Lake San Marcos, CA

Census Place

2024 Population

4,693

US Senator

Alex Padilla

Democratic Party

US Senator

Adam Schiff

Democratic Party

2024 Median Age

4.83% 1-year increase

2024 Poverty Rate

5.98%

5.78% 1-year decrease

2024 Median Household Income

$89,851

10.8% 1-year decline

2024 Median Property Value

$917,000

Population & Diversity

Lake San Marcos, CA is home to a population of 4.69k people, from which 92.4% are citizens.

As of 2024, 21.5% of Lake San Marcos, CA residents were born outside of the country (1.01k people).

In 2024, there were 3.69 times more White (Non-Hispanic) residents (3.1k people) in Lake San Marcos, CA than any other race or ethnicity. There were 839 Other (Hispanic) and 242 Asian (Non-Hispanic) residents, the second and third most common ethnic groups.

Population & Diversity

Citizenship

92.4%

2024 Citizenship

93%

2023 Citizenship

As of 2024, 92.4% of Lake San Marcos, CA residents were US citizens, which is lower than the national average of 93.2%. In 2023, the percentage of US citizens in Lake San Marcos, CA was 93%, meaning that the rate of citizenship has been decreasing.

The following chart shows US citizenship percentages in Lake San Marcos, CA compared to that of it's neighboring and parent geographies.

Diversity

Race and Ethnicity

The 3 largest ethnic groups in Lake San Marcos, CA

White (Non-Hispanic)
3.1k ± 484
Other (Hispanic)
839 ± 566
Asian (Non-Hispanic)
242 ± 132

22.3%

Hispanic Population

1.05k people

22.3% of the people in Lake San Marcos, CA are hispanic (1.05k people).

The following chart shows the 8 races represented in Lake San Marcos, CA as a share of the total population.

Global Diversity

The PUMS dataset is not available at the Place level, so we are showing data for California.

Most Common Origin

Mexico
3,877,888 ± 45,899 people
Philippines
827,719 ± 22,100 people
China
695,724 ± 20,296 people

In 2024, the most common birthplace for the foreign-born residents of California was Mexico, the natal country of 3,877,888 California residents, followed by Philippines with 827,719 and China with 695,724.

Foreign-Born Population

21.5%

2024 Foreign-Born Population

1.01k people

19.6%

2023 Foreign-Born Population

978 people

As of 2024, 21.5% of Lake San Marcos, CA residents (1.01k people) were born outside of the United States, which is approximately the same as the national average of 14%. In 2023, the percentage of foreign-born citizens in Lake San Marcos, CA was 19.6%, meaning that the rate has been increasing.

The following chart shows the percentage of foreign-born residents in Lake San Marcos, CA compared to that of it's neighboring and parent geographies.

Military

Veterans

Most Common Service Period

Vietnam
190 ± 77
Korea
67 ± 57
Gulf War (2001-)
13 ± 21

Lake San Marcos, CA has a large population of military personnel who served in Vietnam, 2.84 times greater than any other conflict.

The chart shows the distribution of veterans by conflict in Lake San Marcos, CA.

Economy

The economy of Lake San Marcos, CA employs 1.92k people. In 2024, the largest industries in Lake San Marcos, CA were Health Care & Social Assistance (229 people), Manufacturing (214 people), and Retail Trade (188 people), and the highest paying industries were Professional, Scientific, & Technical Services ($105,734), Professional, Scientific, & Management, & Administrative & Waste Management Services ($105,462), and Educational Services ($71,364).

Employment

Occupations

1.92k

2024 Value

± 312

−14.7%

1 Year decline

± 26.5%

From 2023 to 2024, employment in Lake San Marcos, CA declined at a rate of −14.7%, from 2.25k employees to 1.92k employees.

The most common job groups, by number of people living in Lake San Marcos, CA, are Sales & Related Occupations (309 people), Office & Administrative Support Occupations (261 people), and Education Instruction, & Library Occupations (173 people). This chart illustrates the share breakdown of the primary jobs held by residents of Lake San Marcos, CA.

Unemployment Insurance Claims

Data is only available at the state level. Showing data for California.

This chart shows weekly unemployment insurance claims in California (not-seasonally adjusted) compared with the four states with the most similar impact.

The most recent data point uses Advance State Claims data, which can be revised in subsequent weeks.

Industries

Employment by Industries

1.92k

2024 Value

± 312

−14.7%

1 Year decline

± 26.5%

From 2023 to 2024, employment in Lake San Marcos, CA declined at a rate of −14.7%, from 2.25k employees to 1.92k employees.

The most common employment sectors for those who live in Lake San Marcos, CA, are Health Care & Social Assistance (229 people), Manufacturing (214 people), and Retail Trade (188 people). This chart shows the share breakdown of the primary industries for residents of Lake San Marcos, CA, though some of these residents may live in Lake San Marcos, CA and work somewhere else. Census data is tagged to a residential address, not a work address.

