What is the Best Neighborhoods USA ranking for Lower East?
Lower East is ranked #23 of 28 eligible neighborhoods in Santa Barbara; #1,115 of 1,814 eligible neighborhoods in CA; and #9,125 of 14,967 eligible neighborhoods in the United States.
Neighborhood Profile
Lower East
Santa Barbara, CA | Santa Barbara County
Scored premium profile
Best Neighborhoods USA Index
45.8
Stability and Strength
41.6
Value Opportunity
31.0
Momentum
73.4
Score note: Rankings show denominators so users always see the size of the eligible cohort.
| Context | Value |
|---|---|
| Location | Santa Barbara, CA |
| County | Santa Barbara County |
| National rank | #9,125 of 14,967 |
| State rank | #1,115 of 1,814 |
| City rank | #23 of 28 |
| County rank | #23 of 28 |
| National percentile | 39.0 |
| National band | MIDDLE_50_PERCENT |
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Housing and local fundamentals
| Housing and market metrics | Value |
|---|---|
| Current Zillow home value | $1,307,940 |
| Year-over-year home value change | 4.8% |
| Month-over-month home value change | 0.01% |
| Home value to income ratio | 19.48 |
| Median household income | $67,132 |
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 27.4% |
| Civilian unemployment rate | 3.3% |
| Homeownership rate | 21.3% |
| Housing vacancy rate | 5.2% |
| Rent burden 30% or higher | 52.3% |
How to read this profile
- Ranks are always shown with denominators.
- Momentum reflects both year-over-year and month-over-month housing change.
- Stability and Strength and Value Opportunity are governed composite scores.
- Identity composition is descriptive intelligence and is not a scoring component.
Questions and Answers
Questions About Living in Lower East
Is Lower East one of the best neighborhoods in Santa Barbara?
Lower East has a Best Neighborhoods USA Index of 45.8 and a city ranking of #23 of 28 eligible neighborhoods in Santa Barbara.
How much are homes worth in Lower East?
The current Zillow Home Value Index for Lower East is approximately $1,307,940.
Are home values rising or falling in Lower East?
Zillow neighborhood values changed 4.8% year over year and 0.01% month over month.
What is the Neighborhood Momentum Score for Lower East?
Lower East has a Neighborhood Momentum Score of 73.4. Momentum is 70% year-over-year and 30% month-over-month Zillow housing change.
What is the median household income in Lower East?
The NDS-derived neighborhood median household income is approximately $67,132.
How affordable is Lower East relative to household income?
The current Zillow home-value-to-household-income ratio is 19.48. Price-to-income affordability is a major Value Opportunity input.
Is Lower East primarily homeowners or renters?
The NDS-derived homeownership rate is approximately 21.3%.
What is the unemployment rate in Lower East?
The NDS-derived civilian unemployment rate is approximately 3.3%.
How educated are residents of Lower East?
Approximately 27.4% of residents age 25 and older are estimated to have a bachelor's degree or higher.
What share of renters in Lower East face high rent burden?
Approximately 52.3% of the applicable renter-household universe is estimated to spend 30% or more of household income on gross rent.
How does Best Neighborhoods USA score Lower East?
The overall index combines 40% Stability and Strength, 35% Value Opportunity, and 25% Momentum. Race, ethnicity, and identity composition are not scoring components.
Governed ranking context
How this neighborhood ranks
HMDA Mortgage Intelligence
Neighborhood Mortgage Market
Modeled neighborhood-level mortgage activity allocated from governed HMDA tract data using Zillow neighborhood geometry. These neighborhood values are nonadditive and do not enter the Best Neighborhoods USA Index.
Activity year2024
Estimated applications26
Estimated originations13
Home-purchase applications8
Origination rate49.5%
Home-purchase share30.0%
Average application loan$651,589
Total application loan amount$17,047,899
National application rank#9,769 of 14,874 rankable neighborhoods
Geometry coverage100.0%
Recent trend: Applications 18.4% YoY; originations 26.4% YoY
Mortgage methodology
HMDA is natively reported at tract and other lender-reporting geographies, not Zillow neighborhood or ZIP geography. This module uses the certified NDS HMDA-to-Zillow tract-vintage crosswalk and area-weighted allocation. Rankings require governed geometry coverage. Applicant demographics are excluded. Neighborhood values may overlap and must not be summed to reconstruct ZIP or national totals.