Joe Thompson struggled desperately to find a new place for his family to live after the wildfires, and ended up in a five-bedroom home in Santa Monica, Calif., on Saturday. The house had been on the market the previous day for $28,000 a month, more than double that price. Rent posted 1 year ago. The agent is asking for three months’ worth of rent to be paid in advance, and several people have already applied.
Thompson and his partner turned away in surprise.
“We’re not going to do that,” Mr. Thompson, 44, a trader and investor, said later. “We just keep looking.”
The couple and their two young children were forced to evacuate last week after a wildfire destroyed much of the Pacific Palisades area near Los Angeles. Their homes remain intact, but it is unclear the extent of the damage or when they will be allowed to return. There they joined thousands of people looking for housing in a city suffering from a severe housing shortage before the disaster.
The rush has caused some homeowners and property managers to hike up short-term rental rates, including a ban on increases of more than 10% during the state of emergency, according to Zillow Property Surveys and Zillow Property Surveys. It includes dozens of cases that appear to violate California law. Interviews with real estate agents, housing advocates, and home seekers.
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Officials are asking residents to report gouging to the state attorney general’s office.
“In the face of this terrible tragedy, this is absolutely unacceptable and illegal,” State Rep. Jackie Irwin, who represents parts of West Los Angeles, said at a news conference Sunday.
A spokeswoman for the attorney general declined to answer questions about the complaints, saying such investigations are private.
This is a story often repeated in America. When a natural disaster occurs, demand surges beyond the city’s capacity, causing rents to soar. Some people have the means to pay higher prices. Many others don’t. Researchers say the burden will typically be greatest on people who were living in rental properties before the disaster. Economic crises also increase home purchase prices.
In some cases, short-term rental applicants in Los Angeles County find themselves on waiting lists, engaged in bidding wars, and even asked to pay a year’s worth of rent in advance.
“Many homeowners who may have lived in their homes for 10, 20, or 30 years, but have not experienced the rental market in decades, will receive a crash course in the housing shortage. , that’s not very good,” said Brock Harris, who runs a real estate brokerage business with his wife, Lori.
The couple are trying to help bushfire victims secure rental properties. This includes people whose mortgage payments can only cover small apartments. “It’s an almost impossible task for these people to find housing at a similar price or similar to what they lost,” Harris said.
The wildfires that tore through the Los Angeles area last week have burned more than 40,000 acres, scorching entire neighborhoods and destroying more than 12,300 structures. Several fires continue to burn.
Victims of the wildfires include working-class renters struggling to pay bills, retirees who have owned their homes for decades, young couples who have recently purchased a home, and wealthy families with vacation homes elsewhere. They span a variety of housing situations, including families.
Many fled with only a few belongings and currently have no permanent home. Many are searching for long-term housing while enduring unimaginable loss, staying with family and friends or staying in hotels. The state has set up temporary shelters for people who have nowhere to go. Airbnb.org, a nonprofit independent of Airbnb, is working with local nonprofit 211 LA to provide free temporary housing to disaster victims.
Magdaleno Rosales, an organizer with the Los Angeles Tenants Union, which represents renters and advocates for affordable housing, said her organization has started an effort to track reports of rent gouging. He said he has received more than 450 tips so far, with some reporting spikes of just over 10% and more than a dozen reporting increases of more than 100%.
“Landlords are moving very quickly to take advantage of people’s desperation,” he said.
Rosales added that he worries that landlords who see a money-making opportunity will evict working-class tenants.
“LA was already facing its worst housing crisis and homelessness crisis,” he says. “And in the wake of this tragedy, this terrible fire, it looks like things are going to get even worse.”
NBC News investigated rent increases and uncovered numerous examples. Ofir Marul, one of the listing agents, was named among more than a dozen rental properties whose prices rose as the fire spread last week. In seven of those properties, price increases exceeded the 10% allowed under Gov. Gavin Newsom’s state of emergency. Four-bedroom homes in Topanga rose 24% to $14,300. A three-bedroom with views of the iconic Hollywood sign rose 45% to $14,500.
Marul answered the phone and initially agreed to speak to reporters after the meeting, but he did not return subsequent calls or respond to messages. On Sunday night, all 12 listings appeared to have been removed, including his name. He then texted a reporter and said the list was not his.
Zillow issued a statement saying it had activated “an internal system that alerts us to potential violations so we can evaluate and take action,” adding, “It is imperative that housing providers follow local housing codes. “This includes consumer protection against price gouging during and after price gouging.” Natural disasters occur and we provide resources to help them understand their responsibilities. ”
The picture is not completely dark. Alongside allegations of price gouging, there are also stories of generosity and empathy.
Tanith Mann lost the Pacific Palisades home she bought with her partner in 2023 and is living with her sister while she searches for short-term housing. Mann, 37, a brand manager for a food company, said he has seen examples of landlords keeping prices the same or lowering them.
“When I’m on Zillow and I see someone has increased their prices, I take them off the list because I don’t want that person to be my landlord,” Mann said. Ta.
After searching dozens of properties online and six in person, Ashley and Tim Polmatia, whose home in the Marques Knolls neighborhood of Pacific Palisades was destroyed, couldn’t find a new place to live. They said they saw properties with rents increased by $1,000 in the days after the fire.
For now, they plan to stay in an Airbnb property with their three young children and a 10-week-old golden retriever puppy until the end of the month, and hope to find something by February 1st.
“At least we’re all together,” Ashley Polmutter said.
The search for Thompson continues. His family is staying in a hotel while they look for a place near their children’s schools. On Monday, he checked out a rental property that had just been put on the market for the same price as before the fire. But the agent told him he was one of 70 people on the list.
“People lost everything,” Thompson said. “They’re in a situation of uncertainty, they don’t even know how long they’ll need the land, and they’re forced to compete with each other and offer the landowner the best possible terms. It’s insane. .”
