Desert Hot Springs is a city in Riverside County, California, United States. The city is located within the Coachella Valley geographic region. The population was 32,512 as of the 2020 census, up from 25,938 at the 2010 census. The city has experienced rapid growth since the 1970s when there were 2,700 residents. The city is commonly referred to by its initials, DHS.

It is named for its many natural hot springs.Howells, John (2015). Where to Retire: America’s Best & Most Affordable Places. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 70. .Editors of Time Out (2011). Time Out Los Angeles. Time Out Guides. p. 293. . It is one of several places in the world with naturally occurring hot and cold mineral springs.Desert Hot Springs Historical Society (2014). Desert Hot Springs. Arcadia Publishing (Images of America). . More than 20 natural mineral spring lodgings can be found in town.Vokac, David and Joan (2017). Desert Hot Springs, California: Spa Town, U.S.A. Westphalia Press. p. 3. . Unlike hot springs with high sulfur content, the mineral springs in town are odorless.Vechten, Ken Van (2010). Insider’s Guide to Palm Springs. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 78. .

History The only people residing in areas north of Palm Springs before the 20th century were the Cahuilla Indians in the village of Seven Palms. Although Cahuilla people never settled permanently in today's Desert Hot Springs, they often camped here during winter times due to the warm climate.

According to early homesteader and writer Cabot Yerxa in his newspaper columns published in The Desert Sentinel newspaper, the first homesteader in the area of the city of Desert Hot Springs was Hilda Maude Gray, who staked her claim in 1908. Cabot Yerxa arrived in 1913 and soon discovered the hot water aquifer on Miracle Hill. Due to the Mission Creek Branch of the San Andreas Fault bisecting the area, one side is a cold water aquifer, the other has a hot water aquifer. His large Pueblo Revival Style architecture structure, hand built over 20 years, is now one of the oldest adobe-style buildings in Riverside County and houses Cabot's Pueblo Museum, designated a state historical site after his death in 1965. Cabot's Trading Post & Gallery opened there in February 2008.

The town was founded by L. W. Coffee on July 12, 1941. The original town site was centered at the intersection of Palm Drive and Pierson Boulevard and was only one square mile. Coffee chose the name Desert Hot Springs because of the area's natural hot springs.

Desert Hot Springs became a tourist destination in the 1950s because of its small spa hotels and boutique hotels. The city is popular with "snowbirds." Realtors arrived to speculate, and thousands of lots were laid out over a six-square mile area. Some homes were bought by retirees, and the area was incorporated as a city in 1963, with 1,000 residents.

In 2001 the town filed for a Chapter 9 municipal bankruptcy."Brown Signs Bill to Limit California's Municipal Bankruptcies", Business Week, October 10, 2011 Accessed October 18, 2011 The bankruptcy was resolved in 2004 by selling municipal bonds when it faced a legal judgmentThe city issued $12.78 million in 40-year bonds to pay a $10.85 million debt. Of that amount, $8.85 million was paid to Silver Sage Partners, Ltd., which had successfully sued the city for discrimination under the Federal Fair Housing Act, and $2 million was paid to other creditors. The remainder was put into the general fund or used for other purposes. of almost $6 million.Marois, Michael B. and William Selway. "California City Moves Closer to Bankruptcy Filing (Update3)", Bloomberg, February 27, 2008

Desert Hot Springs experienced periods of significant growth in the 1980s and 1990s when most of the vacant lots were filled with new houses and duplex apartments. The city's population doubled in the 1980s and increased by 5,000 in the 2000 census.

Desert Hot Springs was the first city in Southern California to legalize medical marijuana cultivation and has since been overwhelmed by marijuana developers and growers. It was featured in a CNBC special as California's first city to permit the commercial cultivation of marijuana in 2014.

Geography

Before the development of the city began in the 1930s, Desert Hot Springs was a treeless place in California's Colorado Desert.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which 98.73% is land, and 1.27% is water. Desert Hot Springs is nestled between two mountain ranges: San Bernardino Mountains and San Jacinto Mountains. It is located just south of Big Morongo Canyon Preserve and Joshua Tree National Park. It is located in the Colorado Desert region of the Sonoran Desert.

Climate Desert Hot Springs has a desert climate (Köppen climate classification BWh) similar to the rest of the Coachella Valley, with less than six inches of precipitation per year. Summers are very hot with days frequently exceeding in July and August while night-time lows tend to stay between . The winters are mild with days typically seeing temperatures between and corresponding night-time lows between . Heat waves during the summer months involving temperatures higher than are not unusual.

Summer winds and the higher elevation keep Desert Hot Springs on average 5–7 degrees cooler than other communities in Coachella Valley. However, the winter season can be warmer due to the surrounding mountains blocking north winds. Since it lies at a higher elevation than the cities further south, cold air drains into the lower elevation of the Coachella Valley, which results in warmer night-time lows, producing an example of thermal inversion.

