Josie Huang
is a reporter and Weekend Edition host who spotlights the people and places at the heart of our region.
Published July 20, 2023 5:00 AM
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Bruce Lee family archive
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Topline:
Fifty years after he died at 32, we explore Bruce Lee's life in L.A. before he became an international superstar. During several eventful years, he befriended a wide cross-section of Angelenos: fellow Hong Kongers, Hollywood celebrities and martial arts enthusiasts.
Another side of Lee: The cultural icon is known for the string of blockbuster martial arts films he made in Hong Kong. Lesser-known is the period in the immediate years before he moved abroad. His dynamic life in L.A. - which spanned Hollywood lots to Chinatown — is captured in photos shared by the family.
In 1966, Bruce Lee was an exciting young martial artist from Hong Kong — a volcano of speed, skill and swagger who had caught the eye of Hollywood producers.
As acting opportunities began to emerge in Los Angeles, Lee and his young family left Oakland, where he’d been running a martial arts school.
One of their first apartments in L.A. was at the Barrington Plaza, a trio of gleaming white towers on the Westside.
Rent for their two-bedroom was more than a touch out-of-reach for Lee, even though he had landed a supporting TV role on a new ABC show, “The Green Hornet.”
Newly-arrived in L.A., Bruce Lee bartered martial arts lessons for reduced rent at the Barrington apartment complex.
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Bruce Lee family archive
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“[My parents] could not actually afford the rent there,” said Lee’s daughter, Shannon. “So they bargained with the property manager to reduce their rent in exchange for kung fu lessons.”
The arrangement wouldn’t last.
“They got kicked out when it was discovered by the property owner that the property manager had been cutting all these side deals with the tenants,” Lee said.
Just a few short years after this setback, Lee would break through as one of the world's biggest international action heroes with star turns in a string of Hong Kong blockbusters.
His shocking death at age 32 was even more sudden.
Thursday marks 50 years since Lee died from cerebral edema on July 20, 1973, weeks before his most famous and influential film, “Enter The Dragon,” opened in the U.S. Its success set off a martial arts craze, while shattering stereotypes of the submissive Asian.
The final fight scene in "Enter The Dragon."
Even in death, Lee is still one of the most famous Asian Americans, with a fandom spanning cultures and generations that embraces his films and philosophy exploring personal growth and adaptability.
Lesser known about Lee are his years in L.A., before he left for Hong Kong in 1971 to take the lead roles that eluded him in Hollywood – a period filled with exhilarating moments but also struggles.
Bruce Lee, shirtless, with an unidentified man, often sparred in the backyard of his house in Bel Air with his students.
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Bruce Lee family archive
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After the family was forced to leave the Barrington, they bounced around to homes in Inglewood and Culver City before settling in Bel Air.
To Lee’s disappointment, The Green Hornet ended after only one season, so he pivoted to working on sets as a fight choreographer. He also became a trainer to such stars as Kareem Abdul-Jabar and Steve McQueen, who became close friends.
Young fans pose with Bruce Lee, as one of his students, Steve McQueen, sits nearby.
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Bruce Lee family archive
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Lee didn’t just stick to Hollywood, he befriended a wide cross-section of Angelenos. He opened a studio in Chinatown where he taught Jeet Kune Do, a style of martial arts he developed.
He could also be spotted at dances organized by Chinese American college and grad students. A teenage cha-cha champ in Hong Kong, Lee whirled around partners like Gay Yuen, who studied at UCLA and ran in the same social circles.
“When the band would take a break, he would show off his martial arts moves, his strength and his skills,” Yuen said, recalling how Lee would get down on the dance floor to demonstrate one of his signature feats, the two-finger push-up.
Bruce Lee (center in dark shirt) poses with other martial arts enthusiasts at the Jun Fan Gung Fu Institute he founded in L.A.'s Chinatown.
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Bruce Lee family archive
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Decades later, Yuen is the board chair at L.A.’s Chinese American Museum, which is presenting an exhibition timed to the anniversary of Lee’s death. Featured is a life-sized statue of him that will be donated this week to the Bruce Lee Foundation run out of L.A. by his daughter.
Elsewhere in L.A., Lee’s legacy is on display through murals and the seven-foot-tall bronze statue installed in Chinatown’s Central Plaza on the 40th anniversary of his death in 2013.
