LOS ANGELES — The number of unhoused people in the City of Los Angeles increased by 3.4% year over year, according to the latest homeless count. The total homeless count in the City of Los Angeles was 45,194.

The number of people living unsheltered on streets, sidewalks, parks, and in vehicles in Los Angeles increased by 7.9%. The homeless population in Los Angeles County increased by 1.2% to a total of 73,040 people.

Karen Bass, the Mayor of Los Angeles, blamed President Donald Trump and his administration for driving up the city's homelessness numbers. "The Trump Administration has driven up the cost of gas, groceries and rent, pushing more families to the edge, and slashed critical safety net funding," she said.

"For two years straight, we drove down homelessness by historic margins, but as expected, last year our efforts ultimately couldn’t keep up with policies and funding cuts at the federal and state levels that pushed more people onto the streets," she said. She stated that the federal administration cut housing assistance by 50% last year, resulting in a $70 million loss for Los Angeles.

She also pointed to state-level funding reductions as a contributing factor. She stated that a 50% cut in state HHAP funding from $1 billion to $500 million resulted in a $70 million hit to Los Angeles. She stated that a state cut of over $70 million severely impacted efforts to keep people housed.

In response to the funding gaps, she stated that philanthropic dollars were raised to supplement funding cuts. She stated that she fought to restore state HHAP funding to $900 million. She also stated that the lack of adequate services controlled by LA County is a contributing factor to people cycling in and out of homelessness.

Los Angeles City Councilmember Nithya Raman, who represents District 4, offered a different assessment of the situation. "This year's numbers are disappointing, but not surprising. Leadership at City Hall has not shown the willingness to shift toward an approach that actually moves people into permanent housing. And these results make clear that the Mayor's approach is not working well enough, Raman said."

Raman wrote that the rise in homelessness is a moral outrage and a failure of leadership. She contrasted the citywide trends with outcomes in her own district. The results in my district tell a different story — a significant decrease in the number of people living on our streets. Those results came from sustained, hands-on work, and I am confident we can bring that approach — and those results — citywide," she said."

She launched the Inside Safe program in 2022. The program has a budget of $250 million. She stated that the Inside Safe program has moved 6,000 people off the streets and into interim housing. She stated that the Inside Safe program addressed 130 encampments.

More than 120 encampments have been cleared according to the Inside Safe dashboard. Los Angeles budgeted nearly $100 million for the Inside Safe program this year. City budget documents estimate the Inside Safe program will cost about $34,000 per participant served this fiscal year.

She stated that overall homelessness in Los Angeles is down 11% since 2023. She also stated that homelessness in Los Angeles was reduced by 13%. "This crisis was ignored by city leaders for decades. It’s only now that we’ve seen a historic decline," she said.

The mayor also addressed systemic issues within the local homeless services infrastructure. "Audits and the courts have now made plain what too many Angelenos already saw: the money wasn’t tracked, providers went unpaid, and public trust eroded," she said. Audits and investigations found major gaps in oversight and accountability for how Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority funds are spent.

"I’m not going to defend a broken system. The city must build something better, results-driven, transparent and centered around the people we’re trying to help, not the bureaucracy," she said.

Los Angeles spends nearly $3 billion a year on homelessness programs. The City of Los Angeles spent $3.1 billion annually on homelessness programs as of 2025, according to the Los Angeles County Homeless Policy Board's fiscal report. Los Angeles County approved a $908 million homelessness budget.

The Los Angeles County homelessness budget funds about 7,200 shelter beds. It also funds outreach teams serving roughly 21,000 unsheltered people. The budget funds more than 3,100 housing navigation slots. Los Angeles County has invested more than $25 million in harm reduction since 2020.

Measure A, a permanent countywide sales tax, is expected to generate more than $1 billion annually for homelessness services. The 2025 homeless count found 72,308 people experiencing homelessness across Los Angeles County, down 4% from the previous year. The 2025 homeless count within the City of Los Angeles fell to 43,699, a 3.4% decline.

Los Angeles County's homeless count in 2024 was 72,308, marking a 4% decline from 2023, but the 2026 citywide count rose to 45,194, reflecting a 3.4% annual increase despite regional trends, per the Metropolitan Transit Authority's 2026 homelessness dashboard. The LA Alliance for Human Rights is suing the City and County of Los Angeles over their handling of the homelessness crisis.

"The increase in Los Angeles’ homeless count comes as no surprise," said Paul Webster, Executive Director of the LA Alliance for Human Rights. A University of California, San Francisco study found that economics is the number one reason people in Los Angeles County fall into homelessness.

59% of unhoused people in Los Angeles County cited economic hardship as the reason for living on the streets. Renters in Los Angeles County need to make about $110,000 annually to afford an apartment. The average rate for a 2-bedroom rental in Los Angeles County is $2,745.