Tustin's housing stock reflects its long, layered history. Old Town Tustin contains many of the city's oldest homes — bungalows and early 20th-century residences on tree-shaded streets, some restored and some renovated. The Broadmoor area and other postwar neighborhoods offer mid-century modern and ranch-style houses on modest lots. On the city's east side, Tustin Ranch is a large master-planned community with newer single-family homes, townhomes, and apartments arranged around parks and schools. Tustin Legacy continues to add contemporary attached and detached housing near its new parks and commercial core. This range means buyers can choose between historic small-lot living, established suburban tracts, and recently built communities within a single city.

Old Town Tustin is the city's historic heart, known for its walkable streets, preserved early homes, and a main-street district of shops and eateries. Tustin Ranch, built mostly from the 1980s onward, is a family-oriented master-planned area with its own schools, parks, and golf course. Tustin Legacy occupies the former Marine Corps Air Station land and is emerging as a mixed-use district of new housing, offices, and open space. Additional established neighborhoods — including Tustin Meadows and the communities around the city's central corridor — offer mid-century and late-20th-century homes that keep a broad range of housing types available across town.

Daily life in Tustin centers on Old Town's walkable main street and The District, an outdoor shopping, dining, and entertainment center. Old Town hosts community events and a farmers market that draw residents from across the city. The local dining scene ranges from casual cafés to sit-down restaurants, with additional options clustered near the freeways. Tustin's location puts residents minutes from the attractions, employment, and coastline of central Orange County while retaining a calmer, more suburban pace than adjacent urban Santa Ana. The city's growing park system and family-oriented events give it a distinctly community-centered feel.

Public education in Tustin is provided by the Tustin Unified School District, which operates elementary, middle, and high schools across the city and portions of neighboring communities. The district offers magnet and thematic programs at several campuses, including science, technology, engineering, arts, and math pathways and an International Baccalaureate middle-years program. Tustin has long been a center of education in Orange County, and the district's schools span the city's varied neighborhoods, from older in-town areas to Tustin Ranch and Tustin Legacy. Several private schools also serve families in the surrounding area.

Tustin sits at the junction of two major freeways: Interstate 5, which runs north toward Anaheim and Los Angeles and south toward Irvine and San Diego, and State Route 55, which links the city to the coast and to inland Orange County. State Route 261 and the eastern toll-road network provide additional routes into Irvine. A Metrolink commuter rail station in the Tustin Legacy area offers passenger rail service along the Orange County corridor, and the city lies a short drive from John Wayne Airport in adjacent Santa Ana. This central road and rail position makes Tustin convenient for commuters throughout the county.

Tustin has invested heavily in parks and open space, particularly through Tustin Legacy, which is planned to provide more than 170 acres of parks, trails, and recreational areas at full build-out. Tustin Legacy Park is designed as a linear park with pedestrian bridges, walkways, and open expanses connecting the Metrolink station to nearby commercial development. The city also maintains neighborhood and sports parks, and residents are a short drive from regional recreation in the Irvine area and the Orange County coast. These facilities support a range of outdoor and family-oriented activities year-round.