David Wagner
Business & Economy Reporter (he/him)I cover the economic reality of life in Los Angeles, a place where vast wealth coexists with millions struggling to make ends meet.
I grew up in Anaheim, where my parents had the car radio constantly tuned to 89.3 KPCC. With that upbringing, it’s probably no surprise I went on to work for California public radio stations. Before coming to this newsroom (which is also home to KPCC), I was a reporter for the NPR affiliate in San Diego, KPBS.
I’ve reported on housing affordability, minimum wage laws and the state’s unemployment system. As someone who briefly lived in New York, my hottest food take is that California has plenty of pizza that rivals the East Coast slice.
What questions do you have about business and the economy in Southern California?
David Wagner focuses on Southern Californians getting left behind in an economy beset by soaring unemployment, pandemic-related business closures and high housing costs.
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News
Housing costs consistently make California the highest-poverty state in the country. So why did poverty fall during the pandemic? -
Housing and Homelessness
With the state taking over the city’s troubled rent relief program, L.A. tenants can once again apply for aid. Now comes the hard part — getting existing applicants to reapply.
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News
With federal unemployment benefits ending this week, L.A. legal aid providers are preparing to see an increase in Angelenos facing homelessness.
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Housing and Homelessness
The city of L.A. is turning its troubled rent relief program over to the state. Renters currently shut out of the city's program will be able to apply through the state starting Sept. 1.
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Housing and Homelessness
The city stopped taking applications for rent relief in April. Advocates and lawmakers are pushing to reopen the program.
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Housing and Homelessness
Months after the county cited a property for roaches, holes in the walls and lack of hot water, tenants say problems haven’t been fixed. Activists say it’s just one example of a larger problem.
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Housing and Homelessness
As L.A. tenants anxiously wait for rent relief, hundreds of millions of dollars remain unspent. The city of L.A. has distributed just 7% of available funding.
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Housing and Homelessness
The L.A. City Council passed rules that let tenants sue landlords who physically threaten them, refuse to accept rent or don't perform repairs.
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News
Some companies plan to let their L.A. employees keep working from home. But the businesses that cater to those workers need them to come back to the office.
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Housing and Homelessness
In 2017, the city created a program designed to preserve affordable — but unpermitted — apartments by bringing them up to code. Four years later, only 39 units have been approved.
