Brief

Councilmember Nithya Raman moved to direct the Los Angeles Housing Department to provide a comprehensive status update on funded affordable and permanent supportive housing projects, including the older portfolio and unit preservation activities. The Housing and Homelessness Committee approved the motion on January 14, 2026, and Council adopted it unanimously on January 28, 2026 (13-0-2). The Housing Department submitted documentation in March 2026, which was referred back to committee for review, with the committee scheduling a follow-up meeting in May 2026.

Full summary

Councilmember Nithya Raman introduced this motion on January 9, 2026, seeking a comprehensive accounting of the City's affordable housing investments. The motion directed the Los Angeles Housing Department to report on the status of funded affordable and permanent supportive housing (PSH) projects, the condition of the older housing portfolio, and what resources would be needed to preserve those aging units. The Housing and Homelessness Committee approved the motion on January 14, and the full Council adopted it 13-0-2 on January 28, 2026. In response, LAHD submitted a detailed report in March 2026 covering the City's housing investments from 2010 through 2025. The headline finding: over that 16-year period, LAHD financed 17,934 affordable and supportive housing units, with PSH units slightly predominating (9,862, or 55%). Proposition HHH was the single largest City funding source, accounting for 46% of all City dollars committed ($1.1 billion), followed by the federal HOME program at 26% ($619 million). In total, direct City funding across nine major sources reached roughly $2.4 billion in inflation-adjusted dollars, and private activity bonds added another $2.7 billion to City-financed projects alone. The report also notes that the City has issued $3.2 billion in private activity bonds for affordable housing since 2010 across all projects, not just City-financed ones. The report documents sharply rising construction costs: per-unit total development costs increased 56% in real terms between 2010 and 2025, from roughly $502,000 to $782,000 per unit. Historically, City funding has covered only about 20% of total project costs, but under the new Homes for LA funding program, LAHD has raised its loan limits to cover 30% to 80% of each project's costs, aiming to reduce financing delays and accelerate unit delivery. Production peaked in 2020-2022, driven largely by HHH-funded PSH development, and fell sharply in 2023-2024 when no new competitive funding rounds were launched; the department instead focused on gap-financing programs to rescue stalled projects. LAHD recommends that Council adopt this as an annual consolidated report, replacing the current fragmented approach of filing separate reports for each funding source. Two significant follow-up pieces remain outstanding: a separate LAHD analysis of the aging portfolio and preservation needs, and a companion report on PSH operating subsidy gaps (the latter tied to a separate council file). The Housing and Homelessness Committee was scheduled to take up the March report at its May 20, 2026 meeting, and the file remains open and pending in committee.

Activity (9)

• 2026-05-15 Housing and Homelessness Committee scheduled item for committee meeting on May 20, 2026.
• 2026-03-23 Los Angeles Housing Department document(s) referred to Housing and Homelessness Committee.
• 2026-03-20 Document submitted by Los Angeles Housing Department, dated March 20, 2026.
• 2026-01-29 Council action final.
• 2026-01-28 Council adopted item forthwith.
• 2026-01-23 City Clerk scheduled item for Council on January 28, 2026.
• 2026-01-14 Housing and Homelessness Committee approved item(s) .
• 2026-01-13 Housing and Homelessness Committee scheduled item for committee meeting on January 14, 2026.
• 2026-01-09 Motion referred to Housing and Homelessness Committee.

Documents (5)

• 2026-03-20 Report from Los Angeles Housing Department · report
• 2026-01-29 Council Action · council_action
• 2026-01-14 Report from Housing and Homelessness Committee · report
• 2026-01-14 Communication(s) from Public · communication
• 2026-01-09 Motion · motion