{"id":79105,"date":"2025-01-29T11:00:57","date_gmt":"2025-01-29T19:00:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.redfin.com\/news\/?p=79105"},"modified":"2025-01-29T13:20:33","modified_gmt":"2025-01-29T21:20:33","slug":"los-angeles-wildfires-housing-statistics","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.redfin.com\/news\/los-angeles-wildfires-housing-statistics\/","title":{"rendered":"Los Angeles Wildfires: Redfin\u2019s Latest Local Housing Market and Rental Data"},"content":{"rendered":"

Below we\u2019ve outlined recent Los Angeles housing statistics and insights in light of the devastating wildfires. We\u2019ll be updating this page with new information as it becomes available and as the situation evolves.
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\nRedfin agents are working hard to help local homebuyers and sellers navigate disruptions and changes to their transactions. Many Redfin agents are also helping displaced residents find rentals and have offered this service free of charge. For people who have been impacted by the wildfires, Redfin has put together a <\/span>list of resources<\/span><\/a>, including temporary housing options and insurance information. Our hearts go out to Southern California during this extremely challenging time.<\/span><\/p>\n

Update: January 29, 2025 at 12:15pm PT<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Online Views of LA Rental Listings Up 37% Year Over Year, Compared to Near-100% Spikes the Week After Wildfires Broke Out<\/b><\/h3>\n

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Online views of rental listings in Los Angeles County were up 37% from a year earlier on January 27. That’s compared to near-100% spikes on January 12, 13, and 14, in the week directly following the outbreaks of the <\/span>Palisades<\/span><\/a> and <\/span>Eaton<\/span><\/a> fires.<\/span><\/p>\n

Zooming out a weekly timespan, rental pageviews were up 34% from a year earlier during the week ending January 27, the smallest increase since the week ending January 10. This is according to pageview data from Redfin.com.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cA lot of the people who have been displaced by the wildfires have, thankfully, found places to stay for the next several months or years. But there are a fair amount of people who have been staying with family and friends for the last few weeks, and are just now starting to look for rentals\u2013or are just now finding a rental they like that\u2019s available,\u201d said Tim Root<\/a>, a Redfin Premier agent in Los Angeles. \u201cSome people are buying, but plenty of people are still wrapping their heads around losing their homes in the wildfires, and they\u2019re not ready to purchase.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Update: January 22, 2025 at 2:45pm PT<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

The Palisades and Eaton Fires Have Destroyed 17% of Homes Within Their Perimeters<\/strong><\/h3>\n

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Roughly one of every six (17%) homes within the perimeters of the <\/span>Palisades<\/span><\/a> and <\/span>Eaton<\/span><\/a> fires have been destroyed, damaged, or made inaccessible as of January 22. That\u2019s a total of 14,960 homes; of those, 12,941 (87%) were destroyed, 1,988 (13%) were damaged, and 31 were inaccessible (0.2%). This is from a Redfin analysis that divides the number of housing units destroyed or damaged by the total number of housing units within the incident perimeters of each fire, as defined by Cal Fire. Please note that this is an update to the data in the section below; we have added data as we\u2019re able to access it.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Zooming out to all of Los Angeles County, 0.4% of all homes were destroyed or damaged by the Palisades or Eaton fires.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Of the 14,960 homes that have been destroyed or damaged, just over half of those (51%) were destroyed, damaged, or made inaccessible by the Eaton fire, and 49% by the Palisades fire.\u00a0<\/span>Single-family homes account for the majority (86%; 12,848) of the homes that were destroyed, damaged, or made inaccessible. Another 13% (1,927) were units in multi-family properties, and\u00a0 1% (185) were mobile homes.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Update: January 17, 2025 at 12:55pm PT<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Palisades, Eaton Fires Have Destroyed 14% of Homes Within the Fire Perimeters<\/b><\/h3>\n

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Roughly one of every seven (14%) homes within the perimeters of the <\/span>Palisades<\/span><\/a> and <\/span>Eaton<\/span><\/a> fires have been destroyed or damaged. That\u2019s a total of 6,354 homes; of those, 5,449 (86%) were destroyed, and 905 (14%) were damaged. This is from a Redfin analysis that divides the number of housing units destroyed or damaged by the total number of housing units within the incident perimeters of each fire, as defined by Cal Fire (note that this analysis doesn\u2019t include commercial structures).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Zooming out to all of Los Angeles County, 0.17% of all homes were destroyed or damaged by the Palisades or Eaton fires. While that\u2019s a small fraction of overall housing in the Los Angeles area, Redfin agents report the destruction has created a ripple effect of people searching for housing in a region already struggling with a housing shortage.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Of the 6,354 homes that have been destroyed or damaged, just over half of those (56%) were destroyed or damaged by the Eaton fire, and 44% by the Palisades fire.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Single-family homes account for the vast majority (89%; 5,636) of the homes that were destroyed or damaged. Another 11% (707) were units in multi-family properties, and less than 1% (11) were mobile homes.\u00a0<\/span>Roughly 6,000 single-family permits are granted <\/span>each year<\/b> across <\/span>all of Los Angeles County<\/b>, according to a separate Redfin analysis of county permits from 2013 to 2023. That\u2019s less than the number of homes that have been destroyed by the Palisades and Eaton fires. <\/span><\/p>\n

