Housing is a top priority for the more than 650,000 LGBTQ people in Los Angeles County. LGBTQ people in the county rent at higher rates compared to their non-LGBTQ counterparts (61% vs. 46%). Additionally, a greater percentage of LGBTQ adults (61%) are housing cost-burdened, defined as spending more than 30% of their household income on housing, compared to non-LGBTQ adults (53%).
LGBTQ people in LA County are twice as likely as non-LGBTQ people to have experienced being unhoused within the past five years. LGBTQ people of color, LGBTQ people with low incomes, and transgender and nonbinary (TNB) people experience particularly high rates of being unhoused. Among the TNB people surveyed, one in four (25%) reported currently being unhoused, compared to just 1% of the general population in Los Angeles County.
A new LGBTQ housing brief from the Williams Institute at UCLA School of Law highlights findings from recent research on the experiences of LGBTQ people in LA County conducted in collaboration with the TransLatin@ Coalition and the California Department of Public Health.
“LGBTQ people in LA County desire housing that is affordable, safe, and connected to community,” said lead author Brad Sears, Founding Executive Director at the Williams Institute. “Participants in our studies recommended that policymakers develop and expand affordable housing options and work with community groups to address the unique needs of particularly vulnerable LGBTQ populations, including TNB people, youth, and older adults.”
Additional findings
- Over one-quarter (29%) of LGBTQ people in Los Angeles County do not feel safe in their neighborhoods most of the time. Rates of feeling unsafe are particularly high among LGBTQ people of color and those with low incomes.
- One in eight LGBTQ people have experienced unfair treatment from a landlord or realtor.
- Safety concerns were the top reason unhoused TNB people surveyed did not access shelters. About 60% said they were concerned about their personal safety, and 39% said they thought they would be harassed because of their gender identity.
- About 40% of TNB people surveyed live within 1,000 feet of a highway, compared to 11% of all Southern Californians.
- LGBTQ adults (29%) are more likely to live alone than non-LGBTQ adults (16%). LGBTQ adults over 50 are twice as likely as their non-LGBTQ peers to live alone (43% vs. 21%).
- LGBTQ adults (48%) are twice as likely as non-LGBTQ adults (23%) to be lonely. More than six in 10 TNB adults are lonely (62%).