after I’ve been climbing for the past five yearsOverall homelessness in the city and county of Los Angeles has declined this year, as has the number of people living on the streets, according to the annual count released Friday.
The 2024 calculation represents a snapshot Taken in JanuaryThe survey reflects the effects of city and county programs to clear encampments by moving people out of tents, temporary shelters and vehicles into hotels, motels and other types of temporary housing.
“These changes in both the city and the county mean that this year, in our region, more people are experiencing homelessness indoors, where they are safe, where they have better access to food, showers and medical and other services,” said Paul Rubenstein, deputy chief external relations officer for the Los Angeles Homeless Authority, which conducts the count.
LAHSA estimated there were 75,312 homeless people across the county, a 0.3% decrease from last year. In the city of Los Angeles, the number was 45,252, a 2.2% decrease.
A homeless woman waits as workers from Inside Safe conduct a campaign to get people out of the camp and into hotel and motel rooms at a homeless encampment at 86th and Broadway, Wednesday, June 26, 2024, in Los Angeles, California.
(Brian van der Brug/Los Angeles Times)
Neither of these changes was large enough to be considered statistically significant. But both broke a steady upward trend that had seen homelessness increase by more than 40% since 2018.
While acknowledging that “it’s too early to call this a definitive trend,” Rubenstein said, “this year’s homeless numbers give us reason to be optimistic about the direction of homelessness in Los Angeles County.”
The decrease in the number of homeless people was even more dramatic. The county’s homeless population is estimated at 55,365, down 5.1%, while the city’s homeless population is 29,275, down 10.4%.
Jennifer Hark Dietz, the chief executive officer of a nonprofit homeless services provider called PATH, called the results an unqualified “win for L.A.” The numbers show that when the city and county put money into the right programs, they can “decrease the number of people sleeping outside and decrease homelessness in general.”
“It certainly doesn’t show us that we can slow down. We have to keep the momentum going and hopefully increase it even further. But I think it gives all of us a little bit of hope that we’re moving in the right direction,” he said.
Inside Safe workers clean up a homeless camp in South LA on Wednesday so people can be moved out of the camp and into hotel and motel rooms.
(Brian van der Brug/Los Angeles Times)
LAHSA officials credit Mayor Karen Bass’ Inside Safe program — and close collaboration between city and county agencies — for the reduction in the number and percentage of people living on the streets.
The count came on the heels of the first year of Bass’ Inside Safe initiative, which targeted some of the city’s largest and most troublesome encampments. As of mid-January, the initiative had conducted 34 encampment drives at locations spanning from Harbor City near the Port of Los Angeles to Chatsworth in the San Fernando Valley.
At the time of the count, Inside Safe had moved 2,087 people into interim housing. Even taking into account the roughly 400 people who became homeless and the 329 who were permanently housed, this represents more than half of the increase in the city’s shelter population.
Inside Safe’s Annetta Wells motivates and directs staff before entering a homeless camp in South L.A. on Wednesday to transport people to motel rooms.
(Brian van der Brug/Los Angeles Times)
In recent months, Inside Safe has taken 722 more people off the streets. The county’s related program, Pathway Home, had run 10 camping operations as of mid-January, placing 449 people in interim housing.
Inside Safe and Pathway Homes have secured permanent housing for 634 people.
Chief Executive Officer of LAHSA, Va Lecia Adams Kellamwho created the model of Inside Safe Removal of encampments from the Venice Boardwalk The head of the St. Joseph Center in Venice attributed its success to an increased focus on the homeless.
“I want to try to get people out of the camps as quickly and safely as possible – not cleaning up, not moving people around, not moving them from one area to another, I believe that’s the most encouraging.”
Los Angeles City Council member Nithya Raman, who heads the council’s housing and homelessness committee, said the new figures represent a “significant shift” after years of increases. At the same time, she warned that the city faces “harsh financial realities” that will make it even more difficult to achieve additional reductions.
The city faces a severe budget crisis; state funding for shelters is at risk; money from Proposition HHH, which helped finance permanent housing, is mostly spent.
