Best PlacesLake Murray, San Diego, CA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Lake Murray, San Diego, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. The coast is close, and the measures below put a number on how close. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
Lake Murray, San Diego ranks 1,189th of 5,983 U.S. neighborhoods on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on the weather by a wide margin, and taxes are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in Lake Murray, San Diego
BestNeighborhood is the only ranking that scores 40 measures of daily life neighborhood by neighborhood and lets you re-weight every one of them yourself.
Lake Murray, San Diego's strengths and weaknesses
Where Lake Murray, San Diego ranks high
- Nice weatherabout 236 pleasant days a year, better than 93% of neighborhoods
- Crime safetyBetter than 85% of neighborhoods
- Low property taxBetter than 82% of neighborhoods
- Healthcare accessBetter than 80% of neighborhoods
- Household income$117,106 median, better than 79% of neighborhoods
Where Lake Murray, San Diego ranks low
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 20% of neighborhoods
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 21% of neighborhoods
- WalkabilityBetter than only 22% of neighborhoods
- Cheap childcare$1,432 a month, better than only 25% of neighborhoods
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 26% of neighborhoods
What it costs to buy a home in Lake Murray, San Diego
A household needs to earn about $207,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Lake Murray, San Diego home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $117,106, so buying stretches a typical household.
Where the monthly payment goes
Assumes a 20% down payment, a 6.6% 30-year fixed rate, and a 28% share of income going to the payment. The rate is the 2026-07-23 30-year fixed average, series MORTGAGE30US from the St. Louis Fed, which publishes Freddie Mac's weekly survey. Against the median home value, property tax uses Lake Murray, San Diego's effective rate of 0.62%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices and rents, renting stays cheaper than buying across the first 10 years here, so the case for buying rests on staying much longer or on prices rising faster than assumed. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in Lake Murray, San Diego
Lake Murray, San Diego runs older than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for Lake Murray, San Diego.
Who works in Lake Murray, San Diego, and how
Work in Lake Murray, San Diego centers on education and professional & technical. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 71%
- Work from home 27%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in Lake Murray, San Diego
The coast is about 15 minutes away. Distance to the water changes a lot across Lake Murray, San Diego, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in Lake Murray, San Diego, month by month
Lake Murray, San Diego sees roughly 236 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 87 degrees. January highs sit near 68, with lows near 43. The comfortable stretch runs February through November.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 68° | 54° | 43° |
| April | 74° | 61° | 52° |
| July | 87° | 74° | 65° |
| October | 82° | 67° | 56° |
Flying in and out of Lake Murray, San Diego
San Diego International sits about 11 miles away. It is a large hub and boarded 12.7 million passengers in 2025, with 121 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around Lake Murray, San Diego
Schools across Lake Murray, San Diego average a B, better than 71% of neighborhoods.
Top elementary schools
- Carlton Oaks ElementaryB · 50% proficient
- Chet F. Harritt ElementaryB · 46% proficient
- Murray Manor ElementaryD+ · 25% proficient
Top high schools
- West Hills HighB · 47% proficient
- Grossmont HighB− · 41% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Lake Murray, San Diego school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Lake Murray, San Diego measure by measure
Cards are ordered by how much each measure matters to you, so the ones you weighted highest come first. Expand to see every measure. Percentages compare Lake Murray, San Diego against the other 5,982 neighborhoods.
Who Lake Murray, San Diego suits
Retirees
The weather beats 93% of neighborhoods, health care access beats 80%, and it is quieter than 58%.
Common questions about living in Lake Murray, San Diego
Is Lake Murray, San Diego a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Lake Murray, San Diego ranks 1,189th of 5,983 neighborhoods. It scores highest on the weather, low crime, and low property taxes, and lowest on taxes and an overheated housing market. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Lake Murray, San Diego expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $812,016. The overall cost of living runs about 34% above the national average. Set against a $117,106 median income, cost of living beats 58% of neighborhoods.
Is Lake Murray, San Diego safe?
Yes, Lake Murray, San Diego is safer than 85% of neighborhoods. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $280 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in Lake Murray, San Diego?
July highs average about 87 degrees, and January highs near 68 with lows near 43. That works out to about 236 pleasant days a year, more than 93% of neighborhoods.
Is Lake Murray, San Diego good for families?
Schools beat 71% of neighborhoods, crime safety beats 85%, and childcare runs $1,432 a month.
Compare Lake Murray, San Diego with other neighborhoods
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Lake Murray, San Diego. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Lake Murray, San Diego represents the same real quantity as a 60 anywhere else, and the ranking is a weighted average of those absolutes. The map colors come from a national scale calibrated against a population weighted random sample of 5,000 neighborhoods. That absolute scoring is what no other places-to-live ranking does: it puts a single neighborhood, a town, a metro, and a state on one scale, so the same 40 measures answer both which metro to move to and which street inside it to buy on. Read the full methodology.
Lake Murray, San Diego detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Lake Murray, San Diego: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Lake Murray, San Diego: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Lake Murray, San Diego: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Lake Murray, San Diego: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Lake Murray, San Diego detail on related sites:
- CrimeGrade: neighborhood crime rates behind the crime safety score.
- ISPreports.org: provider by provider internet availability and advertised speeds.
- CoverageWatch: the car insurance premiums behind the cheap car insurance score.
Federal and public data:
- U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey: income, home value, rent, vacancy, commute time and mode, educational attainment, home age, age structure, household type, industry, and race.
- NOAA Global Surface Summary of the Day: the daily station record behind the monthly temperatures and the pleasant-day count.
- FAA Passenger Boarding Data: airport size and annual passenger counts.
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey: the 30-year fixed rate used in the cost-to-buy estimate.
- FBI Crime Data Explorer: reported offenses behind the tangible crime cost estimate.
- U.S. EPA Air Quality System: five year average air quality index.
- FEMA National Risk Index: expected annual loss from natural hazards.
- CDC PLACES: disease burden, preventable risk, and barriers to care.
- National Center for Education Statistics: school enrollment and assessment inputs behind the school grade.
- FCC National Broadband Map: internet and wireless availability.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: employment and job growth behind the local economy score.
- Religious activity uses a proprietary religious signal measurement.
Your priorities
Move a slider to say how much a measure matters. Zero turns it off.