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Welcome to Mariposa County
Enjoy Your Stay
Perhaps You’ll Return
To Live Here Some Day

  Yosemite Valley at Sunset (Photo by Brent Gilstrap)

On This Page

• The Home of Yosemite—And a Lot More
• A great place to visit—An even better place to live
• About Mariposa County
• Quality of Life
• At-A-Glance Economic Profile

The Home of Yosemite—And a Lot More

Nearly 4 million people visit Mariposa County every year for some very good reasons.  The main reason, of course, is that Mariposa County is the home of Yosemite.  But there are many other reasons.  As a major tourist destination there is an abundance of things to see and do here.  Considering that Mariposa County is relatively unpopulated (with only 18,000 residents) and remains unspoiled (by preserving its natural beauty and exceptional quality of life), this abundance of things to see and do is particularly remarkable.  Visitors and residents alike enjoy fine dining, shopping and entertainment.  The recreational activities are virtually unlimited:  hiking, rafting, bicycling, golf, skiing, gold panning, rock climbing, fishing, birding, horseback riding, sky gazing, and more.  Cultural activities also abound with galleries, regular concerts and special events throughout the year.

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A great place to visit—An even better place to live

Nearly everyone who visits Yosemite National Park falls in love with the area.  Not surprisingly, a growing number of these tourists are choosing to move here to enjoy the natural beauty and rural charm year-round.  And for those who want to start or relocate a business, Mariposa County welcomes you with very lenient Home Enterprise and Rural Home Industry zoning laws.  In fact, Mariposa County is so friendly to small and home-based businesses that there is not even a requirement for a business license.  Some of these new residents are artists and artisans inspired by the beautiful scenery found throughout the county.  Others have careers or businesses, particularly in high-technology fields, whose jobs allow them to live virtually anywhere.  So why not live in one of the nicest places on the planet?!  These folks also find the combination of a high quality of life and a relatively low cost of living particularly inviting.  And some decide to take advantage of the market opportunity created by 3-4 million tourists visiting Yosemite annually to open or relocate their local/visitor-serving businesses here.

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About Mariposa County

As the home of Yosemite, Mariposa County remains a relatively undeveloped environment dominated by the natural beauty of majestic mountains and rolling foothill grasslands.  The rural quality of life and four mild seasons attract many self-employed, semi-retired and retired professionals who seek to escape the congestion of urban settings.  Artists and artisans, writers, consultants and other cottage industry “freelancers” are particularly drawn to the region for its affordable, laid back lifestyle and abundance of inspiring scenery.   

The County government is quite friendly to these small businesses.  There is no requirement for a business license, and zoning laws encourage “Rural Home Industry” entrepreneurs.  In addition, the County’s long-term General Plan strongly supports the many self-employed individuals and small business operators who constitute a major force in the local economy.

Mariposa County is also expected to be home to many faculty and staff members at the new University of California campus in neighboring Merced County.  A mere 30-45 minute commute will allow families to live “Above the Fog and Below the Snow” in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains.  Their children will attend Mariposa County schools, which excel as one of California’s finest rural school districts.

The transportation needs in and around Mariposa County are served by state highways, county roads, a general aviation airport and the Yosemite Area Regional Transportation System, or YARTS.  As a major year-round tourist destination, recreational opportunities abound for naturalists, hikers, sports enthusiasts, historians, art lovers, equestrians, and more.  Even amateur astronomers find the clear night sky a welcomed changed from the light pollution of metropolitan areas.

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Quality of Life

One of the main attractions of Mariposa County is its world-class scenery—and not just in Yosemite National Park, along the Wild & Scenic Merced River, and throughout the Sierra National Forest.  From its rolling foothills rising gently from the Central Valley to its highest peaks in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, Mariposa County is indeed a special place.  These scenic views are at the foundation of why so many people continue to choose to live and work here so that they, too, can enjoy the extraordinary quality of life to be found in Mariposa County.

The scenic variety of terrain, the temperate climate and access to a wide variety of recreational activities throughout the entire year combine to make Mariposa County’s character a treasure that residents and visitors desire to protect.  Preserving this exceptional quality of life is an objective of the EDC’s economic development efforts.  For this reason, Mariposa County does not support the “suburban foothill economy” found in portions of other rural counties, such as El Dorado, Nevada, and Placer.  Mariposa County residents have witnessed the impact of sprawl in surrounding counties, and as a result, desire to avoid such a pattern of development.  For residents who do enjoy the opportunities afforded by a more suburban economy, Mariposa does provide a landscape of rural homes with reasonable commutes to Fresno, Merced and Modesto.

