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Commentary from the RAND Center on Housing and Homelessness

L.A.'s Rental Landscape Is Dire. It Could Get Worse
Los Angeles is one of the least affordable places to live in the country. If the city prefers to keep strengthening renter protections while blocking developers from constructing affordable housing, residents will need to brace for a stricter, even pricier rental market under the growing watch of aggravated landlords and faceless corporations.
Feb 13, 2024
Why Is L.A. Still Letting Single-Family Homeowners Block Solutions to the Housing Crisis?
Some constituencies will always oppose development. Los Angeles policymakers who are serious about solving the dual crises of housing affordability and homelessness have to take a hard look at how much political capital they are willing to spend to create effective policies in the face of such objections.
Feb 1, 2024
California Just Banned 'Crime-Free' Housing. Here's Why Other States Should Too
Crime-free housing policies target low-income and minority renters for eviction and violate their civil rights. Max Griswold (cohort '18) says these policies also fail to reduce crime. At worst, they're a harmful form of discrimination that leads to more crime and homelessness.
Jan 5, 2024
Will L.A. Have an Office Apocalypse or Housing Boom? Tax Breaks Might Make the Difference
Facing a persistent housing crisis, Los Angeles is doubling down on converting unused commercial buildings into residential properties. But high interest rates make conversions more costly to finance. To mitigate this risk, L.A. might consider fiscal policy that would tip the scale more convincingly toward adaptive reuse.
Jun 23, 2023
Senate Bill 9's Underwhelming First Year Shouldn't Be a Surprise; It Was by Design
In 2021, the California state Legislature passed legislation allowing a streamlined pathway for homeowners to produce duplexes and split lots. But a year after the law took effect, the resulting housing production pipeline looks to be trivial. Why has the law that some were convinced would make the sky fall barely registered?
Feb 10, 2023
Measure ULA Reflects the Wrong Lessons from Proposition HHH
Los Angeles voters approved the so-called “mansion tax,” Measure ULA, which proponents suggested will raise funds for about 26,000 new units of affordable housing over the next decade. But a key labor provision casts doubt on that optimistic projection.
Nov 28, 2022
Santa Monica's 'Builder's Remedy' Experiment Holds Lessons for the Region
More than 124 municipalities across Southern California are struggling to meet their state housing allocations. When Santa Monica fell out of compliance with state housing law, this triggered what is known as the ”builder's remedy“ and created a revealing natural experiment.
Nov 8, 2022
Los Angeles Mayoral Debate Misleads on Approaches to Homelessness
They may not mean to, but Los Angeles politicians continue to imply that there is a primary “fix” for homelessness, be it temporary shelters or permanent supportive housing. But those are just pieces of a very complex puzzle. The region needs a robust continuum of care.
Oct 26, 2022
How Can Commercial Buildings Become Needed Housing?
Adaptive reuse has tremendous promise for making a dent in Southern California's housing shortage, but realizing its full potential will require thoughtful and timely policymaking.
Jun 6, 2022
Camping Bans and Group Shelters Unlikely to Solve Homelessness Crisis
Should Los Angeles continue to direct most resources toward creating permanent housing with services? Or should it try to rapidly add more group shelters and shared tiny homes which would allow the city to enforce camping bans in certain areas? There are compelling arguments for both approaches.
May 23, 2022
California Needs 1.2 Million New Homes. How Will It Get There?
Voluntary incentives foster increased production of affordable housing, while mandates alone increase the cost of producing housing. It is well past time to acknowledge the evidence and focus on adopting voluntary programs that promote dense, infill housing available at both affordable and market rents.
May 13, 2022
The Lives of Veterans Experiencing Homelessness
The United States pledged in 2009 to end veteran homelessness. The numbers have fallen by nearly half since then, but there are still more than 37,000 veterans living in their cars, in temporary shelters, or in makeshift camps. Researchers followed 26 of them for one year to see how they live and what keeps them on the streets.
Feb 25, 2022
On Veterans Day, There Are Still Thousands of Homeless Vets in L.A. We Followed 26 to Find Out Why
An estimated 3,900 veterans live unhoused in Los Angeles. The city has the largest VA medical center in the nation. There are federal housing programs exclusively for veterans. So why hasn't Los Angeles been able to make a dent?
Nov 11, 2021
Renters' Last Chance for Pandemic Aid Before Evictions Resume
The pandemic has battered Los Angeles renters, and a new wave of pain is coming with the moratorium on evictions ending September 30. But this housing crisis doesn't have to turn into a new homelessness crisis. Some low-income Californians are eligible to receive funds from the COVID-19 Rent Relief program.
Sep 24, 2021