In the San Gabriel Valley, boarding houses for vulnerable Chinese immigrants in search of affordable housing have operated for years. For new arrivals, these places are often the first stop. For elders, they can become the last. Some have lived in the same rooming houses for decades, resigned to conditions others would never accept. These rooming houses are cramped, unsafe, and undignified. Yet they are also a fragile safety net, keeping many elders from ending up on the street.
Dozens of homeless families face evictions due to a controversial city policy that limits family shelter stays to 90 days.
Young adults 18 to 24 years old who are aging out of the foster care system face the risk of housing instability and homelessness. One in five foster youth become unhoused upon turning 18. Young Asians are further hampered because they are not seen as needing support. This is the story of a twenty-one year old Korean American woman who faced innumerable challenges in finding a stable home after leaving foster care.
Low income seniors struggle with unaffordable rents in densely populated Koreatown, in Los Angeles. Amid the high concentration of residents, there is a severe shortage of low-income and senior apartments with long waiting lists for government-assisted public housing.
Financial and structural inequities and challenges, including lack of affordable homes, discrimination in the mortgage lending process and limited access to credit, restrict Latinos’ housing options to less affluent neighborhoods.
Cathay Manor, a senior housing project with 270 housing units in LA's Chinatown, is home to low-income elderly residents. The two elevators in the building have never functioned smoothly, leaving residents trapped and isolated and, in some cases, causing injury and great harm.
The Inland Empire region of Southern California is experiencing record-breaking heat, which is particularly dangerous for the homeless population. The heat can exacerbate pre-existing health conditions and increase the risk of heat-related illnesses, which can lead to hospitalization or even death.
A one-bed-one-bath "hotel" room in Monterey Park is home to 12 Chinese immigrants who live in overcrowded, unsanitary and potentially deadly conditions. There are dozens of such "hotels" or "boarding houses" that help newly arrived immigrants who don't have a work permit and savings. Without this room-sharing option, they would have to sleep on the streets.
Finding housing for loved ones who suffer from chronic mental illness is a big challenge. State and federal housing resources are typically geared towards t experiencing homelessness. It doesn't help that living in an unstable environment can greatly undermine maintaining stability or recovery.