The 7.6-foot-tall bronze statue of Bruce Lee is installed in Chinatown's Central Plaza.
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ROBYN BECK/AFP via Getty Images
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AFP
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Bruce Lee is featured on a mural on Hollywood High School, next to Elvis Presley.
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GABRIEL BOUYS/AFP via Getty Images
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AFP
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The tributes serve as reminders of Lee’s ties to the city, a place where he planned to return after conquering the Asian box office.
“We left our dog here and everything when we went to Hong Kong,” recalled Shannon Lee. “Once [my father] had accomplished what he wanted to accomplish there, the idea was to move back and continue to pursue films.”
Bruce Lee poses with son Brandon and daughter Shannon. Brandon Lee grew up to be a rising film star before an accidental shooting during a production ended his life at 28.
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Bruce Lee family archive
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A life-changing invitation
Lee hadn’t started out seeking out a film career in the U.S. or to become an Asian American trailblazer.
Yes, Asian American. While primarily recognized as being from Hong Kong, Lee was born in San Francisco to parents who’d been touring the U.S. with a Chinese opera troupe.
He was raised in Hong Kong, and coming from a showbiz family, fell into acting as a child, racking up roles in some 20 films. But when he moved back to the country of his birth at age 18, his focus had switched to teaching martial arts. Having trained under kung fu masters in Hong Kong, Lee was thinking about starting a chain of self-defense schools.
In 1963, Lee opened his first school in Seattle, where he had studied philosophy at the University of Washington and met his wife, Linda.
Bruce Lee's wife Linda, seen sparring with him at a rental in Culver City, was also a student of kung fu.
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Bruce Lee family archive
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The second school was in Oakland, where he was living at the time he got a life-changing invitation in 1964.
Celebrity karate master Ed Parker asked him to showcase his skills at a tournament in Long Beach.
At the inaugural International Karate championships, a rapt audience inside the Long Beach Municipal Auditorium watched Lee debut the one-inch punch:
Applause filled the auditorium as Lee effortlessly performed two-finger push-ups.
Entree into Hollywood
Lee’s explosive strength and precision left a strong impression on a particular martial arts enthusiast in the crowd. Jay Sebring was a celebrity hairstylist who famously dated the actress Sharon Tate. His high-powered clients included a Hollywood producer named William Dozier who was looking for a young Asian male to play the son of the fictional detective Charlie Chan.
Sebring enthusiastically recommended Lee for the role and in 1965, Lee traveled from Oakland to the 20th Century Fox studio for a screen test, where he demonstrated kung fu moves on an unsuspecting crew member.
It was Lee’s first foray into Hollywood, thanks in no small part to Sebring.
Several years later, the hairstylist would forever be entered into lurid Hollywood lore: he was among those murdered by the Manson family in the summer of 1969, along with Tate.
Man About Town
The Charlie Chan spinoff never got made. Dozier, the producer, instead secured Lee a supporting role on The Green Hornet as Kato, the masked crime-fighting valet to the titular hero.
Bruce Lee landed his first TV role as Kato in "The Green Hornet."
The ABC show lasted only one season, running from 1966 to 1967. But being on the first of many Hollywood sets offered invaluable lessons, Lee’s daughter said.
“In Hollywood, he learned a lot about process, filmmaking and scriptwriting and camera angles and shots, which informed his ability to make the movies in Hong Kong later,” Shannon Lee said.
Post-Kato, Lee stayed in the Hollywood orbit, choreographing fights on film sets and teaching martial arts to celebrities. He earned enough money to buy a ranch in Bel Air, where his family would live until they relocated to Hong Kong in 1971.
After "The Green Hornet" was canceled, Bruce Lee found work as a fight choreographer.
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Bruce Lee family archive
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He also spent a lot of time in Chinatown, where people spoke his native Cantonese and the dim sum tasted like home. His daughter said he got his hair cut by a barber named “Little Joe” for years.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar would visit Bruce Lee's home in Bel Air to train.
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Bruce Lee family archive
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Bruce Lee performs opposite Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in fight scene in Game of Death was released after Lee died.
