The Brief

Rental housing prices in L.A. are spiking as historic fires burn in Southern California, forcing thousands of residents who’ve lost homes to scramble to find a new place to live.

LAist spotted one Zillow listing for a furnished home in Bel Air that was posted Saturday morning at $29,500 per month. That’s a nearly 86% price hike from September 2024 according to the listing’s price history, which shows the home previously listed for $15,900 per month.

When an LAist reporter called the listing agent, Fiora Aston with Compass, she said dozens of prospective tenants who’ve lost homes to the fires have been contacting her about this and other listings on L.A.’s Westside. When LAist asked why the advertised rent for the Bel Air home had risen so sharply, she said she was getting another call and hung up.

“It's crazy,” Aston said, before ending the call. “I've been in the business for 35 years. I've never seen anything like this. People are desperate. There’s so many families without a house.”

LAist reached out to Compass’ media relations team about the listing in Bel Air, but did not immediately receive a response. By Saturday afternoon, the listing had been removed. Aston texted later that afternoon that a family member had moved in. LAist asked to interview the family member and property owner, but Aston declined.

California has laws against post-disaster price gouging

Gov. Gavin Newsom has declared a state of emergency in connection with the Palisades Fire, which has already destroyed an estimated 5,000 structures in upscale neighborhoods near L.A.’s coastline. The governor’s emergency declaration includes a ban on price gouging, which is defined as any price increase of more than 10% compared to pre-disaster prices.

California Attorney General Rob Bonta told LAist partner KCAL News earlier this week that the ban on price gouging applies to housing as well as other essential goods like food, transportation and medical supplies. Bonta said residents should report suspected price gouging through his office’s website.

“If prices look really out of whack — if they look like they've increased from what you're used to — report it to us,” Bonta said. “We'll take it from there. We'll evaluate it. We'll hold folks accountable and enforce if necessary.”

Rental listing price histories show post-fire spikes

Journalists for other outlets have reported on listings where asking rents have jumped in the wake of the fires. The New York Times reviewed Zillow listings on L.A.’s Westside and found asking rents rising between 15% and 64% since Tuesday. One agent reportedly lowered the asking rent on a property in Encino from $11,500 per month to $9,800 after a journalist with the Los Angeles Times asked why the asking rent had risen nearly 28% in recent days.

UCLA urban planning and public policy professor Michael Lens said he expects L.A. rents — already considered unaffordable for many families — to be driven up by the immediate influx of people all looking for scarce housing at the same time.

“It will put a squeeze, especially on the adjacent communities,” Lens said. “That might be particularly acute from the Palisades effect on the Westside.”

Details of the Bel Air listing 

Located on Casiano Road in Bel Air, the four-bedroom home that was listed on Zillow at $29,500 was described online as a “fully furnished, meticulously restored Mid-Century Modern home.” That listing described the home as “perched in a serene canyon setting” with “breathtaking views of the surrounding landscape, including the iconic Getty Museum.”

The home is currently located in an evacuation warning zone due to the ongoing spread of the Palisades Fire. Aston told LAist the home was not being shown in person due to those warnings. “We decided we're not going to be doing any showing until next week,” Aston said.

She said the owner had taken it off the market a few months ago, but later decided to list it again.

“When this whole situation happened, I told her… people are desperate, and you can probably get good money,” Aston said. “She has a second home, so she moved into her second home, and this house is for lease.”

After Aston disconnected the call, LAist texted her to ask if she was familiar with California’s disaster-related price gouging law. She texted back, “Sorry can not talk right now,” then mentioned another listing in Mar Vista where she said one person offered $10,000 above the $15,000 asking rent.

She ended her text, saying, “Supply & demand.”

Screenshot of texts between LAist reporter David Wagner and listing agent, Fiora Aston on Saturday, Jan. 11. The address has been redacted because we learned it transposed numbers in the text about the listing.

