Palisades fires will likely make Los Angeles rents rise due to demand for temporary housing

Collins, Jeff

Tribune News Service via Los Angeles Daily News

According to local experts, rent and home prices are expected to increase as thousands of people who were displaced by wildfires in Los Angeles County search for temporary accommodation.

Anticipate a sharp increase in demand for short-term rentals and hotel rooms.

Robert Kleinhenz, director of the Office of Economic Research at Cal State Long Beach, stated, “We are aware that there is a persistent housing shortage in the area and the state overall.” It is obvious that the loss of current dwellings in these different communities will further exacerbate an already dire and long-standing problem.

On Saturday, January 11, 2025, a firefighter fights the Palisades Fire in Mandeville Canyon, Los Angeles. (Photo by Jae C. Hong/AP)

Tens of thousands of people have had to leave their houses in the path of the larger Palisades and Eaton fires since the firestorm started [last week]. In addition to hotel accommodations and short-term rentals, residents who lost their homes will be searching for new housing.

If the housing shortage worsens, rental vacancy rates may decline and average rents may increase by as much as $200 to $300 per month, according to Richard Green of USC’s Lusk Center for Real Estate.