Altadena · Pasadena · January 2025
You didn’t own the building.You still lost your home.
If you were renting or living in the Eaton Fire area, you may have a legal claim — even without a deed, even without a mortgage, even if your name was not on the lease. Even now, more than a year later, depending on the facts of your situation.
No cost to submit · No obligation to continue
A clearer path for renters and occupants
Many recovery resources were built around property ownership. This one is built for renters and occupants.
Insurance payouts, rebuilding programs, media attention — much of it has gone to people who held a deed. But renters lost furniture, clothing, documents, and the neighborhoods their families had lived in for decades.
For many renters, rebuilding home means replacing belongings, finding a new place to live, paying more each month, and trying to regain stability after everything changed. Zimmerman Reed works with people whose losses do not fit the standard template — and pursues every avenue California law provides.
If you have looked for help before and felt like what you found wasn’t written for you — this page was.
Source: UCLA Latino Policy & Politics Initiative, February 2026
Who this may apply to
You do not need to know whether you have a claim before starting. These are the kinds of facts our team needs to understand.
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You rented or lived in a home, apartment, or room in the Eaton Fire area — even if your name was not on the lease
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You were forced to evacuate, relocate, or find new housing after the fire
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Your personal property was lost or damaged — furniture, clothing, documents, or other belongings
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You are paying more in rent or housing costs than you were before the fire
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You found new housing, but your rent, commute, routines, or support systems changed
Even if you have already found stable housing, your situation may still be worth reviewing.
What the fire has cost you — in numbers
Put a number to what the fire has cost you.
The Eaton Fire cost renters in more ways than one — higher rent, lost belongings, evacuation expenses, a security deposit on a place you never planned to be. This calculator helps you add it up. Start with your rent. Add anything else that applies. The result is yours.
Enter your monthly rent before and after the fire. If your rent hasn’t changed, enter the same amount in both fields.
Monthly amount, January 2025
Current monthly amount
Affects which rent rules apply
Approximate is fine
Total estimated since the fire
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Monthly rent gap
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Projected annual cost
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Your total loss estimate above is a placeholder range only.
Total loss of your apartment or rental is a separate and significant category of damages that cannot be fully captured here — the right figure depends on the size of your household, the losses you experienced, and how your claim is handled. The actual amount you may be entitled to recover is likely higher than the estimate shown above. What you may actually be entitled to recover requires a real conversation.
ConnectAny estimate shown is not a guarantee or promise of recovery. The rent gap portion of this estimate uses published Los Angeles County rent stabilization rates (2025–2026). If your unit was not rent-stabilized, the estimate uses a simplified statewide baseline — the actual allowable increase in your area may be higher, which could change the figure. All other items are general estimates informed by results in prior wildfire matters and are based on the displacement and property-related costs you entered.
This estimate does not include potential non-economic damages — such as emotional distress or loss of community — which, depending on the facts, may increase the amount you may be able to recover.
Eligibility for compensation and the amount of any recovery depend on the specific facts and legal circumstances of your situation, including the basis for liability and the nature and extent of your losses, and require attorney review. Results will differ based on different facts. The actual amount you may be entitled to recover may be more or less than the estimate shown.
The deadline to submit an SCE claim is November 30, 2026. Having representation when you file adds 20% to the net damages portion of your offer.
Common questions
You may be trying to understand whether any of this applies to renters.
After the fire, many renters are trying to answer questions that are harder than they should be.
You do not need to have all the answers before reaching out. The first step is understanding whether your situation may fit.
Understanding your options
Southern California Edison has an independent claims program. Many renters don’t know it
exists — or that it has a deadline.
The SCE program is separate from litigation, but the two paths may overlap. Understanding both
before making any decision is worth the time.
November 30, 2026
- — You may be able to participate in the SCE program and pursue litigation at the same time. The two paths are not mutually exclusive unless and until you accept a settlement offer.
- — Claimants with legal representation typically receive a higher offer through the SCE program.
- — Submitting does not obligate you to accept any offer.
The important thing is understanding your options before you give any up.
What happens next
Start by telling us where you lived and what changed after the fire.
- 1 Answer a few questions about your housing, property loss, and displacement.
- 2 Our team reviews your information.
- 3 If your situation may qualify, an attorney from Zimmerman Reed will contact you.
There is no cost to submit your information. Submitting does not create an attorney-client relationship.
What this is
A first step toward understanding whether your situation may qualify.
- — Submitting your information does not mean you are hiring Zimmerman Reed.
- — We will not promise an outcome.
- — We will not tell you your claim qualifies before we understand the facts.
- — We will not pressure you to move forward.
Why Zimmerman Reed
We understand that wildfire loss does not always fit the simplest category.
Many wildfire resources are written for homeowners with property damage,
insurance claims, and rebuilding costs. Those cases matter, but they are not the whole story.
Zimmerman Reed has been working on Eaton Fire matters involving people
and institutions whose losses aren’t always visible — or easy to measure — from the outside. That work has shown us
that renters, occupants, care providers, and others may face real losses that do not fit neatly into a standard
homeowner recovery framework.
That is why this page exists: to give renters a clearer place to start.
Tell us what happened.
We’ll tell you if
we can help.
Not a commitment. Not a contract. Just a first step toward understanding what happened to you and whether Zimmerman Reed may be able to help.
Wildfire Claims
Was your home
affected by the fire?
We can help.
Tell us what happened. If your situation may qualify, an attorney from our team will be in touch.
No cost to submit · No obligation to continue