The official 2026 homeless count in the Los Angeles metropolitan area revealed an increase in homelessness, with an estimated 73,000 people experiencing homelessness in Los Angeles County and 45,194 in the city of Los Angeles.

The Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA) conducted the count over a three-day period in late January.

“While the statistics do not consider these variations to be statistically significant, we know that these numbers represent real people – real people struggling to find a permanent home in our region,” stated Gita O’Neill, interim executive director of LAHSA.

“This may not be what people want to hear, but the good news is that, thanks to LAHSA administrative data, we have a clear view of why our progress has stalled and what it takes to get back on track,” O’Neill added.

O'Neill attributed the rise in homelessness to economic hardship, particularly the cost of living in Los Angeles. He noted that the region's social safety net must do more to help people keep their homes.

Multi-million dollar investment in 10 years

Over the past decade, all four levels of government—federal, state, county, and local—have allocated between $10 billion and $15 billion in combined appropriations to address the homelessness crisis, with no lasting results.

Do you think this problem will ever end? La Opinión asked Gita O'Neill.

“We are hopeful,” he responded. “It is a very strong question.”

Even with multimillion-dollar financing, the social problems of homeless people have not been resolved for decades, both in the city and the county.

Proposition HHH (2016), a voter-approved general obligation bond issue worth $1.2 billion. Los Angeles Councilman Marqueece Harris-Dawson, current president of the Los Angeles City Council, co-authored the measure.

In the 8th District that Harris-Dawson represents, 10 512-unit projects were built for seniors, families, veterans and people exiting or experiencing homelessness

Said proposition had promised that the city of Los Angeles would build 10,000 homes over a period of 10 years, that is, with a deadline for compliance in 2026.

Also, Measure H, passed in March 2017 by Los Angeles County taxpayers, to whom a quarter-cent sales tax was applied.

The measure anticipated an annual collection of $355 million, intended to finance services for homeless people, as well as prevention and comprehensive care.

Collection of this measure began in October 2017. The proceeds go to dozens of nonprofit organizations, county departments and cities to “coordinate” aid at the regional level.

Measure H, introduced by a unanimous vote of the county Board of Supervisors, was supposed to allow 45,000 families or individuals to escape homelessness into permanent housing, and help another 30,000 families or individuals avoid homelessness. Its validity ends in 2027.

Helen Chavez, spokesperson for County Supervisor Kathryn Barger (District 4), reported that in April 2025 the Board of Supervisors approved a $908 million funding package for homeless housing and care programs for fiscal year 2025-26.

And, on February 3 of this year, the five supervisors (Hilda Solis, Kathryn Barger, Janice Hahn, Holly Mitchell and Lindsey Horvath) unanimously approved the $843 million spending plan for the Los Angeles County Department of Homeless and Housing Services (HSH) for fiscal year 2026-27.

This plan prioritizes critical programs and services that have been shown to be most effective in reducing homelessness, focusing on serving disproportionately impacted populations, including families, youth, and victims of domestic violence.

Changes in subsidies

Gita O’Neill explained that LAHSA suspended new enrollment and allocations of permanent housing through time-limited subsidies in April 2025.

“With this low-access, short-term rental option lacking, the relocation system suffered a bottleneck that slowed our progress in ending homelessness,” he said.

Without the access to housing offered by time-limited subsidies (TLS), people found it more difficult to move from temporary accommodation to permanent housing or get off the streets to access such accommodation.

“This loss of efficiency is the main cause of this year's results,” he said, noting that, “if we want our community to make progress again in reducing homelessness, we must ensure better access to housing.”

He trusted that, in addition to the impact of local measures and Measure A and the Half ULA in the city of Los Angeles, - financed by taxes - they will help keep people in their homes and encourage the construction of new homes.

“We must win the court battle [against HUD] to save the homes of more than 11,000 formerly homeless people — in Los Angeles County and the region — thanks to federal subsidies,” O’Neill said.

On June 29, LAHSA sued the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to prevent the federal suspension of more than $150 million in regional funding intended to serve the homeless.

“The only thing I would like is to have a place to live alone, that has a kitchen and a place where I can sleep peacefully and take a bath every day,” said María Elena, a 65-year-old woman, who was sitting in a wheelchair on Alameda Boulevard, taking refuge in the little shade of the street. “In the 10 years that I have lived on the streets, no one has ever offered me help.”

Skid Row, the epicenter of the crisis

For Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, the 3.4% increase in the number of homeless people in the city reflects multiple factors driving homelessness, including rising housing costs, economic pressures, and reductions in state and federal funding.

“Although some people who managed to access housing face difficulties and become homeless again, the city remains focused on connecting people with permanent housing and support services to improve their long-term stability,” Bass told La Opinión.

Bass emphasized that the Inside Safe program has achieved lasting results in communities. Of the 130 camps intervened through Inside Safe, 108 remain clean, which represents more than 80% of the sites.

“This demonstrates that progress has been maintained in neighborhoods across the city, including the San Fernando Valley, South and East Los Angeles, among other communities,” he said.

He noted that reductions to the State's Homeless Housing, Assistance and Prevention Program (HHAP) have limited the resources available for local governments to expand shelters, strengthen outreach efforts, develop more housing and offer support services to people who need them.

However, the new homeless count reveals that nowhere else has the most dramatic increase been in Skid Row, the area considered the epicenter of the homelessness crisis: from 3,427 people in 2025, this year there was an increase of 788 people – approximately 23% – in just one year.

Fewer homeless people in the Antelope Valley

Supervisor Kathryn Barger (District 4) was encouraged to see a 37% reduction in the number of unsheltered homeless people in the Antelope Valley, showing that targeted strategies can make a significant difference.

"I also understand how the public measures success. Residents look to our streets as the most visible indicator of whether we are making progress, and too many still see people living in crisis. We have to recognize that reality," the official stated.

Barger recognized that if fundamentally different outcomes are wanted, the biggest barriers standing in our way must be addressed.

"Los Angeles County cannot solve this crisis through housing alone. We also need the ability to provide intensive and timely treatment for people suffering from serious mental illness and substance use disorders."

She has advocated for greater local flexibility to expand access to those services because federal restrictions continue to limit the ability to treat people on the scale the homelessness crisis demands.

Solís: leadership with solutions

Meanwhile, Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors Chairwoman Hilda L. Solís (District 1) called the 1.2% increase in homelessness “slight.”