In part 1 and 2, we tackled discussing the issues of racial inequalities and mental health as consequential factors that add to homelessness in Los Angeles. In part 3, Los Angeles’ high cost of living is investigated as another possible factor that leads to homelessness. 

The high cost of living in Los Angeles has been identified as one of the key factors contributing to the city's ongoing homelessness crisis. The cost of housing in Los Angeles is among the highest in the nation, having an average rent for a one-bedroom apartment (788 sq. ft.) exceeding $2,000 per month, which makes it difficult for many low-income residents to find affordable housing. With groceries averaging around $322.08 per person every month and going as high as $1,288 for a family of four and the current level for gas in LA being 5.066 per gallon of premium gas, the cost of basic necessities such as food and transportation have also been high in the city. The transportation issue is especially an expensive ordeal since Angelinos have to rely heavily on a means of transportation since it is such a large city (6,351 km2/ 2,452 mi2). 

What makes living in L.A. even harder to afford is the inability to keep up with its cost. The minimum wage salary in California is $15.50 per hour, which is a good amount of money for a simple job, if you were 15 year old with no responsibilities. Unfortunately when one becomes an adult, the cost of living is not met with a minimum wage salary. 

The cost of living in Los Angeles has been rising steadily in recent years, driven by factors such as the city's booming tech and entertainment industries, and a shortage of affordable housing. The cost of housing in the city is so expensive that almost 200,000 people owe more than half a billion dollars in unpaid rent. Though due to Covid 19 many things with Los Angeles renting has changed. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the City of Los Angeles has implemented many rental protection measures to help tenants who were experiencing financial hardship due to the pandemic. Some of the measures that were implemented are:

• Eviction Moratorium: Temporary eviction moratorium in place, which prohibits landlords from evicting tenants who are unable to pay rent due to COVID-19-related financial hardship. This moratorium has ended as of March 31, 2023

• Rent Freeze: Prohibits landlords from increasing rent on certain rental units that are subject to the City's Rent Stabilization Ordinance. This rent freeze is in effect until September 30, 2023.

• Rental Assistance: The city has allocated millions of dollars in rental assistance funding to help tenants who are struggling to pay rent due to COVID-19-related financial hardship. Tenants who meet certain eligibility requirements may be able to receive financial assistance to help cover their rent.

• Right to Counsel: A "Right to Counsel" program, which provides low-income tenants with free legal representation in eviction proceedings.

While the city has taken steps to address the issue, including increasing funding for affordable housing and providing rental subsidies for low-income residents, many experts argue that more needs to be done to address the root causes of the homelessness crisis. Many of those facing homelessness in Los Angeles believe that the system has abandoned them. In a 2019 article that appeared in The New York Times, Lucrecia Macias, a nurse who lived in a house in Palmdale near Los Angeles before cancer wiped her out financially and led her to the streets stated, “I think they care more about animals than us. They’re making parks for dogs but they’re not building housing for us.” 

Thankfully a voice has finally echoed through what seemed to have been a one way call line for help, Mayor Karen Bass has recently initiated a $1.3 billion aid budget to help contain the rising numbers of unhoused individuals. As part of that $1.3 billion she proposed $250 million for Inside Safe, which is a program that has been moving unhoused residents off sidewalks and into hotel and motel rooms. These efforts haven’t come without backlash as some on twitter see it as just another temporary solution. We will have to wait and see whether this potential solution will bear any fruits for a more promising future. 

As Los Angeles continues to grapple with its homelessness crisis, policymakers and community leaders will need to come together to develop innovative solutions that address the root causes of the issue. With rising costs of living driving more and more residents into poverty and homelessness, the urgency of this task has never been greater.