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Bruce Lee family archive
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It was on College Street that Lee opened his third martial arts school in 1967. The students were a tight-knit group who would dine together in Chinatown after training, his daughter said. They would also train with Lee at his homes, mingling with celebrity students like Abdul-Jabbar.
Yuen of the Chinese American Museum said among the young people who used to hang out in Chinatown, Lee was known for having been on TV and being particularly advanced in martial arts. Other than that, “he was just like another person in the group," Yuen said.
In June, a new Bruce Lee mural was unveiled on Hope Street in downtown L.A. to promote the Max show "Warrior," which was conceived by Lee.
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Bruce Lee Facebook page
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“It wasn't like, ‘Wow, Bruce Lee,’ right?” Yuen said. “The boys would be challenging him and go ‘Hey, when are we going to fight?’ and they’d spar, kiddingly.”
Only when she stops to think about it does Yuen realize how surreal it is to see someone from her youthful past become a global cultural icon, one that her museum is honoring as a symbol of strength in the face of anti-Asian violence and discrimination that persists today.
“There's someone like Bruce Lee, who says 'We're going to fight back,'” Yuen said. “And for that, we’re thankful.”
Gab Chabrán
covers what's happening in food and culture for LAist.
Published May 14, 2026 5:00 AM
Eight decades in, the original Tommy's stand at Beverly and Rampart still glows.
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Courtesy Original Tommy's
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Topline:
Original Tommy's turns 80 this week. To mark the octogenarian occasion, on Friday, a chili cheeseburger will cost you just 80 cents instead of the regular $5.50 at all locations, noon-8 p.m.
Why it matters: In Los Angeles, you can't get more local than a Tommy's Burger. Consuming the smothered burger — its signature beanless chili dripping through the to-go wrapper — is a rite of passage for many. Eight decades in, the original stand is still standing at Beverly and Rampart.
The details: On Friday, noon to 8 p.m. only, you can get 80-cent chili cheeseburgers (limit three per person) at all Southern California and Nevada locations. The anniversary celebration at the original downtown L.A. location includes the Belmont High School Marching Band, a DJ and a resolution from Assemblymember Mark Gonzalez , who represents the area, honoring 80 years of business in California.
The backstory: Tommy Koulax opened the original stand at Beverly and Rampart in 1946. This week, the iconic SoCal chain, which spawned many competitors, celebrates 80 years across all 32 of its locations — and you're invited. Daughter Cynthia Koulax will be greeting the community Friday, alongside CEO Dawna Bernal and CFO Richard Hicks.
Topline:
Original Tommy's turns 80 this week. To mark the octogenarian occasion, on Friday, a chili cheeseburger will cost you just 80 cents instead of the regular $5.50 at all locations, noon-8 p.m.
Why it matters: In Los Angeles, you can't get more local than a Tommy's Burger. Consuming the smothered burger — its signature beanless chili dripping through the to-go wrapper — is a rite of passage for many. Eight decades in, the original stand is still standing at Beverly and Rampart.
The details: Friday, noon to 8 p.m. only, you can get 80-cent chili cheeseburgers (limit three per person) at all Southern California and Nevada locations. The anniversary celebration at the original downtown L.A. location includes the Belmont High School Marching Band, a DJ and a resolution from Assemblymember Mark Gonzalez , who represents the area, honoring 80 years of business in California.
The backstory: Tommy Koulax opened the original stand at Beverly and Rampart in 1946. This week, the iconic SoCal chain, which spawned many competitors, celebrates 80 years across all 32 of its locations — and you're invited. Daughter Cynthia Koulax will be greeting the community Friday, alongside CEO Dawna Bernal and CFO Richard Hicks.
Aaron Schrank
has been on the ground, reporting on homelessness and other issues in L.A. for more than a decade.
Published May 14, 2026 5:00 AM
Two tents on a sidewalk in Hollywood
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Ethan Ward
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LAist
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Topline:
A group of volunteers in Hollywood say they are conducting their own homeless count in the area next week because they don't trust the results of the official regional one. The effort is organized by Hollywood 4WRD.
Hollywood count: About 60 volunteers, mostly staff from Hollywood service provider organizations, are expected to fan out across 30 census tracts Tuesday. Results will be made public a week later May 27, according to organizers.
