City of Los Angeles sees small drop in homeless population in 2024 count

Counters in Los Angeles found a 1,008 drop in homeless people compared to 2023, but that's within the margin of error.

After a 10% jump last year, the city of Los Angeles saw a 2.2% drop in its homeless population this year, a change that some say offers hope — while also cautioning that it will take more than one year of a slight dip before the decline can be considered a downward trend.

The Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA) estimates that the city of L.A. has about 45,252 homeless people, based on a count it conducted over three days in January.

While huge, that number represents 1,008 fewer homeless people than in 2023, or a decrease of 2.2%. But that is within the margin of error and not statistically significant, said Ben Henwood, a professor at USC and the project lead for the homeless count.

At the same time, Henwood and others at LAHSA noted that the number of unsheltered homeless – meaning those living on the streets, in tents, or vehicles – dropped 10.4% in the city of L.A. while the number of homeless people who live in shelters shot up 17.7% year-over-year.

These figures were shared as part of LAHSA’s annual Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count, released Friday, June 28.

Countywide, the picture was similar: The estimated 75,312 homeless people throughout L.A. County is virtually unchanged from last year – a mere 0.27% decrease. But there was a 5.1% drop in unsheltered homelessness countywide, while the number of homeless people staying in shelters rose 12.7%.

“These shifts in both the city and the county mean that this year, across our region, more people are experiencing homelessness inside where they are safer, where they have food and showers and better access to medical and other services,” Paul Rubenstein, deputy chief external relations officer for LAHSA, said in a briefing with reporters ahead of Friday’s release of the 2024 homeless count report.

“And not only did the count of people in shelters go up … the estimate of people who are unsheltered went down. That means fewer people who are struggling on the street,” he added.

Rubenstein credited the shifts to “unprecedented policy alignment and investments” by the city, county, state and federal governments.

Since her first day in office in December 2022, L.A. Mayor Karen Bass has called on all levels of government to “lock arms” to combat homelessness.

Last year, she admitted she was worried the city’s homeless population might rise further because a number of COVID-era tenant protections had ended.

Although her fear of a rise in homelessness didn’t play out in this year’s LAHSA count, the mayor has continued to call on Angelenos to act with urgency in dealing with the homelessness crisis.

On Thursday, Bass’ office released a newsletter highlighting the fact that more than 50 Inside Safe operations had been carried out. Inside Safe is the mayor’s signature program to combat homelessness by placing people living on the streets into interim housing in hotel or motel rooms.

More than 2,800 people had been moved indoors through the Inside Safe program as of June 14, according to Friday’s homeless count report.

“No one deserves to live on the street and no one deserves to have someone living on the street in their neighborhood,” Bass said in the newsletter. “Since day one, we have confronted this crisis as an emergency. We launched Inside Safe with a clear mission: to urgently bring people inside, save lives and prevent encampments from returning across the city.”

The release of this year’s homeless count came the same day that the U.S. Supreme Court upheld a ruling allowing cities to ban homeless people from sleeping on the streets even if there aren’t enough shelter beds available.

Bass slammed the court decision in a statement, calling the decision “disappointing.”

“This ruling must not be used as an excuse for cities across the country to attempt to arrest their way out of this problem or hide the homelessness crisis in neighboring cities or in jail,” Bass stated. “Neither will work, neither will save lives and that route is more expensive for taxpayers than actually solving the problem.”

Bass had planned to attend a news conference about the homeless count in person on Friday. But her office announced in the morning that she had tested positive for COVID-19 and would deliver remarks virtually instead.

Bass and homeless services providers have all spoken of the need for more interim shelters and permanent affordable housing for the homeless – along with supportive services to help individuals get back on their feet.

In the San Fernando Valley, for example, a shelter for homeless families called The Woodlands opened in Woodland Hills last year.

One resident is 43-year-old Irma Martinez, who’s been living at The Woodlands with her 14-year-old twin children for about a month. After becoming disabled in 2019, Martinez lost her job. The family then lost their home and began living in their car.

During that time, they were forced to give up their beloved dog, a border collie shepherd mix. The family eventually got a new dog named Kobe to fill the void – but they spoke this week of how much they still miss their other dog.

After about a month living in their car, Martinez and her children arrived at The Woodlands. With tears in her eyes, an emotional Martinez spoke of how, as a single mother, she had always been able to care for her family.

“I have an older daughter. She’s going to college in North Dakota. … I was always able to take care of my kids. I’m trying to keep my children (from) exposure to everything bad that’s going on in the world right now,” Martinez said. “Landing here and being placed here was a blessing. From all these years of me working since I was 19, I never knew that a place like this even existed.”

Friday’s homeless count report included a breakdown of the number of homeless people in L.A. County’s eight geographic regions, referred to as “service planning areas.” The breakdowns showed that the San Fernando Valley and South Los Angeles saw increases while other areas saw drops:

• San Fernando Valley (Canoga Park, Encino, Glendale, San Fernando, Sherman Oaks, Sun Valley, Van Nuys, Woodland Hills, and other communities): a total of 10,701 homeless people — an increase of 258 people year-over-year. Unsheltered homelessness decreased by 1,067 people; sheltered homelessness increased by 1,325 people.
• Metro L.A. (Boyle Heights, downtown L.A., Echo Park, El Sereno, Hollywood, Mid-City Wilshire, Mount Washington, Silverlake, West Hollywood and Westlake): a total of 18,389 homeless people — a decrease of 142 people. Unsheltered homelessness decreased by 661 people; sheltered homelessness increased by 519 people.
• Westside (Brentwood, Mar Vista, Marina del Rey, Pacific Palisades, Palms, Playa del Rey, Santa Monica, Venice, West L.A., Westchester and Westwood): a total of 5,383 homeless people — a decrease of 1,286 people. Unsheltered homelessness decreased by 1,092 people; sheltered homelessness decreased by 194 people.
• South L.A. (Compton, Crenshaw, Florence, Hyde Park, Lynwood, Paramount and Watts): a total of 13,886 homeless people — an increase of 891 people. Unsheltered homelessness increased by 251 people; sheltered homelessness increased by 640 people.
• South Bay (Carson, El Segundo, Gardena, Harbor City, Hawthorne, Inglewood, Lawndale, Hermosa Beach, Manhattan Beach, Palos Verdes Estates, Rancho Dominguez, Rancho Palos Verdes, Redondo Beach, Rolling Hills, Rolling Hills Estates, San Pedro, Torrance and Wilmington): a total of 5,428 homeless people — a decrease of 1,048 people. Unsheltered homelessness decreased by 1,378 people; sheltered homelessness increased by 330 people.

SCNG reporters Clara Harter and Hans Gutknecht contributed reporting.