While “Quality of Life” inevitably means different things to different people, some of the shared characteristics in Mariposa County include…

• A rural lifestyle that is relaxed and laid back
• Four distinct seasons—all mild and enjoyable
• Air that is clear and full of sunshine an average of 265 days a year
• Cost of living and crime rates that are among the lowest in California
• Abundant outdoor recreational activities
• Numerous volunteer and community service organizations for anyone who wants to get involved
• A hospital that provides life-saving emergency services, with a choice of local doctors providing routine medical care
• Ability to shop locally for daily needs, with a half-hour’s drive affording a wide variety of retail services to meet just about any need

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At-A-Glance Economic Profile

Note:  This profile is provided by the California’s Employment Development Department.

http://www.labormarketinfo.edd.ca.gov/cgi/databrowsing/localAreaProfileQSResults.asp?selectedarea=Mariposa+County&selectedindex=22&menuChoice=localAreaPro&state=true&geogArea=0604000043&countyName=

Mariposa County is located in the central Sierra Nevada foothills. Surrounding counties include Merced on the west, Madera on the south, Tuolumne on the north, and Mono on the east.  The wide variety of recreational opportunities available in Mariposa makes the county one of California’s popular year-round vacation destinations.  Mariposa County is home to Yosemite National Park, a primary tourist attraction. Tourism is the county’s main industry and the area’s largest employer; nearly four million people visit Yosemite National Park annually.

 

Unemployment Rate and Labor Force (Not Seasonally Adjusted)
Area		Year		Time Period						Labor Force			No. of Employed					No. of Unemployed					Unemployment Rate
Mariposa County		2009		March						9,190			7,980					1,220					13.2
Employment by Industry (Not Seasonally Adjusted)
Year		Time Period						CES Industry Title																No. of Employed
2009		March						Total Wage and Salary																4,980
2009		March						Total Nonfarm																4,950
2009		March						Service Providing																4,700
2009		March						Total Private																3,030
2009		March						Residual-Private Services Providing																2,780
Occupations with Fastest Job Growth (% change)
Occupation									Estimated Year - Projected Year			Employment									Employment Change
												Estimated				Projected					Number					Percent
Home Health Aides									2004 - 2014			100				180					80					80.0
Physical Therapist Aides									2004 - 2014			20				30					10					50.0
Opticians, Dispensing									2004 - 2014			20				30					10					50.0
Detectives and Criminal Investigators									2004 - 2014			20				30					10					50.0
Entertainment Attendants, All Other									2004 - 2014			20				30					10					50.0
High Wage Occupations
Occupation									Year		Time Period						Hourly Mean			Hourly by Percentile
																				25th				Median					75th
Pharmacists									2008		1st Qtr						$57.51			$54.14				$58.94					$63.83
Chief Executives									2008		1st Qtr						$55.30			$48.57				$55.53					$62.45
Veterinarians									2008		1st Qtr						$48.70			$36.62				$41.50					$48.41
Engineering Managers									2008		1st Qtr						$48.42			$42.19				$48.76					$55.98
Family and General Practitioners									2008		1st Qtr						$48.41			$34.26				$55.12					$62.71
Building Permits (US Census Bureau)
Multi-Family											2007						Annual			2				$208,640
Single Family											2007						Annual			100				$23,417,409
Total all types construction permits											2007						Annual			102				$23,626,049
Consumer Price Index (US BLS & California DIR)
Area		Consumer Price Index																											% Change
		Time Period							2007		Time Period													2006
United States		Annual							207.3		Annual													201.6					2.8
California		Annual							217.4		Annual													210.5					3.3
Median Price of Existing Homes Sold (California Association of Realtors)
2009		February						Median Price of Homes Sold																					$247,590
State Revenues by Source
Tax Type Description											Year				Time Period									Tax Revenue
Alcoholic Beverage Taxes and Fees											2006				Annual									$333,789,000
Bank and Corporation (Income) Taxes											2006				Annual									$11,157,898,000
Cigarette Tax											2006				Annual									$1,078,536,000
Horse Racing (Parimutuel) License Fees											2006				Annual									$37,527,000
Estate, Inheritance and Gift Taxes											2006				Annual									$6,348,000
Taxable Sales (California Board of Equalization)
Year		Time Period				Sales Type Description																	Sales
2006		Annual				Retail																	$168,347,000
Population
Area			Year		Time Period									Source														Population
Mariposa County			2008		Annual									California Dept of Finance														18,406
Measures of Income
Income Type																				Year		Time Period					Income		Population
Median Household Income - Small Area Income Estimates (Census Bureau)																				2007		Annual					$42,757		N/A
County-to-County Commute Patterns (US Census Bureau)
Year	Time Period						Area of Residence												Area of WorkPlace										Number of Workers
2000	Census						Mariposa County, CA												Mariposa County, CA										4,810
2000	Census						Madera County, CA												Mariposa County, CA										519
2000	Census						Mariposa County, CA												Merced County, CA										419
2000	Census						Mariposa County, CA												Madera County, CA										402
2000	Census						Mariposa County, CA												Stanislaus County, CA										311

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