Homelessness drop in LA comes with questions over count methods

The number of homeless people in the Los Angeles region dropped for the second year in a row, according to a count by the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority, or LAHSA. However, some officials have questioned the accuracy of the data.

Homeless count

LAHSA conducts an annual homeless count each January to track the number of homeless individuals in the area. It was postponed this year due to the wildfires that caused billions of dollars in damage to the region.

According to the most recent count, homelessness is down 3.4% in LA proper and down 4% countywide.

“Homelessness has gone down two years in a row because we chose to act with urgency and reject the broken status quo of leaving people on the street until housing was built,” LA Mayor Karen Bass said in a statement. “These results aren’t just data points—they represent thousands of human beings who are now inside, and neighborhoods that are beginning to heal.”

LAHSA said several factors contributed to the decrease in the number of homeless people in LA, including the success of encampment resolution programs. LAHSA also said permanent housing placements reached an all-time high of nearly 28,000 last year, a 2.5% increase from the previous year.

“By bringing innovative solutions, system change, and working arm in arm with our partners over the last two years, LAHSA has helped move people inside with the urgency this humanitarian crisis demands,” LAHSA CEO Dr. Va Lecia Adams Kellum said in a statement.  “We can also see clearly that our work isn’t done. It’s crucial we keep moving forward, together, to sustain our reductions in unsheltered homelessness.”

The report shows unsheltered homelessness decreased nearly 10% in LA County and 8.5% in the city.

Homeless numbers had been on the rise in LA since 2018.

Questions about the count

Despite the positive numbers, some are questioning how LAHSA got them in the first place. The count relies on volunteers going out each night and counting the number of people experiencing homelessness.

“They started early and they ended by 12, midnight. They reduced the number of volunteers. They weren’t allowed to go up to RVs. They weren’t allowed to go into garages,” John Alle, co-founder of the Santa Monica Coalition, told KABC in Los Angeles. “So, how many did they miss? It’s like crime not being reported.”

At least one elected official also questioned the accuracy of the numbers.

“When there’s this much at stake, accuracy matters and we can’t afford to make decisions based on data that may not reflect what’s actually happening on the ground,” LA Councilmember John Lee told LAist. “Until we have a more reliable and consistent system of reporting, it’s difficult to fully trust that the numbers we’re seeing are telling the whole story.”

LAist also reported that LAHSA removed more volunteer observations while compiling the 2024 data, and a recent report from the RAND Corporation found LAHSA systemically undercounted the real number of homeless during the 2024 count.

However, many officials lauded the results, saying they show that LA is moving in the right direction.

“The data shows a promising trend in our efforts to reduce homelessness and should encourage policymakers at every level of government to continue to invest in housing and services so that every Californian has access to safe, affordable, and sustainable housing,” Assemblymember Nick Schultz said in a statement.

The data shows there are still more than 72,000 people without housing in LA County.