“House Our Vets”: Mayor Bass Renews Commitment to House Every Veteran in Los Angeles, Calls on Property Owners Citywide to Accept HUD-VASH Vouchers

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Nearly 600 Veterans Housed Due to Key Federal Policy Change Secured by Mayor Bass

LOS ANGELES - Mayor Karen Bass renewed her commitment today to house every Veteran in Los Angeles through her "House our Vets" initiative, which today was expanded through a new partnership and public information campaign on Metro buses, trains, stations, and kiosks. Since its launch, "House Our Vets" has housed nearly 600 Veterans.

Today's announcement came on the heels of Mayor Bass' State of the City address and took place at a housing project developed by Simon Aftalion at Passo that accepts HUD-VASH vouchers through "House Our Vets" and was accelerated by Mayor Bass' Executive Directive 1. Mayor Bass was joined by Veteran Charles Nelson, whose family is currently housed through the program, and Metro Chief Customer Experience Officer Jennifer Vides. Mayor Bass also spoke at the Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles (HACLA) housing fair this morning with service providers, property owners, and Veterans who were issued vouchers on-site. Photos and b-roll available here.

"Since we launched our House Our Vets initiative last year, nearly 600 Veterans have moved into stable housing. But we won't be finished until every Veteran is inside - especially because we have enough vouchers for every unhoused Veteran in Los Angeles," said Mayor Bass."We cannot have anyone who served our country living on our streets. That's why I'm calling on property owners across our city to step up - to accept a voucher, house a Veteran, and make a patriotic contribution to our city and our country."

For years, Veterans were left on the street because federal regulations forced them to choose between their disability benefits and housing. In 2024, Mayor Bass, in her role as Chair of the U.S. Conference of Mayors' Homelessness Task Force, led a bipartisan delegation of more than 50 mayors from across the country to Washington D.C. to successfully advocate for a change to this federal policy so that no Veteran would have to choose between housing and their earned benefits.

Under the leadership of Mayor Bass and HACLA President & CEO Lourdes Castro Ramirez, voucher issuance and unit placement operations have been reformed to save time and reduce burdens on Veterans and property owners alike:

• For Veterans, HACLA has improved application processes by consolidating forms and utilizing pre-fillable forms, enabling staff to issue vouchers faster.

• HACLA is actively leveraging HUD-approved waivers that Mayor Bass secured to speed up the steps from application to voucher receipt.

• For property owners, the agency has mitigated bottlenecks by introducing parallel processing. Unit inspections, rental amount determinations, and owner document collection/finalization for payment are now happening simultaneously, which dramatically reduces the time required for unit approval.

"The House Our Veterans initiative has proven that with the right partnerships, we can move the needle on homelessness," said HACLA President & CEO Lourdes Castro Ramirez."Last year, we transitioned 586 veterans into stable housing with an incredible 99% retention rate. By cutting the red tape, Mayor Bass has helped us turn a vision of stability into a reality for hundreds of families. We aren't just providing roofs; we are proving that ending veteran homelessness is possible."

Mayor Bass launched "House Our Vets" last year, calling on L.A. property owners to rent their apartments to formerly homeless Veterans. Stevie Wonder joined the cause, putting out the call on the radio and TV. Property owners benefit from guaranteed rent payments while contributing to this patriotic effort. Metro is now also joining the public information campaign, including advertisements on Metro buses, trains, stations, and kiosks to inform Veterans of the resources available.

"Metro is proud to participate in this public service awareness campaign in support of the House Our Vets initiative. Veterans who have served our country honorably deserve a warm, secure place to call home, and this program helps make that goal a reality," said Metro CEO Stephanie Wiggins."Whether through Metro's joint development opportunities or Metro's HOME teams, we have connected hundreds of people in need sheltering on our system with city and county service providers who can offer meaningful assistance."

Mayor Bass has led with unprecedented urgency to address homelessness in L.A. By breaking with the previous status quo, the city has seen a historic, consecutive two year declinein homelessness, a first for Los Angeles. At the end of 2024, the Department of Housing and Urban Development announced a 23% decrease in Veteran homelessness.

Learn More

To support Veterans and property owners navigating the process, HACLA has established a dedicated phone line and email address for immediate Q&A and sign-up:

• If you're a Veteran in need of housing, call (213) 252-4231 (M-F, 9:00 AM- 5:00 PM with voicemail capability after hours) or email [email protected].

• For property owners with studio or one-bedroom units looking to join the House Our Vets initiative, visit www.hacla.org/houseourvetsto learn more.