very formative with regard to the personality and character of a neighborhood. Equally important is the rate of people, particularly children, who live below the federal poverty line. In some wealthy gated communities, the areas immediately surrounding can have high rates of childhood poverty, which indicates other social issues. NeighborhoodScout's analysis reveals both aspects of income and poverty for this neighborhood.

The neighbors in the neighborhood in Whitethorn are low income, making it among the lowest income neighborhoods in America. NeighborhoodScout's research shows that this neighborhood has an income lower than 89.0% of U.S. neighborhoods. In addition, 0.0% of the children seventeen and under living in this neighborhood are living below the federal poverty line, which is a lower rate of childhood poverty than is found in 100.0% of America's neighborhoods.

The old saying "you are what you eat" is true. But it is also true that you are what you do for a living. The types of occupations your neighbors have shape their character, and together as a group, their collective occupations shape the culture of a place.

In the neighborhood, 32.2% of the working population is employed in clerical, assistant, and tech support occupations. The second most important occupational group in this neighborhood is manufacturing and laborer occupations, with 30.4% of the residents employed. Other residents here are employed in executive, management, and professional occupations (24.6%), and 12.8% in sales and service jobs, from major sales accounts, to working in fast food restaurants.

Languages

The most common language spoken in the neighborhood is English, spoken by 99.4% of households. Some people also speak Italian (10.2%).

Ethnicity / Ancestry

Culture is the shared learned behavior of peoples. Undeniably, different ethnicities and ancestries have different cultural traditions, and as a result, neighborhoods with concentrations of residents of one or another ethnicities or ancestries will express those cultures. It is what makes the North End in Boston so fun to visit for the Italian restaurants, bakeries, culture, and charm, and similarly, why people enjoy visiting Chinatown in San Francisco.

In the neighborhood in Whitethorn, CA, residents most commonly identify their ethnicity or ancestry as English (20.1%). There are also a number of people of German ancestry (9.4%), and residents who report Irish roots (8.1%), and some of the residents are also of Italian ancestry (5.7%), along with some Polish ancestry residents (1.9%), among others.

Getting to Work

How you get to work – car, bus, train or other means – and how much of your day it takes to do so is a large quality of life and financial issue. Especially with gasoline prices rising and expected to continue doing so, the length and means of one's commute can be a financial burden. Some neighborhoods are physically located so that many residents have to drive in their own car, others are set up so many walk to work, or can take a train, bus, or bike. The greatest number of commuters in neighborhood spend between 45 minutes and one hour commuting one-way to work (59.2% of working residents), longer and tougher than most commutes in America.

Here most residents (71.2%) drive alone in a private automobile to get to work. In addition, quite a number also hop out the door and walk to work to get to work (14.8%) . In a neighborhood like this, as in most of the nation, many residents find owning a car useful for getting to work.


Real Estate includes:
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Neighborhood Setting
Economics & Demographics include:
Lifestyle & Special Character
Household Types
Commute To Work
Migration & Mobility
Race & Ethnic Diversity
Employment Industries & Occupations
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Higher Education Attainment
Crime includes:
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Schools include:
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