Geology The Mission Creek Fault, a branch of the San Andreas, separates two aquifers. On one side, the Desert Hot Springs Sub-Basin contains an aquifer with hot water. This aquifer supports the area's spas and resorts. Mission Springs Sub-basin, on the other side of the fault, the Miracle Creek sub-basin has cold water. This aquifer provides fresh water to the city and has received awards for exceptional taste.

Demographics

Desert Hot Springs first appeared as an unincorporated place in the 1960 U.S. census; and listed as a city in the 1980 U.S. census.

Racial and ethnic composition +Desert Hot Springs city, California – Racial and ethnic compositionRace / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)Pop 1980Pop 1990Pop 2000Pop 2010Pop 2020% 1980% 1990% 2000% 2010% 2020White alone (NH)5,3078,4818,0408,9308,05889.33%72.69%48,49%34.43%24.78%Black or African American alone (NH)794459471,9482,4181.33%3.81%5.71%7.51%7.44%Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)351371201611710.59%1.17%0.72%0.62%0.53%Asian alone (NH)62123006046960.10%1.82%1.81%2.33%2.14%Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)971470.05%0.27%0.15%Other race alone (NH)/151427194/0.13%0.08%0.10%0.60%Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)xx4535511,041xx2.73%2.12%3.20%Hispanic or Latino (any race)5142,3786,69913,64619,8878.65%20.38%40.40%52.61%61.17%Total5,94111,66816,58225,93832,512100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%

2020 census As of the 2020 census, Desert Hot Springs had a population of 32,512. The population density was . The median age was 33.0 years, and the age distribution was 28.2% under 18, 9.7% from 18 to 24, 27.4% from 25 to 44, 22.6% from 45 to 64, and 12.0% who were 65 or older. For every 100 females, there were 99.7 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.5 males age 18 and over.

The census reported that 99.4% of the population lived in households, 0.5% lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 0.1% were institutionalized. 96.6% of residents lived in urban areas, while 3.4% lived in rural areas.

There were 10,608 households, of which 41.2% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 39.3% were married-couple households, 10.1% were cohabiting-couple households, 21.5% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 29.1% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 22.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.05, and there were 7,392 families (69.7% of all households).

There were 11,595 housing units, of which 91.5% were occupied and 8.5% were vacant. Among occupied units, 49.4% were owner-occupied and 50.6% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.1% and the rental vacancy rate was 4.7%.

2023 ACS 5-year estimates In 2023, the US Census Bureau estimated that 23.8% of the population were foreign-born. Of all people aged 5 or older, 50.3% spoke only English at home, 46.8% spoke Spanish, 1.3% spoke other Indo-European languages, and 1.5% spoke Asian or Pacific Islander languages. Of those aged 25 or older, 81.0% were high school graduates and 15.9% had a bachelor's degree.

The median household income was $50,349, and the per capita income was $23,980. About 15.5% of families and 19.2% of the population were below the poverty line.

2010 census The 2010 United States census reported that Desert Hot Springs had a population of 25,938. The population density was . The racial makeup of Desert Hot Springs was 15,053 (58.0%) White (34.4% Non-Hispanic White), 2,133 (8.2%) African American, 357 (1.4%) Native American, 675 (2.6%) Asian, 84 (0.3%) Pacific Islander, 6,343 (24.5%) from other races, and 1,293 (5.0%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 13,646 persons (52.6%).

The Census reported that 25,820 people (99.5% of the population) lived in households, 118 (0.5%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 0 (0%) were institutionalized.

There were 8,650 households, out of which 3,713 (42.9%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 3,468 (40.1%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 1,603 (18.5%) had a female householder with no husband present, 711 (8.2%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 843 (9.7%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 206 (2.4%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 2,071 households (23.9%) were made up of individuals, and 691 (8.0%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.98. There were 5,782 families (66.8% of all households); the average family size was 3.59.

The ages of the resident population range from 8,064 people (31.1%) under the age of 18, 2,712 people (10.5%) aged 18 to 24, 6,893 people (26.6%) aged 25 to 44, 5,781 people (22.3%) aged 45 to 64, to 2,488 people (9.6%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31.0 years. For every 100 females, there were 100.3 males. For every 100 females aged 18 and over, there were 98.4 males.

There were 10,902 housing units at an average density of , of which 4,166 (48.2%) were owner-occupied, and 4,484 (51.8%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 8.6%; the rental vacancy rate was 16.6%. 11,533 people (44.5% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units, and 14,287 people (55.1%) lived in rental housing units.

According to the 2010 United States Census, Desert Hot Springs had a median household income of $32,883, with 28.6% of the population living below the federal poverty line.

Diversity Desert Hot Springs has a diverse population. Several racial or ethnic groups live there, with the largest group being of Mexican and Central American ancestry. There is a Korean American ethnic section of the city at 8th Street and Cholla Drive. Thousands of American Jews made the city their home. According to the Desert Chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), the city's population is over 10 percent African-American or Black. The city has a high proportion of Native Americans, most of whom are members of the Cahuilla tribe in proximity to the Agua Caliente Cahuilla tribal board in Palm Springs. A large percentage of the city population is LGBTQ.

Government