Fire resources and tips

If you have to evacuate

• Cheat sheet: Your very short guide to getting packed up right now to evacuate
• Cheat sheet: A very short guide for how to leave your house if you need to evacuate
  

If you have more time:

• Every day is now fire season. Let's get you ready for the next wildfire burning near you

Things to consider:

• Evacuation terms can be confusing. Here’s what they mean and how to sign up for alerts
• This is why fire officials don't want you to stay and defend your home

Navigating fire conditions

• Cheat sheet: Your very short guide to driving in high winds and fire danger
• High winds and fires mean power outages. Here's how to prep

How to help yourself and others

• Resources for SoCal fire victims, evacuees and first responders
• What to do — and not do — when you get home after a wildfire
• If you want to help fire victims, resist the urge to volunteer
• These are the steps fire victims need to take to make an insurance claim

Understanding how it got this bad

• Yes, wildfires are getting worse. The history that got us to this moment

If you’ve noticed more wildlife visiting your yard in recent years — maybe digging up your vegetable garden or even drinking from your pool — you’re not alone.

A recent study from UCLA found that larger predators like mountain lions and bears are more likely to interact with humans and travel closer to population centers in drier years. To determine this, the researchers analyzed state data collected on reported property damage, nuisances, conflicts and sightings.

“It kind of runs the full gamut of how people interact with wildlife around their neighborhoods and their homes,” said UCLA postdoctoral researcher Kendall Calhoun, the lead author on the study.

It's not just P-22. Mountain lions across the whole state are forced to leave their habitats for survival.

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Courtesy Kendall Calhoun

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Different motivations for different animals

As you might expect, different animals might have different reasons for entering populated areas. But in large part, Calhoun said, it comes down to animals’ survival instincts.

The primary motivator for many herbivores is likely to be food. That’s because with less precipitation, there’s also less plant material for them to eat. (Don’t forget: even with all the rain we’ve had recently, much of Southern California is still in a drought.)

“ Deer and elk might be pushed to find those food resources in places that they normally wouldn't go, like agriculture, crops, things from people's yards, persimmons from your tree,” Calhoun said.

And as herbivores get pushed toward humans, the animals that prey on them are too. In fact, the species that saw the highest increases in clashes with humans were omnivores and carnivores, specifically mountain lions, coyotes, black bears and bobcats.

But even these animals have varying reasons for getting close to people.

“Mountain lions might be more inclined to look for supplemental food in livestock — that might be a sheep or a goat,” Calhoun said. “Black bears may be more willing to go into your trash to look for food to help supplement what they're missing in their resource-scarce natural areas.”

Meanwhile, animals of all kinds might enter a yard even when they have enough food to look for standing water.

About the data

Researchers analyzed data from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife that were reported over the last several years as part of a citizen science initiative.

One important caveat is that the researchers primarily looked at conflicts between wildlife and residents, and there may be differences in how these interactions are reported.

For example, you might not report a deer eating fruit from an overloaded tree as a nuisance, but even a peaceful black bear digging through your trash could raise alarm bells.

 "People also really value having wildlife living alongside them," Calhoun said. "It really is important for us to try to strike that balance where there's pros for both sides, without some of the negative interactions that come with living in close proximity with wildlife species."

Learn more about human-wildlife interactions

There’s more background on the research on UCLA’s website, and you can find the full study here.

You can also learn much more about interactions between humans and wildlife in LAist’s Imperfect Paradise podcast series, “Lions, Coyotes, & Bears.”

Low-cost internet service will soon roll out in parts of L.A. County at the end of this year, and organizers say eligible households can sign up for alerts when the service becomes available.

The service — a partnership between L.A. County and internet provider WeLink — is the latest project from the county’s “Delete the Divide,” an initiative meant to bridge the digital divide in underserved neighborhoods.

Major funding for the project comes from the American Rescue Plan Act, as well as a grant from the California Public Utilities Commission.

It’s badly needed

About 23%, or more than 20,000, households in the East L.A. and Boyle Heights area don’t have home internet, according to Delete the Divide.

The service will also soon be coming to South L.A., where more than 40,000 households were identified as lacking home internet.

What you need to know

There will be different plans available — including low-income, market-rate and small business options — at fixed prices. The low-cost plan will start at $25 per month for qualifying families. Those who don’t qualify could also purchase plans starting at $65 a month. Monthly rates are fixed until at least September 2027.

Every plan includes unlimited data, a router and parental controls.

Low-cost internet service will soon roll out in South L.A. at the end of this year.

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Courtesy of L.A. County

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Low-cost internet service will soon roll out in parts of East L.A. and Boyle Heights at the end of this year.

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Courtesy of L.A. County

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How it works 

WeLink will install a Wi-Fi router inside a home and a 4-inch radio on the roof to connect the household to the internet.

Interested households can sign up for updates and be notified by WeLink when service is available here.