David Wagner
Housing Reporter
(he/him)
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. I help people understand their rights, housing market trends, policy changes and the solutions being proposed to fix the region’s housing crisis.
I grew up in Anaheim, where my parents had the car radio constantly tuned to LAist 89.3 (formerly KPCC). Before coming to KPCC and LAist, I covered science for the NPR affiliate in San Diego, KPBS.
-
Most L.A. apartments are covered by the city’s decades-old rent control law. New limits on annual rent hikes take effect July 1 without reforms that have been waiting for a City Council vote. -
Legal aid and rent relief for L.A. tenants facing eviction is set to continue after the City Council voted to temporarily extend a contract the city attorney refused to sign.
-
After the LA fires, mortgage companies promised to give devastated homeowners a break. Some have notBorrowers who lost homes tell LAist their banks are not following the rules of a state mortgage relief program. Some have been told they could face foreclosure.
-
An order against hiking rents more than 10% after January’s wildfires was set to expire on July 1. The L.A. County Board of Supervisors voted to extend it until July 31.
-
Renters have been getting legal aid and rent relief through Stay Housed L.A. for years. If Hydee Feldstein Soto lets the city’s contract lapse, those services could end June 30.
-
Two-thirds of undocumented households were already burdened by L.A. housing costs. With breadwinners locked up and workplaces closed, paying rent is only getting harder.
-
One of the state’s largest landlords — the man at the center of an LAist investigation — is being sued for allegedly letting his properties fall into dangerous disrepair.
-
Two L.A. City Council members are putting forward a new proposal that could let developers skip on-site parking, with the goal of creating more housing.
-
Facing $22 million in reduced funding, L.A. County officials have decided to close parks two days per week and increase entrance fees.
-
One year ago, Los Angeles received recommendations for updating a decades-old rent control formula. But the City Council still hasn’t scheduled a vote.
Stories by David Wagner
Support for LAist comes from