“It will be more challenging to continue this trend over the long term, and we will have to work hard to make sure we are creating a more efficient system.”
As the number of unsheltered homeless decreased, the number of unsheltered homeless saw a large increase.
In the city of Los Angeles, the number of homeless people living in some kind of shelter increased by 17.7%, or 15,977. Across the county, the figure rose 12.7% to 22,947.
Percentage of homeless people sheltered Historically it has been around 25%. In January, it was 35% in the city and 30% in the county, according to the count.
Dwight Thomas, 62, gathered his belongings at a tent camp at 86th Street and Broadway on Wednesday after Inside Safe staff found him a place to stay.
(Brian van der Brug/Los Angeles Times)
Chronic homelessness, defined as being homeless for one consecutive year or at least four times over three years, also declined by 6.8% to just under 30,000 in the county.
Another encouraging sign was an increase in the number of housing placements. The county Homeless Initiative reported that 27,951 people had obtained permanent housing, a 24% increase over 2022. That number may include some people who have been placed more than once and it does not say how many of those people came from the streets, shelters or interim housing.
“At this rate, if we can prevent anyone else from becoming homeless today, we can eliminate homelessness in just a few years,” Rubenstein said. “Unfortunately, the root causes of homelessness are as strong as ever.
“To prevent homelessness, the Los Angeles region must address decades-long shortages in building affordable housing, help more people achieve economic stability, and address a shrinking social safety net.”
These figures were released just days after the county Board of Supervisors cleared the way for a ballot measure that would double the size of a countywide sales tax that raises money for homeless services — raising it from a quarter of a cent to a half of a cent. The measure, set for the Nov. 5 ballot, would also raise money for the production of affordable housing.
Inside Safe workers are clearing out a homeless camp in South LA so people can be moved into hotel and motel rooms.
(Brian van der Brug/Los Angeles Times)
Though these figures offer some glimmers of hope, the county’s roads, sidewalks and freeways show there’s still a lot of work to be done. Just outside City Hall, at the corner of First and Spring streets — the site of an Inside Safe operation earlier this year — there are about 27 tents and other temporary structures.
On Wednesday, about 20 people were evacuated from the neighborhood around Franklin and Argyle avenues in Hollywood as part of BAS’ Inside Safe program. The next day, there were at least four tents in the area.
Two other groups of homeless people were estimated separately, showing significant decreases. The 2,406 transition-age youth were estimated to be 16.2% lower and the 2,991 veterans were estimated to be 22.9% lower.
For the second year, LAHSA’s statistical team at the USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work provided a margin of error indicating that the actual number for the Los Angeles Continuum of Care — the entire county except Long Beach, Pasadena and Glendale — could be as much as 1,592 higher or lower than the estimate.
The figure reflects uncertainty in the demographic survey conducted by USC following the field count, in which thousands of volunteers walk and drive through nearly every census tract in the county and mark every person they conclude is homeless, and every tent, temporary shelter, car, van and RV.
Tanaka Richardson (right) and cousin Tatyana Knowles (left) gather their belongings at a tent camp in South L.A. on Wednesday after Inside Safe staff provided them with a place to stay.
(Brian van der Brug/Los Angeles Times)
Based on the number of approximately 4,000 people in the survey, USC statisticians calculate how many people live in each of those dwellings on average. Those factors are then multiplied by the count to produce an estimate.
Although the estimate of total homeless people was close enough to the previous year’s estimate to prevent a conclusion that the number of homeless people has decreased, the estimate of the decrease in the number of homeless people was well outside the margin of error.
Los Angeles’ results were similar to those of neighboring cities that released their figures earlier.
For the first time in seven years, the city Long Beach saw a decrease in homelessness. Long Beach officials said there are 3,376 homeless people as of the latest count — a 2.1% drop from 3,447 in 2023.
in Pasadena this was the number Unchanged at 556.
In contrast, Orange County recorded 7,322 homeless people, up 28% from 2022.