Why it matters: The neighborhood count comes amid growing questions about the accuracy of the official regional homeless tally. The city of L.A.'s unhoused population decreased by 5.5% between 2023 and 2025, according to the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority. But a2025 analysis by the RAND Corporation found LAHSA had undercounted people living outside in certain areas, including Hollywood.
Since 2021, RAND researchers have conducted their own counts in Hollywood, Skid Row and Venice. That research effort, known as LA LEADS, has since lost funding.
Read on ... for details on the Hollywood count.
A group of volunteers in Hollywood say they are conducting their own homeless count in the area next week because they don't trust the results of the official regional one.
The effort is organized by Hollywood 4WRD, a coalition of nonprofit service providers, businesses and residents. About 60 volunteers, mostly staff from Hollywood service provider organizations, are expected to fan out across 30 census tracts Tuesday.
Results will be made public a week later May 27, according to organizers.
The neighborhood count comes amid growing questions about the accuracy of the official regional homeless tally.
The city of L.A.'s unhoused population decreased by 5.5% between 2023 and 2025, according toofficial estimates from the annual count conducted by the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority, or LAHSA. But a2025 analysis by the RAND Corporation found that LAHSA undercounted people living outside in certain areas, including Hollywood.
Hollywood 4WRD executive director Brittney Weissman said the organization’s own experience volunteering for the LAHSA count this year raised even more questions about accuracy.
“Our experience was so confounding, perplexing and inefficient that we've been really deeply questioning the value, utility and accuracy of the count for a couple of years now,” Weissman said.
Organizers said the Hollywood count will use methodology developed by RAND researchers, who ran their own professional counts in Hollywood, Skid Row and Venice from 2021 until earlier this year.
That research effort, known as LA LEADS, has since lost funding.
“If LA LEADS was continuously funded into the future, we would not be doing this effort,” Weissman said. "Because it's no longer funded, we felt we needed to take our own initiative to understand the lay of the land here.”
What's at stake?
More than $300 million in federal and county dollars are allocated annually based on homeless count results. That includes $220 million from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and nearly $100 million from L.A. County's Measure A sales tax.
LAHSA conducted its most recent official homeless count in January. The agency said it hopes to release the results this summer but has not confirmed a release date.
In her reelection campaign, L.A. Mayor Karen Bass takes credit for reducing homelessness in the city. The official count underpinning her claim is the same one RAND found was missing nearly a third of unsheltered people in key neighborhoods.
Weissman said Hollywood service providers need to know now whether more people are living in vehicles or sleeping outside, so they can adjust how they're doing outreach.
Organizers timed the May 27 release to influence budget negotiations still underway at City Hall, according to Weissman.
She noted that Bass' proposed budget does not include funding for Safe Parking LA, a program that allows unhoused Angelenos to live legally in their vehicles within sanctioned parking lots.
"If we find that vehicular homelessness is on the rise here and we need it badly, this gives us evidence with which to petition decisionmakers for that resource in our community," she said.
What RAND found
RAND's LA LEADS project ran bimonthly counts in Hollywood, Skid Row and Venice from 2021 until this January.
Comparing LAHSA’s official counts to its own, a RAND report found the 2025 homeless count captured 68% of the unsheltered population across those three neighborhoods.
RAND found the population of unsheltered people in Hollywood dropped 49% in 2024, a decline it linked to the city’s Inside Safe program. But the official LAHSA count still captured only 81% of what RAND found in the neighborhood.
The people being missed were mostly vehicle dwellers and “rough sleepers” — people living with no shelter, RAND said.
Skid Row's official tally fared worse, capturing 61% of what RAND found there.
Hollywood 4WRD said its methodology follows RAND’s LA LEADS methodology, which the group said is more precise than LAHSA’s approach.
Each census tract will be covered by at least two independent volunteers, a quality-control measure that helps organizers flag areas that might need to be recounted.
Volunteers will also use pens and paper to record their observations, instead of a mobile app. LAHSA has used an app for its count since 2022 and has acknowledged repeated technical problems with it.
The unofficial homeless count this month is limited to Hollywood, unlike LAHSA's countywide effort. Weissman said she hopes the effort will encourage other neighborhoods to check their own local data.
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Yama Sushi Marketplace locations will host a rotating lineup of Asian-owned brands through the end of the month.