Median Earnings by Industry

$41,679

Median earning men ± $11,377

$31,417

Median earning women ± $6,149

The industries with the best median earnings for men in 2024 are Professional, Scientific, & Management, & Administrative & Waste Management Services ($106,440), Manufacturing ($52,125), and Retail Trade ($51,250).

The industries with the best median earnings for women in 2024 are Professional, Scientific, & Management, & Administrative & Waste Management Services ($67,750), Manufacturing ($62,083), and Public Administration ($41,148).

Housing & Living

The median property value in Lake San Marcos, CA was $917,000 in 2024, which is 2.76 times larger than the national average of $332,700. Between 2023 and 2024 the median property value increased from $859,600 to $917,000, a 6.68% increase. The homeownership rate in Lake San Marcos, CA is 79%, which is higher than the national average of 65.2%.

People in Lake San Marcos, CA have an average commute time of 23.5 minutes, and they drove alone to work. Car ownership in Lake San Marcos, CA is approximately the same as the national average, with an average of 2 cars per household.

Housing

Property

$917,000

Median Property Value 2024

±$70,499

$1,581

Median Property Taxes

±$259

The following chart display owner-occupied housing units distributed between a series of property tax buckets compared to the national averages for each bucket. In Lake San Marcos, CA the largest share of households pay taxes in the $3k+ range.

The chart underneath the paragraph shows the property taxes in Lake San Marcos, CA compared to it's parent and neighbor geographies.

Rent vs Own

79%

Homeownership

2024

66.7%

Homeowners with Mortgage

2024

In 2024, 79% of the housing units in Lake San Marcos, CA were occupied by their owner. This percentage grew from the previous year's rate of 78.4%.

This chart shows the percentage of owner in Lake San Marcos, CA compared it's parent and neighboring geographies.

Equity

Household Income

Please note that the buckets used in this visualization were not evenly distributed by ACS when publishing the data.

$89,851

Median Household Income

± $17,454

Number of Households

± 307

In 2024, the median household income of the 2k households in Lake San Marcos, CA declined from $89,851 from the previous year's value of $100,676.

The following chart displays the households in Lake San Marcos, CA distributed between a series of income buckets compared to the national averages for each bucket. The largest share of households have an income in the $200k+ range.

Wage Distribution

The closest comparable wage GINI for Lake San Marcos, CA is from California.

0.493

2024 Wage GINI in California

0.495

2023 Wage GINI in California

In 2024, the income inequality in California was 0.493 according to the GINI calculation of the wage distribution. Income inequality had a 0.424% decline from 2023 to 2024, which means that wage distribution grew somewhat more even. The GINI for California was higher than than the national average of 0.474. In other words, wages are distributed less evenly in California in comparison to the national average.

This chart shows the number of workers in California across various wage buckets compared to the national average.

Transportation

Commuter Transportation

Most Common Commute in 2024

Drove Alone (74%)
Worked At Home (23.5%)
Carpooled (2.03%)

In 2024, 74% of workers in Lake San Marcos, CA drove alone to work, followed by those who worked at home (23.5%) and those who carpooled to work (2.03%).

The following chart shows the number of households using each mode of transportation over time, using a logarithmic scale on the y-axis to help better show variations in the smaller means of commuting.

Commute Time

23.5 minutes

Average Travel Time

Using averages, employees in Lake San Marcos, CA have a shorter commute time (23.5 minutes) than the normal US worker (26.4 minutes). Additionally, 0.86% of the workforce in Lake San Marcos, CA have "super commutes" in excess of 90 minutes.

The chart below shows how the median household income in Lake San Marcos, CA compares to that of it's neighboring and parent geographies.

Car Ownership

2 cars

Average Number

The following chart displays the households in Lake San Marcos, CA distributed between a series of car ownership buckets compared to the national averages for each bucket. The largest share of households in Lake San Marcos, CA have 2 cars.

Poverty

Poverty & Diversity

5.98% of the population for whom poverty status is determined in Lake San Marcos, CA (271 out of 4.54k people) live below the poverty line, a number that is lower than the national average of 12.5%. The largest demographic living in poverty are Females 75+, followed by Females 45 - 54 and then Females 18 - 24.

The most common racial or ethnic group living below the poverty line in Lake San Marcos, CA is White, followed by Hispanic and Other.

The Census Bureau uses a set of money income thresholds that vary by family size and composition to determine who classifies as impoverished. If a family's total income is less than the family's threshold than that family and every individual in it is considered to be living in poverty.

Social Needs

Data only available at the state level.

Most prevalent states

California
35,798 individuals
New York
5,087 individuals

In 2017, California had the highest estimated number of chronically homeless individuals in the nation, at 35,798, followed by New York (5,087).

The following map shows the estimated number of chronically homeless individuals by state over multiple years.

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