Leaders from across L.A. County gathered at the El Rio Community School in Lincoln Heights on Tuesday night to kick off the 2025 Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count.

The Homeless Count is invaluable for understanding the scope and nature of homelessness in Los Angeles County. It is the largest-scale point-in-time homeless count in the United States, as required by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development for continuums of care across the country.

Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority CEO Dr. Va Lecia Adams Kellum was joined by leaders from across the county, including Mayor Karen Bass, Supervisor Hilda Solis, Councilmember Eunisses Hernandez, LAHSA Commission Chair Wendy Greuel, and Lived Experience Advisory Board Co-Chair Sean Pleasants. These leaders spoke on the significance of the Homeless Count and encouraged Angelenos to sign up to volunteer on Wednesday and Thursday.

“This year’s Homeless Count demonstrates the power of community action to transform lives,” Dr. Adams Kellum said. “Alignment between LAHSA, the city, and the county on addressing homelessness has been key to our progress. We must continue strengthening this collaboration to continue our success.”

“Last year’s count showed that the collaboration and dedication driven by the people on this stage are beginning to yield results. After years and years of increases – thanks to our new approach to this crisis – we brought homelessness down for the first time in a long time. We have turned the corner, but make no mistake, we have a long way to go – and it’s going to take all of us working together and committing to making change together,” said Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass. “We committed to a new way of doing things with programs like Inside Safe and a Pathway Home. Especially now, when the Palisades and Eaton Fires have cost so many more people their homes and their livelihoods, we must double down on innovation, efficiency and on delivering results.”

“Nearly 6,000 individuals will cover 4,000 miles to ensure our unhoused neighbors are counted. Our city’s response to homelessness is a powerful reminder of what happens when we unite for a common cause,” said Council President Marqueece Harris-Dawson via a statement.

The 2025 Homeless Count keeps key modifications from years past and makes new changes to improve the volunteer experience:

-LAHSA’s 2023 quality assurance process, including LAHSA staff at each deployment site, continues this year, ensuring a more accurate count.

-The ESRI-developed Homeless Count app returns for 2025. This year, it will help show volunteers the path they traveled already, providing another tool to improve accuracy.

-Volunteers can now register, manage their registration, and access training all on one website.

“The Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count is a critical moment for our County, offering a comprehensive snapshot of homelessness that drives forward informed and concrete action,” said Hilda L. Solis, Los Angeles County Chair Pro Tem and Supervisor for the First District. “In the First District, we’ve witnessed a meaningful decrease in homelessness in concentrated areas like Skid Row, the San Gabriel Valley, and East Los Angeles, thanks to targeted efforts to house individuals and provide critical support services. This year’s count will not only shed light on where we still need to focus our resources but also highlight the success of our initiatives and reaffirm our commitment to continuing to build on this momentum. We’re proving that with dedication, collaboration, and the right resources, we can make real change.”

Last year’s Homeless Count saw a 12.7% drop in unsheltered homelessness in the City of Los Angeles and a 5.1% drop countywide. Overall, the estimated number of people experiencing homelessness in LA County fell to 75,312. LAHSA believes the unprecedented coordination among stakeholders, in addition to LAHSA’s systemic improvements, are the primary reasons for the decline in 2024.

LAHSA’s system data also showed that in FY 23-24, the rehousing system permanently housed 45% more people from the street than the previous fiscal year and moved 32% more people from the street to interim housing. Dr. Adams Kellum notes that the effects of the recent wildfires in LA County mean that the results of this year’s Homeless Count will be hard to predict.

“We have never had wildfires affect our community on the scale we saw this year. While we cannot predict the wildfires’ impact, our community is ready to come together to better understand our unhoused neighbors and develop innovative pathways to bring them home,” continued Dr. Adams Kellum.

The Homeless Count will continue on Wednesday and Thursday nights. LAHSA is looking for thousands of additional volunteers to participate in this year’s Homeless Count, which represents an excellent opportunity for people throughout Greater Los Angeles to help their unhoused neighbors. Anyone interested in volunteering can visit https://www.theycountwillyou.org/ to learn more.