Homeless Count Unchanged, But A Shocking Trend Has Emerged

LOS ANGELES COUNTY, CA — The overall population of unsheltered people in three L.A. neighborhoods remained flat in 2025, but unhoused individuals sleeping on the streets without encampments -- known as rough sleepers -- reached its highest level in four years, officials announced Friday.

RAND, a research organization based in Santa Monica, released its 2025 Los Angeles Longitudinal Enumeration and Demographic Survey, also known as LA LEADS, on Thursday, which found the combined unsheltered population in Hollywood, Skid Row and Venice was statistically unchanged between December 2024 and January 2026.

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However, data showed that rough sleeping rose by 20% and reached its highest levels in four years.

Rough sleeping is a term used to capture the population of unhoused individuals who sleep on the streets without a tent, vehicle or other shelter, according to RAND.

"The total count held steady in 2025, but the makeup of the population continued to shift substantially," Louis Abramson, the study's lead author and adjunct researcher at RAND, said in a statement.

"Compared to a year ago, more people are sleeping completely unsheltered, more spread out geographically, and with fewer connections to the systems that contributed to the prior year's progress," Abramson added.

RAND's report showed that tents and encampments have decreased across the three neighborhoods since 2021. Last year, there was a 23% decrease, but those gains have been offset by growth in rough sleeping and more unhoused people living in vehicles, which also increased by 11% in 2025.

Data showed that nearly 90% of tents remained in Skid Row, up from 60% four years earlier. Skid Row's homeless population increased again in 2025, reaching record-high numbers before decreasing late in the year.

It was the only neighborhood that experienced continued growth in its homeless population in each year of the study, according to RAND.

In Venice and Hollywood, overall unhoused population figures remained largely flat due to "stalled progress." Both areas previously saw a decline in homelessness in 2024.

RAND said new survey data suggests that removing tents and encampments may be contributing to the rise in rough sleeping. Nearly half of rough sleepers surveyed said they'd lost their dwelling in the past year, and 46% of respondents said their dwellings were confiscated or towed by government officials or service providers.

"The continued increase in rough sleeping from 2024 to 2025 is concerning because our data show that this population can be harder to engage and often has greater clinical needs," said Sarah Hunter, co-author of the report and a senior behavioral scientist at RAND. "It suggests encampment- based approaches may no longer be effective and that different strategies are needed."

Researchers said Skid Row had the greatest concentration of need followed by Hollywood and Venice. Skid Row also received the majority of outreach and housing assistance.

In all three neighborhoods, RAND found there are barriers to service and housing as job opportunities were nearly nonexistent, cash reserves limited and most of the unhoused population lacked a cellphone or basic identification.

RAND recommended that homelessness interventions should be tailored to neighborhood conditions and population needs as encampment-focused strategies are not equally effective for rough sleepers or people living in vehicles.

The organization's survey was conducted year-round by staff and concluded in January 2026.

It's the second largest point-in-time homeless count next to the annual survey conducted by the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority.