LA Fire Victims Still Waiting: Less Than 4% Have Started Rebuilding Nearly A Year Later

Nearly a year after devastating fires tore through Los Angeles County, fewer than 4% of victims have been able to rebuild their homes, leaving most residents still displaced.

Fires broke out Jan. 7, 2025, in both Pacific Palisades and Altadena, California, destroying roughly 16,000 structures and killing 31 residents. Since the fires, only about 500 homes are currently under construction, as residents in both areas continue to face challenges with the insurance industry, according to CBS News.

“The reality is that the insurance industry has been broken for a long time,” Los Angeles County Fifth District Supervisor Kathryn Barger told the outlet. “And it’s really unfortunate that it came to this, and that the survivors are the ones that are feeling, really, the system broken in a way that’s impacting their ability to move on. Many are still waiting, are still fighting with insurance.”

During a Pacific Palisades hearing in November 2025 with Republican Sens. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin and Rick Scott of Florida, residents told lawmakers that red tape and insurance policies have prevented many from beginning to rebuild their homes.

Among those who testified, 94-year-old survivor Rachel Schwartz told the lawmakers that she worked her entire life to afford her home in the Palisades after surviving the Holocaust and coming to the United States at just 15 years old. After losing everything in the fire, Schwartz said her insurance company told her it will only cover roughly half of what she needs.

“I watched everything I own disappear in flames. At my age it’s not easy to begin again,” Schwartz said. “I was with my insurance company for over 25 years, always paying my premiums [and] never missed a payment. Now they tell me they will not cover – they will only cover about half of what I need to rebuild.”

Karen Martinez, one of the few residents able to begin rebuilding her Malibu home, told CBS News how she navigated permits, insurance companies and rising construction costs. According to the outlet roughly 70% of fire survivors have now faced delays or denials from insurance companies that remained in the state.

Martinez said one factor that helped was insurance companies now offering discounts for rebuilding with materials she pushed the county to improve, including noncombustible options such as concrete instead of wood.

“I know there are going to be fires here,” Martinez told the outlet. “To me, if I can live in a home that’s not going to burn, it’s paradise!”

Martinez added that she hopes more residents will adopt the use of noncombustible materials, warning that there will only be more fires down the line.

Notably, of the thousands of victims affected by both fires, about 80% remain displaced, with some — including chef Tyler Wells, choosing not to rebuild.

Wells, who lived in Altadena, also owns a restaurant in the city that sustained only minor damage, while his home was completely destroyed, CBS News reported. Despite buildings near his restaurant being leveled, Wells was able to reopen the business and keep his employees working.

The restaurant owner renamed the restaurant Betsy, a nod to his late mother. Since reopening, the packed restaurant allowed him to open a second location next door. Despite the success, Wells told the outlet he does not plan to rebuild a home.

“The home I was in was a rental. And so, that is pretty simple math. But this is my home. It doesn’t matter where I lay my head. I’m here all day,” Wells said.

Despite the pleas of help from residents, Democratic Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass attempted to celebrate the first “rebuilt” Pacific Palisades home in November 2025. However, many pointed out that the two-story showcase home by developer Thomas James Homes had its initial plans submitted a year prior to the fire.

Records from the Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety (LADBS) show the permit application was first submitted in November 2024. Throughout that month, the status history notes that corrections were issued, quality review was completed and building plans were picked up on Nov. 25, 2024.

A submission wasn’t filed until March, 2025, when the applicant returned to address corrections, and the plan check was officially approved by April.

Both Palisades and Altadena residents have called on the Newsom administration to open an investigation, with Scott and Johnson launching a formal congressional probe into the Palisades Fire in September.

During Pasadena’s annual Rose Parade on New Year’s Day, two people seated on a float representing fire victims held a sign demanding California Attorney General Rob Bonta to investigate the Eaton Fire.

The sign was later seen being crumpled up by a bystander who ran up to the float. Bonta’s office told the Daily Caller News Foundation that it could not comment—even to confirm or deny—on potential or ongoing investigations.