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Gab Chabrán
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LAist
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In this edition:
Stroll the Balboa Island Art Walk, play Ryan Adams’ pinball machines, read kids' books to trees and more of the best things to do this weekend.
Highlights:
Is there a more idyllic corner of SoCal than Balboa Island? Stroll the promenade and enjoy the art and the views at the 31st annual Balboa Island Art Walk. There’s live music and more than 90 artists showing their work with an ocean backdrop.
Head down to Anaheim to check out (and maybe bid on) your next game room addition. Ryan Adams — yep, that’s the one, former Mr. Mandy Moore and indie rocker royalty of the early 2000s — is apparently a big arcade collector, and he’s auctioning off much of his collection. There’s a wide range of arcade games and pinball machines on view to the public, plus opportunities to play, meet collectors and see the warehouse.
The John Rowland Mansion is the oldest extant brick building in Southern California, and has a unique history that the House Museum has recently been instrumental in preserving. Spend some time at the Greek revival building with the whole family for The Giving Trees, a reading of children’s books to trees (with gratitude to Shel Silverstein!) in the garden at the permanent installation Let’s Make a Garden From Old Wounds.
So many of us have stories about secret shows, celeb sightings and special guests showing up at the intimate Hotel Cafe over the past 26 years. The venue’s Instagram has a bevy of famous well-wishers popping into the chat. So it’s truly the end of an era as the iconic night spot hosts its final shows at the Cahuenga location, wrapping things up with a party called Last Dance at the Hotel Cafe featuring Sara Bareilles and many more on Friday.
But if you can’t score a ticket, fear not, because there’s plenty more music on the agenda for this weekend. Licorice Pizza’s Lyndsey Parker recommends Friday shows St. Lucia at the Fonda; Santigold at the Bellwether; Alejandro Sanz at the Greek; and Desert Daze’s Microdazing at the Bellwether, featuring various DJs, including KCRW’s Travis Holcombe and Beastie Boys producer Mario C. Saturday, Demi Lovato is at the Forum, friend-of-LAist Flea plays the Fonda and the big Japanese music festival Zipangu is at Brookside at the Rose Bowl, featuring Atarashii Gakko!, Ado and many more. And on Sunday, Echo & the Bunnymen are at the Greek, and Father John Misty plays the Fox Theater in Pomona.
Elsewhere on LAist, you can get a behind-the-scenes look at historic Santa Monica music store and venue McCabe’s Guitar Shop, find out what gets left behind at Metro’s Lost & Found and get tickets for next week’s LAist x Moth StorySlam at Los Globos.
Events
Los Angeles Old Time Social
Friday and Saturday, May 15 and 16 Velaslavasay Panorama 1122 W. 24th Street, University Park COST: SUGGESTED $20; MORE INFO
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Corey Burns
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Los Angeles Old Time Social
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The 16th annual Los Angeles Old Time Social celebrates the vibrant old-time music scene in Southern California. A kickoff concert on Friday is followed by a full day of activities on Saturday, May 16 at The Velaslavasay Panorama in West Adams. Attend workshops and jams for banjo, fiddle, guitar, singing and dancing. The event is capped off on Saturday night with a big square dance and musical cakes from 7:30 to 10 p.m. No experience or partner is needed. The square dance caller walks everyone through the moves before every song, so it’s easy to follow along in a fun and no-pressure environment.
Chocoholics and ice cream fiends will know pastry chef David Lebovitz’s work well. The Paris-based dessert king is in town promoting his cookbooks, The Great Book of Chocolate and Ready for Dessert with a special event at Friends & Family. His ice cream book is the bible for anyone who's tried their hand at making ice cream at home, and his other desserts also stand up to the test. Yum.
The Giving Trees
Saturday, May 16, 3:30 p.m. John Rowland Mansion 15959 E. Gale Ave., City of Industry COST: FREE; MORE INFO
The John Rowland Mansion is the oldest extant brick building in Southern California, and has a unique history that the House Museum has recently been instrumental in preserving. Spend some time at the Greek revival building with the whole family for The Giving Trees, a reading of children’s books to trees (with gratitude to Shel Silverstein!) in the garden at the permanent installation Let’s Make a Garden From Old Wounds.
