Residents in Los Angeles are raising concerns about violent squatters, and many are urging city officials to take action.

Surveillance footage revealed that some squatters—people who illegally inhabit an empty structure or lot—were setting fires and vandalizing property in particular California neighborhoods.

The initial reports of the alarming behavior came from Beverly Grove, an upmarket area in Los Angeles’ Mid-City West district with a typical list price of $1,195,000, according to Realtor.com® May data. The Beverly Center and the Grove outdoor mall are two of the area’s most popular shopping and dining destinations. The area is located between Beverly Hills and West Hollywood.

“It has been utterly terrifying. “We are on hold with our lives right now until this is resolved,” Anita Cavallo, a Beverly Grove resident, told ABC 7.

Residents are afraid of the ongoing violence

The worries stem from a transient attacking a gardener outside a Brentwood home, which was all captured on film, according to ABC7. The clip shows the gardener being beaten over the head with a long rod before briefly falling to the ground and cradling his injured head.

Even though the gardener attempted to create distance by placing a garbage can between himself and the attacker, he was still susceptible. The squatter was spotted approaching the victim and yelling loudly.

Cavallo claims that approximately 20 transients prowl around a boarded-up apartment building on Flores Street.

Although several of the homes in this neighborhood have substantial fences to ensure protection and privacy, they do not always protect people from unexpected, random attacks.

Cavallo stated that one woman repeatedly set fire to a vacant apartment complex, forcing residents to extinguish the flames themselves.

“She’s an arsonist,” Cavallo informed ABC7. “She was arrested several weeks ago…” I noticed her firelight last week, and she lighted a large one last night.

“It feels like no one has the right solutions for us. “Everyone just blames someone else and says there’s nothing they can do, so we don’t know where to turn for help anymore,” she said.

The building owner indicated that they intend to rebuild the property. In the meanwhile, homeowners are concerned that additional violent incidents will occur as unhoused people abuse the property.

Homelessness throughout the state

“Californians have consistently cited homelessness as a top issue facing the state, and in 2024, homelessness reached record highs,” according to the Public Policy Institute of California. “Of the nation’s 771,500 homeless people, more than 187,000 (24%) lived in California. Two out of every three people were unsheltered, making up about half of the country’s unsheltered population.

Although these figures are concerning, the institute also reported that unsheltered population growth in the United States (7%) outperformed California (0.4%), reversing the previous decade’s tendency of greater rises in the Golden State.

Homelessness and homeless encampments in California can have a negative impact on property values, especially if they are conspicuous or cause disturbances. Generally, properties surrounding homeless encampments sell for less than comparable properties. However, the influence on property values varies, and some research suggests that affordable housing, when properly managed, can have a positive or neutral impact on surrounding property values.