Update: January 17, 2025 at 9:25am PT<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

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Los Angeles Redfin Agents Report Rental Bidding Wars, Canceled Home Purchases<\/strong><\/h3>\n

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Bidding wars for rentals, canceled homebuying deals: <\/b>\u201cTons of past clients are reaching out on behalf of friends, seeing if I know of any available rentals. There\u2019s competition for nearly every rental, and it\u2019s not just on price; a lot of people are taking on long leases to secure a place to live. A rental listed for $16,000 per month got bid up to $30,000, and the winners took on a two-year lease. On the buying and selling side, people are pulling back, waiting for the dust to settle. Two buyers have canceled deals because they don\u2019t feel comfortable making such a big purchase with the catastrophe going on. Three clients have canceled their listings, with the homeowners opting to rent their homes out to people impacted by the fires instead.\u201d \u2013 <\/span>Gregory Eubanks<\/span><\/a>, Redfin Premier agent<\/span><\/p>\n

Buying may be less stressful than renting: <\/b>\u201cOne family I\u2019m working with is looking for a home because they were asked to leave their rental; their landlord needs to move back in because his house burned down in the Eaton fire. They\u2019re open to buying or renting, but buying may be less stressful because single-family rentals are going incredibly fast.\u201d \u2013<\/span>Erik Miles<\/span><\/a>, Redfin Premier agent<\/span><\/p>\n

Buyers are pulling out of deals: <\/b>\u201cThe fires are impacting a lot of deals. I have a $1.7 million home in Altadena that was supposed to close next week but the buyers pulled out, and now my sellers are fighting for the deposit. It’s a real mess. Rentals are a different story. My best advice to families looking for rentals is to move as quickly as possible; call a real estate agent and ask for help.\u201d \u2013<\/span>Alin Glogovicean<\/span><\/a>, Redfin Premier agent<\/span><\/p>\n

Airbnbs are turning into long-term rentals: <\/b>\u201cPeople are getting creative; I’m seeing Airbnbs turn into regular rentals, and second-home owners offer up their empty homes as rentals. I’ve been all over Facebook, asking if anyone knows of open rentals, and then matchmaking with clients.\u201d\u00a0 \u2013<\/span>Heidi Ludwig<\/span><\/a>, Redfin Premier agent<\/span><\/p>\n

Insurers aren\u2019t writing policies for LA-area homes: <\/b>\u201cLack of insurance is a huge obstacle to buying a home now. At the moment, no insurer other than the state-run California Fair plan is writing policies. I met an insurance broker who said that until about a month after the fires are completely contained, none of the big players will provide insurance for homes within a 20-mile radius of the fires.\u00a0 Nobody wants to touch it. And the California Fair Plan is exponentially more expensive and typically provides worse coverage.\u201d \u2013<\/span>Alin Glogovicean<\/span><\/a>, Redfin Premier agent<\/span><\/p>\n

Update: January 16, 2025 at 12:45pm PT<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Views of Online Rental Listings in Los Angeles County Are Spiking<\/strong><\/h3>\n

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Online views of rental listings in Los Angeles County nearly doubled from a year earlier to their highest levels in at least two years on January 12, 13 and 14. The spike came as people who were displaced from their homes by the wildfires searched for a place to live.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

On each of those days, views of rental listings were up roughly 93% year over year, the biggest increases in at least a year (except Sept. 2 and Nov. 23, which saw big year-over-year spikes due to dates of holidays).<\/span><\/p>\n

Zooming out a weekly timespan, rental pageviews were up 57% from a year earlier during the week ending January 14, the biggest increase in roughly four months.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

This is according to pageview data from Redfin.com. We are keeping an eye on the most recent rental pageview data and will provide updates as they become available. <\/span><\/p>\n

Update: January 15, 2025 at 3:23pm PT<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Google Searches for L.A. Rentals Are Soaring<\/b><\/h3>\n


\nThe search term \u201c<\/span>Los Angeles homes for rent<\/span><\/a>\u201d has jumped 186% since the first week of this year as people displaced by the fires look for housing. There have been <\/span>reports<\/span><\/a> that some property owners are hiking rents as demand soars.<\/span><\/p>\n

California\u2019s Fire-Prone Areas Saw More People Move Out Than In Before the L.A. Fires, And More Redfin Research<\/b><\/h3>\n


\n“The wildfires devastating Los Angeles could be a critical tipping point for risk tolerance among American renters and homeowners,” said Redfin Chief Economist <\/span>Daryl Fairweather<\/span><\/a>. “While the country’s disaster-prone areas continue to <\/span>see<\/span><\/a> more people move in than out overall, behavior has begun to shift in California; the state’s high-fire-risk areas in 2023 saw a net loss of residents, marking a reversal from the prior year. And the Southern California wildfires may exacerbate this trend in 2025.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Below is a list of relevant climate-related research Redfin has published, including <\/span>a report<\/span><\/a> on what typically happens with home prices, sales and new construction in the wake of California wildfires.<\/span><\/p>\n