Former 'Million Dollar Listing' star and Los Angeles real estate agent Josh Altman provides updates on wildfire recovery and recovery and previews President Donald Trump's visit to disaster sites.
After making a shocking prediction that up to 70% of Pacific Palisades residents won't come back to rebuild and live in their homes, former real estate agent Josh Altman explains exactly why.
“They're not going to come back because they don't want to come back. Of course they want to go back there. … They're not going to come back because it's simple math,” Altman said Friday on “FOX Business Live.” .
“I don't believe they're going to be able to afford to rebuild with most people who are heavily underinsured, with the cost of construction, lumber, steel. We're talking $1,000 [per] building legs in the Palisades and in Malibu.”
Southern California has been dealing with a wave of wildfires since January 7th. Over 50,000 acres were burned, 28 people were killed, and more than 16,000 homes and buildings were completely lost.
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President Donald Trump declared a national emergency on Friday after touring the devastation in Los Angeles with residents personally affected by the disaster.
Former “Million Dollar Listing” star Josh Altman says the main reason up to 70% of Pacific Palisades residents don't return to their homes is expensive insurance and building costs, on “FOX Business Live.” (FOX Business)
According to estimates by AccuWeather and JPMorgan, the total financial loss from wildfires is in the range of $50 billion. leading to fires, several insurance companies he either fled, stopped writing new policies, or cut coverage in the Golden State.
“And that's on top of having a construction crew show up on your site when 16,000 structures have burned down between homes, schools and commercial space. It's a disaster,” Altman added. “That's what I'm saying, I don't know if they can handle the fuse.”
Newsom signed an aid package where the state will spend $2.5 billion to help with wildfire recovery. Altman, however, wants Newsom to take his response a step further by removing bureaucratic hurdles that make it timely and expensive to build homes in California.
New York real estate agents Dolly and Jenny Lenz discuss the Los Angeles wildfires and their impact on the local housing market on “FOX Business Live.”
“The recipe for success is cutting red tape. To build a house, the process in California is just shrouded in red tape is absolutely impossible: a year to get a permit; you have the Coastal Commission, which can be another two years, it's time for the governor to start reducing bureaucracy, we have to move forward as a team,” he said.
“There were a lot of ordinances and a lot of things at the state and local level that had to go. The house tax, that was the worst tax ever passed,” Altman continued. “Get rid of it for all the people who lost their homes. Conservation Ordinance, get rid of it. Start cutting red tape. So we'll get back to [a] strong Los Angeles.”
A real estate expert who spoke ahead of the president's visit hoped Trump, seeing the devastation with his own eyes, would lead to more federal aid and assistance.
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The Oppenheim Group founder and principal broker of “Selling Sunset” talks to Fox News Digital about how he's speaking out against property owners using price gouging amid the devastating California wildfires.
“You have to see it. I've been through the Palisades, I've been through Malibu. Personally, it's a lot worse than you can ever imagine. Hopefully, this will open up funding at the federal level.”
Critical fire conditions have subsided throughout the regionFriday, isolated rain drops are expected over the weekend. Beneficial rain will peak coverage on Sunday, but could trigger landslides in burn-scarred areas.
Fox News' Stepheny Price and FOX Weather's Chris Oberholtz contributed to this report.