Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Population 1,291: a town in California.
Taft Heights’ best subject grade is a B+ for history; its weakest is a D for incomes. Taft Heights’ peak summer temperature is 97°F, where California’s towns sit at 89°F and U.S. towns at 85°F. Only 86 of California’s 1,056 towns score lower on incomes. Taft Heights's schools rank behind 81% of the state's. On history, just 78 of California’s 1,063 towns do better. Taft Heights has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within California), ordered by how far Taft Heights is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
![California [Kern County (part) - Modoc County (part)]](https://images.townratings.com/story/36539/9a1c40c2deb03465bb68-l.jpg)
Census counts: 2,176 in 1950, 1,999 in 2020. The archive holds 1 old photo or paper going back to 1940 and 2 maps from 1950 on.
Explore the history →Taft Heights is unincorporated, so Kern County and regional agencies provide most services.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Ordered by what stands out in Taft Heights.
Nearly two fifths of Taft Heights adults feel lonely. Only 6 of the 848 California towns we compare have a higher share of adults who have been diagnosed with depression than Taft Heights. Two figures for adults locally: 29% worry about having enough food, 30% say their health is fair or poor.
| Taft Heights | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 24% | 17% | 17% |
| Food insecurity (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 16% | 14% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 22% | 19% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 69% | 72% | 79% |
| What stands out | Taft Heights | CA |
|---|---|---|
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 23% | 10.6% |
| More adults facing a utility shut-off | 13.1% | 7.3% |
| More smokers | 19.1% | 10.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
In Taft Heights, the FEMA risk score is 83 of 100. Expected losses in Taft Heights break down as 72% from earthquakes and 19% from inland flooding.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Taft Heights’ middle household income stands at $54,000. Half commute less than 30 miles. The share of residents in Taft Heights who live below the poverty line: 16%. The top destinations are Taft (23%), Bakersfield (20%) and Fresno (2%).
| Taft Heights | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $54,000 | $95,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 21 minutes | 28 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 16% | 10% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 0.5% | 6.6% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Taft Heights’ median rent comes in at $1,066 a month. 52% of households own their home here.
| Taft Heights | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 52% | 64% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,066 a month | $1,896 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
1 within 15 miles of the center of Taft Heights
About 4 of every 100 Taft Heights residents are enrolled in college, against 8 across California.
Where Taft Heights’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Census-designated place in California, United States
Taft Heights (formerly, Boust City) is a census-designated place (CDP) in Kern County, California, United States. Taft Heights is located 1 mile (1.6 km) west-southwest of Taft, at an elevation of 1,178 feet (359 m). The population was 1,999 at the 2020 census, up from 1,949 at the 2010 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
The typical home is worth about $194,000, 75% below the California typical home. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C+.