Celebrity-Owned Private Collection Arcade and Pinball Auction
Sunday, May 17, 9 a.m. preview Captain’s Auction Warehouse 4421 E. La Palma Ave., Anaheim COST: FREE TO PERUSE; MORE INFO
File this one under weird and wonderful. Head down to Anaheim to check out (and maybe bid on) your next game room addition. Ryan Adams — yep, that’s the one, former Mr. Mandy Moore and indie rocker royalty of the early 2000s — is apparently a big arcade collector, and he’s auctioning off much of his collection. There’s a wide range of arcade games and pinball machines on view to the public, plus opportunities to play, meet collectors and see the warehouse.
Red Bull Soapbox Race
Saturday, May 16, 11 a.m. Gloria Molina Grand Park 200 N. Grand Ave., Downtown L.A. COST: FREE; MORE INFO
Daredevils will have a field day at Red Bull’s Soapbox Race, which will transform Grand Park into a cinematic racecourse, where 30 teams, selected from more than 400 applicants, will compete with gravity-powered, homemade crafts for ultimate bragging rights.
Black Association of Documentary Filmmakers: Day of Black Docs
Saturday, May 16, 12 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. American Film Institute 2021 North Western Ave., Los Feliz COST: FROM $23; MORE INFO
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Eventbrite
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Check out documentaries from Black filmmakers that “explore themes of social justice, self-determination, and community, highlighting the revolutionary leaders and movements that can help inform our present moment.” The day includes three feature-length films and one short film, with two that focus on L.A. history. Q&As will be moderated by journalist and AirTalk film critic Tim Cogshell.
Balboa Island Art Walk
Sunday, May 17, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. South Bayfront Promenade Newport Beach COST: FREE; MORE INFO
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Courtesy Balboa Island Artwalk
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Is there a more idyllic corner of SoCal than Balboa Island? Stroll the promenade and enjoy the art and the views at the 31st annual Balboa Island Art Walk. There’s live music and more than 90 artists showing their work with an ocean backdrop.
AAPI Market at Yama Sushi Marketplace
Through Saturday, May 30 Various locations (West L.A., San Gabriel and Koreatown) COST: VARIES, MORE INFO
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Courtesy Yama Sushi
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A rotating lineup of makers featuring Asian-owned brands is popping up at Yama Sushi Marketplace throughout May. This weekend, Omiso founder Ai Fujimoto will be sampling her yuzu miso paired with Yama’s black cod; also available for purchase as a frozen item. On May 30, DoShop Cookies will be available with baker Thy Do sampling her fan-favorite cookies, debuting new flavors and hosting a raffle.
Henry Wilkinson and Kristina Ross record a makeshift shelter during LAHSA's homeless count Jan. 20.
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Jordan Rynning
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LAist
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Topline:
Every December, the federal government releases a report that reveals the number of homeless residents in each state and across the country. It’s now May and the report, which compiles data from a homeless census known as the “point-in-time count,” is nowhere to be found.
Point in time count: For the past two decades, the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development has required local regions to take a census of their homeless populations every other year in a massive undertaking called the point-in-time count. Volunteers go out on foot over a day or two in January and count every person they see living outside. People sleeping in shelters are tallied as well. Counters also conduct surveys of a sample of unhoused people, collecting extra data on people’s race, age, gender, time spent homeless, medical and mental health conditions, and more. Each jurisdiction must submit their count to HUD by the spring. They also release their local data to the public. Meanwhile, HUD verifies the data, tallies the total count for each state and for the country as a whole, submits a public report to Congress and uploads more detailed data on its website.
Why it matters: While there’s no legal deadline, that report usually comes out in December of the year of the count. It’s unclear why the 2025 report still isn’t out. The delay is a problem because the report dictates how funding is allocated in California and beyond. It also shapes policy decisions and provides the country’s main barometer for how the homelessness crisis is being managed. The five-month delay is leaving public officials, policymakers and advocates scratching their heads. California has filled the gap by tallying its own data, showing a 9% drop in the number of people sleeping outside. But unlike the official federal report, California’s analysis leaves out information such as the race, age and mental health status of the people who are counted. And without the full federal report, there’s no way to tell where California stands compared to other states.
Every December, the federal government releases a report that reveals the number of homeless residents in each state and across the country.
