FOCUS : Rossmoor: A Gold Mine for Early Buyers

Rancher John Bixby bought Rancho Los Alamitos (Little Cotton Trees) around 1850 and set aside 5,000 acres to build a city. A portion of that land is known today as Rossmoor, an affluent unincorporated community of Orange County.

In the 1950s some of the land was subdivided to build homes, two shopping centers, four school sites and two church sites. At that time it was the largest subdivision ever built in Orange County. Those with enough foresight to buy in those early days have seen their equity increase tenfold or more.

However, the area has not been problem-free. In 1985 the county informed Rossmoor that the homeowners association had surpassed its alloted amount for maintenance services and halted all payments. A year later the Community Services District was formed to supply Rossmoor’s street sweeping and lighting, landscaping, public recreation, median landscaping and parkway tree maintenance maintenance.

In a vigorous public campaign, the community disputed plans for asite that had been designated for a school. Instead in 1975, the Rossmoor Community Park became a reality.

Statistics Population: (1987 est.) 10,575 Median household income: $48,806 Median home value: $127,405 Racial/ethnic mix: white, 96.7%; Latino, 3.3%; black, 0.2%; other, 3.2% (Total is more than 100% because racial/ethnic breakdowns overlap) Employment status Employed persons: 5,447 Unemployed: 197 Not in labor force: 2,836 Per capita income: $12,321 Population Median Age: 42.7 years Education Adults over 25 Years of school completed: 0-11 years: 8.6 % 12 years: 28.9% 13-15 years: 28.7% 16+ years: 33.8% Median years completed: 14.3 Neighborhood mobility Household moved in: Most recent year: 117 Last 5 years: 554 6-9 years ago: 440 10+ years ago: 1,404 Statistics: Donnelley Demographics