Overview
- UCLA's annual index, based on a March 15–29 survey of 1,400 residents with a 2.6% margin of error, dropped to 52, the lowest score in its 11-year run.
- Six of nine categories hit new lows and eight fell from 2025, with the sharpest declines in education, transportation and traffic, and the cost of living.
- Affordability stayed the top worry even as its share of mentions eased to 68% from 77%, while concern about racial and ethnic relations climbed to 41% and traffic rose to 44%.
- Wildfire fallout remains broad, with 26% reporting income loss from the 2025 Altadena and Palisades fires and 56% dissatisfied with how local government handled recovery.
- Immigration enforcement weighs on daily life, as 31% fear deportation for themselves or someone close, yet 53% still feel optimistic about their own economic future.