Young adults in Los Angeles County who come from unstable family situations typically lack education and employment, often have mental health struggles and may have had involvement with the criminal justice system, according to a report released Tuesday by the Santa Monica-based RAND Corp.
More than one-third of the people age 18 to 25 surveyed by RAND researchers reported involvement with the foster care system, indicating there is a strong association between foster care and housing instability for transition age youth.
Despite such barriers, more than 95% of survey respondents expressed interest in becoming housed, more than 60% were not in school but planned to attend, and nearly one-half were unemployed but actively looking for work, according to the survey.
“While this group faces challenges finding support, it’s encouraging that most of them are motivated to successfully transition and become stably housed,” Sarah B. Hunter, the report’s lead author and a senior behavioral scientist at RAND, said in a statement.
“It’s important to target this group for help as a strategy to reduce the number of people at risk of chronic homelessness.”
Although substantial investments have been made to address homelessness in Los Angeles County, the number of people experiencing homelessness has continued to grow over the past decade.
Researchers say that transition-age youth who are 18 to 25 years old represent an important population because resolving homelessness at an early age may prevent chronic homelessness and the consequences of living unsheltered, such as earlier mortality and increased morbidity, according to the think tank.
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The county’s annual point-in-time count of unhoused residents found there were 3,718 transition-age young people experiencing homelessness in the region in 2023.
RAND researchers surveyed 399 transition-age youth experiencing housing instability in Los Angeles County, with an emphasis on youth with foster care involvement. Participants were solicited from 18 youth-oriented shelters and transitional housing programs, 15 drop-in centers for young people, and 11 street venues where homeless transition age youth congregate.
The report, “Understanding the Needs of Transition Age Youth Navigating the Foster Care and Housing Systems in Los Angeles County,” is available at www.rand.org.