It’s now May and the report, which compiles data from a homeless census known as the “point-in-time count,” is nowhere to be found.
That’s a problem because the report dictates how funding is allocated in California and beyond. It also shapes policy decisions and provides the country’s main barometer for how the homelessness crisis is being managed.
The five-month delay is leaving public officials, policymakers and advocates scratching their heads. California has filled the gap by tallying its own data, showing a 9% drop in the number of people sleeping outside. But unlike the official federal report, California’s analysis leaves out information such as the race, age and mental health status of the people who are counted. And without the full federal report, there’s no way to tell where California stands compared to other states.
“It’s a big deal,” said Jesse Rabinowitz, spokesperson for the National Homelessness Law Center. “This is, by what I can tell, the latest any point-in-time count has ever come out, including the years where it was delayed during COVID.”
'Point-in-time' count
For the past two decades, the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development has required local regions to take a census of their homeless populations every other year in a massive undertaking called the point-in-time count. Volunteers go out on foot over a day or two in January and count every person they see living outside. People sleeping in shelters are tallied as well. Counters also conduct surveys of a sample of unhoused people, collecting extra data on people’s race, age, gender, time spent homeless, medical and mental health conditions and more.
The count isn’t perfect (volunteers can easily miss people, and different counties use different methods), but it’s a key tool policy makers use to measure changes in the population.
Each jurisdiction (which is known in HUD parlance as a “continuum of care” and typically is made up of a county and the cities within it) must submit their count to HUD by the spring. They also release their local data to the public. Meanwhile, HUD verifies the data, tallies the total count for each state and for the country as a whole, submits a public report to Congress and uploads more detailed data on its website.
While there’s no legal deadline, that report usually comes out in December of the year of the count. In 2021 and 2020, when COVID disrupted counts, the reports came out the following February and March, respectively.
It’s unclear why the 2025 report still isn’t out. The report is so much later than usual that some counties, including San Francisco, already released their 2026 count data.
HUD refused to comment.
“It is perplexing that HUD has not released this information,” Tara Gallegos, a spokesperson for Gov. Gavin Newsom, said in a statement to CalMatters. “Perhaps the Trump administration is afraid to release clear data that demonstrates California’s strategies for addressing this issue are actually extremely effective.”
What California's data show
California’s data does point to a reduction in homelessness, suggesting the state’s methods are starting to work. Data provided by the Newsom administration, and echoed by an independent analysis, show a 4% overall decrease between 2024 and 2025, and a 9% drop in people sleeping in tents, on the sidewalk, in cars or in other places not meant for habitation.
That data comes from the 30 California continuums of care that counted their street homeless populations last year. The remaining 14 that counted this year instead (they’re only required to count at least every other year) are not included.
“I think it shows that the headwinds in California continue to be very strong and continue to push more people into homelessness,” said Alex Visotzky, senior California policy fellow for the National Alliance to End Homelessness, “but the investments to build up the response to homelessness have made a really big difference and are moving people out of homelessness faster than ever before.”
That runs counter to President Donald Trump’s platform, which holds California up as an example of failed homelessness policy. California follows a principle called “housing first,” which prioritizes getting people into housing immediately and then addressing their other needs (such as mental health and substance use help). The Trump administration wants to end housing first, which it says isn’t working, and instead withhold housing until people enroll in addiction treatment or other programs.
California also uses most of its federal funds to pay for permanent housing, which experts say is the most effective way to end someone’s homelessness. The Trump administration recently tried to divert that money to temporary shelters where people stay for a limited time.
California's homelessness strategy
California is one of 19 states suing the Trump administration over that change. That case is ongoing, but, in a win for the states, a federal judge has temporarily blocked the Trump administration’s changes.
A drop in homelessness in California would have a significant impact on the country’s overall homeless population. Nearly a quarter of all unhoused Americans lived in California as of 2024 — a total of more than 187,000 people, according to the most recent HUD report.
The New York Times found homelessness also dropped in other places around the country last year, including Chicago, Denver, Washington, D.C., Minnesota, Florida and Maine, which it found points to a nationwide reduction.
If homelessness dropped nationwide in 2025, it would be the first time in eight years. In 2024, the national count hit 771,480 — an 18% increase from the year before.
