Homeowners affected by Rancho Palos Verdes landslides eligible for buyouts

Residents of Rancho Palos Verdes’ Portuguese Bend have been beset by an intractable problem for years. Entire areas of the neighborhood are creeping downhill at a rate of almost one foot per week. 

In September, the city issued an evacuation order for more than 200 affected homeowners. Now, they may be eligible to claim compensation.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency and the California Governor’s office have offered residents the chance to take part in a $42 million buyout. The program will give those affected by the landslide the chance to leave homes and businesses, which have languished for almost two months under indefinite gas and electricity shut offs.

"For the past two years, our residents have endured extraordinary hardships as a result of this landslide, with some facing the real prospect of losing their homes entirely," said Rancho Palos Verdes Mayor John Cruikshank. "This buyout program provides a viable pathway forward for our most vulnerable community members, offering the opportunity to relocate and rebuild with meaningful compensation.”

The Voluntary Property Buyout Program will compensate property owners based on appraisals from Dec. 1, 2022, prior to the acceleration of the landslide. It is intended to give residents the chance to re-establish themselves in safer areas.

The FEMA grant will pay for 75% of the sale and property owners will contribute the remaining 25% through a reduction of the fair market value payment, city officials said. After ownership has transferred to the city, the properties will be deed-restricted as open space.

Those seeking to gain compensation will need to request an inspection from the city by Monday at 5:30 p.m., and complete an application by Nov. 8. Properties with greater safety or structural concerns will be prioritized.

Parts of Rancho Palos Verdes are located atop a complex of ancient, creeping landslides. For the last 250,000 years the top hundred feet of ground in these areas have been sliding towards the ocean. 

While the slides have accelerated over the last year, this is not the first time they have caused acute crises. In 1956 and over a four-year period in the 1970s, ground movement damaged homes, roads and businesses. Victims of the ‘56 disaster settled with the county for $10 million in 1961.

For now, the land has slowed its movement, thanks to the city’s efforts. Dewatering wells have been installed to extract moisture from up to 250 feet underground. In combination with the drier conditions the town has experienced recently, this has helped to firm up the subterranean mud on which Portuguese Bend rests.

In the long term, however, the slipping may not be stoppable. Efforts, like the buyout program, will be necessary to help those affected land back on their feet.