Children, Families Among Most Impacted By Homelessness Despite Overall Decrease: Report

LOS ANGELES, CA — While the Los Angeles Housing Services Authority saw an overall decrease in homelessness across the county in 2024, the number of unsheltered children and families has increased, according to a news report by LAist.

Homelessness in the Los Angeles region decreased for the second straight year, according to LAHSA, falling 4% overall in 2024. In a July statement, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass attributed the decline to city officials choosing to "act with urgency and reject the status quo of leaving people on the street until housing was built."

But unsheltered children and families continue to be among the most impacted groups, with both seeing increases of 22% and 18%, respectively. Overall, sheltered and unsheltered children and families increased by 6%.

LAHSA, according to LAist, says the increases are not statistically significant. However, this data suggests larger families are being displaced across the region and the agency is failing to demonstrate progress in helping reduce these issues, according to LAist.

“Our homelessness response system was originally designed around single adults — not families. As a result, services for families are often too few and the first to run out,” L.A. County Supervisor Holly Mitchell told LAist.

Read more from LAist.

City News Service contributed to this report.