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David Wagner
What I cover
I cover housing in Southern California, a place where ever-rising rents and a persistent lack of affordable housing have led to many living on the edge of homelessness.
My background
I’ve been helping people understand their rights, housing market trends, policy changes and the solutions being proposed to fix the region’s housing crisis for more than five years.
My goals
I want my coverage to help renters, landlords and anyone else affected by L.A.’s affordability issues navigate the region’s ongoing housing crisis.
Best way to reach me
I would love to hear from you if you have questions or concerns related to housing in Southern California. You can reach out by email. I'm at dwagner@laist.com. Or, if you have a tip you’d like to share more privately, you can reach me on Signal. My username is @reporterdavidwagner.38. For instructions on getting started with Signal, see the app's support page.
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Steve Hilton is an underdog in deeply blue California. On Tuesday, he’s telling journalists why voters should trust him to tackle affordability, housing and homelessness.
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Should Pacific Palisades fire survivors who sell their properties be spared from paying a tax that funds homelessness and affordable housing efforts? L.A. voters will decide.
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Most California renters are officially classified as cost-burdened. Should the state borrow billions of dollars to build more apartments for low-income residents?
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Thousands of homes survived last year’s L.A. fires, but were covered in toxic residue. Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed laws setting new rules for smoke damage cleanup.
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The 9th Circuit declined to take up the case, letting stand a lower court’s order for the government to build thousands of new homes on the VA campus in West L.A.
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Proponents say after last year’s L.A. County fires, the state needs to establish “first-in-the-nation testing and remediation standards based on science.”
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Current and former tenants allege the nonprofit landlord of Blue Butterfly Village has neglected the property and harassed residents who complain.
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Public health experts say sweeps harm unhoused people. The L.A. City Council decided that a plan to suspend them during environmental emergencies needs more study.
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Here’s why first time homebuyers in California keep getting older.
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Recent rulings have struck down requirements in L.A. and Pasadena for landlords to pay thousands of dollars to tenants who couldn’t afford large rent hikes.
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This is not the first time Orange County leaders have earned the reproval of state housing regulators.
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COVID-era housing vouchers will run out of funding at the end of the year. But L.A. officials say they now have a plan to keep 4,000 families in their homes.
