I have had tons of clients asking which cities around Temecula I recommend. In particular, I often recommend Murrieta because these two cities are quite similar in multiple respects. I will go into detail about what each city has to offer, schools, home prices, and amenities. I will also include a free home search at the end of this blog, I promise it won’t ask for any of your information but if you plan on moving to this area please keep me in mind. 

Both of these cities have really grown in the last 10 to 15 years. People who have lived here their entire lives say it has happened so quickly they could hardly believe it. With that said, because there has been so much development in recent years both cities have tons of restaurants, shopping and other developments that make life in these cities convenient and enjoyable. 

Murrieta has a population of about 110,043 with a 63.7% rate of homeownership. In regards to crime statistics, Murrieta is considered to be a very safe city with extremely low incidents of violent crime. See the graph to the right to see how it compares to Riverside County and the state of California.

Temecula has a population of around 110,722 which is a 15.5% increase from 10 years ago. Just like Murrieta Temecula is considered to be a very safe City. the crime rates are slightly higher than in Murrieta but still much lower than the state average For violent crimes. See the graph to the right for the full rating information 

Home Prices

The median home price in Temecula is about $40,000 to $50,000 more than in Murrieta. See the graph below for the exact December 2020 median price for single-family homes. Overall purchasing a home in Murrieta is going to be less expensive in most cases. While the home prices are a big difference, surprisingly rentals are very similar in these two cities. A three-bedroom rental will be about $2,000-$2,400 per month in either city. 

Traffic

When it comes to Temecula vs Murrieta regards to traffic, they both have areas that get a lot at certain times. The biggest traffic spot in Murrieta is on Murrieta Hot Springs Rd. This is one of the main roads with a lot of shopping, restaurants, and attractions so it can get busy on weekends and rush hours on weekdays. Temecula gets traffic near the 15 and 215 freeway split. Similar to much of California, traffic is bad in the mornings from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. and evenings from 4 p.m. till 7 pm. 

Weather and Air Quality

With Temecula vs Murrieta in regards to weather, there is not much difference. Yes, you have three or four months of the year where it gets very hot in between 90 and 105, but it’s awesome to wake up every morning to sunshine and warm weather. During the winter months, mornings can get down to 35 to 40 degrees and we do get some rain from December through February though in total both cities only get about 31 days of rain per year. On average we see 276 sunny days per year, which is truly hard to beat!

When it comes to air quality I would say Temecula is going to be the winner by just a hair. Murrieta is a bit closer to bigger cities like Riverside or Moreno Valley and has other smaller cities virtually surrounding it. Temecula is the most southern real metropolitan area in riverside county and below it is about 20 miles of scarcely populated land so it naturally is less polluted. There is often a nice breeze and to the south, we have a lot of large horse property in Fallbrook and Bonsall. This just equals fewer people as a whole and I’ve noticed that Temecula doesn’t get the smog or haze like much of North Riverside County.

Amenities

Because of growth, both cities are going to have a great deal to choose from when it comes to restaurants, grocery stores, and things you need for your everyday life. Both Temecula and Murrieta will have conveniences like grocery stores that are no more than 5 minutes from many of the communities. They also both have a number of excellent restaurants to choose from.

 If you’re looking for something to do on a Friday and Saturday night, Temecula is going to be the clear winner. Temecula California has wine country as well as a Casino which has concerts, a comedy club, and a nightclub. There is also my personal favorite, Old Town Temecula, which is great for shopping, bars, and fine dining or date nights. 

Where Should You Live?

This really depends on a lot of factors which I’m going to go over now. First, Murrieta is definitely going to be lower in regards to home prices. If you really want to live in this area but can’t afford Temecula, Murrieta is a great choice and you will still be within a few minutes of all that Temecula has to offer. Both Murrieta and Temecula have some rural areas with more land and less congestion if you are looking for more of a quiet country setting. These areas tend to be further from the freeway and conveniences like restaurants and shopping. 

You also have to think about where you have employment. We talk about this a great deal in  many of our videos and blog posts on cities throughout Southern California. Because of traffic, you should strategically live as close to where you work as possible. Most people want to spend the least amount of time in a car as possible. If you work in Riverside, Corona, Chino, Ontario, you might want to consider living in Murrieta. It could save you 10 minutes depending on traffic every day. If you are working in the San Diego area, obviously Temecula is going to be a better choice. At the end of the day though, these cities are so close it won’t make too much difference so you should really choose based on which one you like more and what you can afford.

Future Growth

When it comes to Temecula vs Murrieta in regards to growth, both cities are probably going to continue to have massive future growth. Murrieta, because it is more central and lots of room to grow. Temecula will most likely grow at a much more rapid pace because there is so much draw when you talk about wineries, Old Town, restaurants, etc. I feel it’s almost inevitable that Temecula will become a high-end vacation destination in the future. This will only benefit homeowners and we’ll raise home prices to levels we have not seen in this area before.

I wanted to finish off by saying Temecula is one of the best places I have ever lived. I couldn’t imagine a better place to raise a family or retire. There’s so much to do but you still have that country style living if you would like. We have areas like De Luz, Los Ranchitos, Meadowview, or wine country, with lot sizes ranging anywhere from 1 to 20 acres.  If you’re looking for a quiet life away from the noise with beautiful weather check out these communities.

We also have areas with low tax rates. If you’re looking for communities in South Temecula that have low tax rates that we really like click here 

Thank you for reading my blog, I hope you found this information helpful. I am a licensed Real Estate Agent and specialist in the Temecula Valley and surrounding area. If you have any questions regarding the Temecula housing Market or Real Estate in general please contact me.

My direct number is 949-291-9401 and my email is kat.markham@icloud.com.