LA County DEO and LAEDC Release Latest Economic Update on the 2025 Wildfire Recovery

Los Angeles, CA — Today, the Los Angeles County Department of Economic Opportunity (DEO) and the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation’s Institute for Applied Economics (LAEDC) released the third installment of Los Angeles Wildfires: An Economic Update, a quarterly analysis tracking the economic impacts and recovery trajectory of the Eaton and Palisades 2025 wildfires.

The latest update finds that wildfire recovery has entered its next phase: helping residents return, restoring essential neighborhood services, supporting small businesses and workers, and rebuilding the local economic activity that helps communities function day to day. While rebuilding activity, business reactivation, and some mobility indicators show signs of progress, the report underscores that recovery is not measured by construction alone. Long-term recovery depends on reoccupation, housing stability, business reopening, school enrollment, healthcare and food access, transit use, and the return of local spending.

Since the fires, Los Angeles County, the State of California, municipalities, federal partners, philanthropy, community organizations, and the private sector have mobilized resources to support impacted residents, workers, small businesses, and neighborhoods. These efforts include emergency response, debris removal, permitting support, direct financial relief for businesses and workers, household relief, small business advising, workforce services, economic recovery planning, and continued coordination to help communities move from response to rebuilding and long-term stability.

Key findings include:

• Reoccupation 
  • 26.7% of destroyed structures have received rebuild permits — a pace on par with the fastest-recovering wildfires nationally, including the Tubbs and Marshall fires. But only 0.47% have completed reconstruction and received occupancy approval.
  • Across both fire areas, it took an average of 79 days from the date of the rebuild permit application to its issuance.

• Economic Activity
  • Business reactivation rates surged in Quarter 4 (Q4) 2025, well above County averages, and new business entry rates grew.
  • Local hiring activity remains below pre-fire levels, while recovery-related labor demand is growing. Place-referenced job postings declined by 8.2% in Altadena, 21.1% in Altadena/Eaton-related postings, and 38.4% in Palisades-related postings during 2025.
  • Demand increased for occupations tied to rebuilding and recovery, including construction managers, project managers, environmental specialists, social workers, and field operations personnel.

• Mobility Patterns Highlight Mixed Recovery
  • Metro routes most affected by the fires remained 17.7% below pre-fire ridership levels as of the first quarter of 2026, while Pasadena Transit ridership exceeded its adjusted pre-fire baseline by 22.6%

• Housing Stability
  • Annual localized household spending losses are estimated at $79 million in the Palisades and $73.6 million in the Eaton Fire area, representing more than $150 million in lost local spending each year.
  • Approximately 38% of survivors have already exhausted or will soon exhaust displacement assistance coverage.

“Recovery isn’t just rebuilding — it is a family finally coming home, a business turning its sign to “open,” a neighborhood full of life and a sense of belonging. This report shows progress. It also shows how much further we have to go. We’re not done until our communities are fully back on their feet, and Los Angeles County will be there every step of the way,” said Los Angeles County Third District Supervisor Lindsey P. Horvath.

“This report provides a valuable, data-driven snapshot of how our wildfire-impacted communities are progressing across multiple dimensions of recovery—including business activity, mobility, and access to essential services,” said Los Angeles County Fifth District Supervisor Kathryn Barger. “Looking at this broad range of indicators gives us a more complete understanding of where recovery is advancing and where additional support may be needed. I will continue closely tracking these trends as an important measure of how the Eaton Fire communities are recovering and rebuilding for the future.”

“Getting people back into their communities is one of the most important indicators of long-term recovery. When residents return, schools, small businesses, healthcare providers, transit systems, and other neighborhood-serving institutions can begin to recover alongside them. This analysis highlights the critical connection between reoccupation and economic recovery and underscores why supporting residents through every stage of the recovery journey remains so important,” said Kelly LoBianco, Director of the LA County Department of Economic Opportunity.

“The findings in this latest update reinforce an important reality: recovery is about much more than rebuilding structures. True recovery happens when families return home, businesses reopen, workers return to their jobs, and communities regain the services and amenities that make neighborhoods thrive. Reoccupation is emerging as one of the clearest indicators of whether recovery is truly taking hold,” said Stephen Cheung, President and CEO of the LA County Economic Development Corporation (LAEDC).