What kinds of homes are in Palm Desert, CA?

Name: Types of homes in Palm Desert, CA, 2020–2024
Creator: US Census Bureau
License: https://www.census.gov/data/developers/about/terms-of-service.html

Palm Desert, CA has 37,028 (±666) homes (2020–2024 American Community Survey).

That is about 1,383 homes per square mile of land.

37.7% are detached single-family houses.

7.6% are in buildings of two to four units.

14.3% are in buildings of five or more units.

Figures last updated on November 12, 2026.

Housing units: 37,028 (±666)
Detached houses: 37.7%
2–4 unit buildings: 7.6%
5+ unit buildings: 14.3%

Homes in Palm Desert by building size

Housing units by units in structure, 2020–2024
Building type	Palm Desert	Riverside County	California	United States
Single-family, detached	37.7% (±1.9 points)	68.5%	57.0%	61.3%
Single-family, attached (townhouse, rowhouse)	30.7% (±2.0 points)	6.2%	7.4%	6.2%
2 units	1.3% (±0.5 points)	1.2%	2.4%	3.4%
3 or 4 units	6.3% (±1.0 points)	3.4%	5.4%	4.3%
5 to 9 units	3.4% (±0.8 points)	3.7%	5.7%	4.5%
10 to 19 units	3.9% (±0.9 points)	2.8%	4.9%	4.3%
20 or more units	7.0% (±1.2 points)	5.3%	13.6%	10.3%
Mobile home	9.6% (±0.9 points)	8.7%	3.5%	5.6%
Boat, RV, van, etc.	0.0% (±0.1 points)	0.2%	0.1%	0.1%

In Palm Desert, the share of homes in buildings of five or more units is higher than in Riverside County (11.8%).

It is also lower than in California (24.2%).

It is lower than the national figure (19.1%).

Homes in buildings of 5 or more units in places near Palm Desert

Nearest places with a published estimate, compared with Palm Desert
Place	Distance	Homes in buildings of 5 or more units	Compared with this place
Palm Desert	—	14.3% (±1.7 points)	—
Indian Wells	3.3 mi	9.2% (±5.2 points)	Not measurably different
Rancho Mirage	4.2 mi	6.0% (±1.4 points)	Lower
Bermuda Dunes	4.4 mi	22.9% (±7.1 points)	Higher
Desert Palms	4.8 mi	1.7% (±1.8 points)	Lower
Thousand Palms	5.4 mi	0.3% (±1.6 points)	Lower
Indio	7.4 mi	9.7% (±1.5 points)	Lower
La Quinta	8.1 mi	6.5% (±1.6 points)	Lower
Cathedral City	8.8 mi	10.9% (±1.4 points)	Lower

Nearby places with a measurably lower figure: Rancho Mirage, CA (6.0%), Desert Palms, CA (1.7%), Thousand Palms, CA (0.3%).

Nearby places with a measurably higher figure: Bermuda Dunes, CA (22.9%).

Distance is measured in a straight line between the Census Bureau’s internal points for each place.

Homes in buildings of 5 or more units across Riverside County, place by place

Rank	Place	Homes in buildings of 5 or more units
3	Riverside	23.2% (±1.2 points)
4	Bermuda Dunes	22.9% (±7.1 points)
5	Corona	20.6% (±1.7 points)
6	Mecca	18.9% (±9.0 points)
7	Blythe	15.3% (±3.7 points)
8	Moreno Valley	15.0% (±1.4 points)
9	Palm Desert	14.3% (±1.7 points)
10	Temecula	14.1% (±1.5 points)
11	Murrieta	13.5% (±1.8 points)
12	Hemet	13.4% (±1.8 points)
13	Coachella	13.1% (±2.6 points)
14	Cathedral City	10.9% (±1.4 points)
15	Desert Hot Springs	10.4% (±2.8 points)

Showing 13 of 71 places in Riverside County, ranked from highest to lowest.

Survey years: 2020–2024 (American Community Survey 5-year estimates).

Margins of error are at the 90% confidence level.

What you can do on Seayora in Palm Desert

One account for renting, owning, managing and fixing homes, with these figures beside you.

Own or manage a rental?

List it, sign the lease and collect rent online, with the figures for Palm Desert beside you.

Create a landlord account · See what landlords get

Looking for a place to rent?

Browse homes for rent near Palm Desert, save the ones you like and apply online.

Browse rentals · Create a renter account

Do repairs, renovations or maintenance?

Get found by owners and renters near Palm Desert, and send estimates and invoices from your phone.

Join as a pro · Find a pro

Questions about Palm Desert

How many homes are in Palm Desert?

Palm Desert, CA has an estimated 37,028 (±666) housing units, occupied and vacant (2020–2024 American Community Survey).

Are most homes in Palm Desert houses or apartments?

37.7% are detached houses and 30.7% attached houses, while 21.9% are in buildings of two or more units.

How many two-family and small multifamily homes are in Palm Desert?

7.6% of homes in Palm Desert are in buildings of two to four units, the small rental buildings that are often owner-occupied.

Sources

Selected Housing Characteristics (DP04), 2020–2024 ACS 5-year estimates — Palm Desert city, California

To check these figures in the Census Bureau’s own API, request the variables below from the 2024 ACS 5-year data profile (acs/acs5/profile) for Palm Desert city, California (place:55184, in state:06).

Each estimate (E or PE) has a margin of error beside it (M or PM).

The API needs a free key.

Request a Census API key.

DP04_0001E, DP04_0001M, DP04_0007PE, DP04_0007PM, DP04_0008PE, DP04_0008PM, DP04_0009PE, DP04_0009PM, DP04_0010PE, DP04_0010PM, DP04_0011PE, DP04_0011PM, DP04_0012PE, DP04_0012PM, DP04_0013PE, DP04_0013PM, DP04_0014PE, DP04_0014PM, DP04_0015PE, DP04_0015PM

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.

Figures are published by the US Census Bureau, HUD, the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the FBI; Seayora reproduces them and does not adjust them, except where a sentence says it compares dollar figures after inflation. They describe the whole place, not any one building or street, and are not an appraisal, a rent determination, a tax bill, a safety rating or legal advice.