Part One of a series on unpermitted housing in L.A. Part Two will explore the dramatic decline in city housing inspections during the pandemic — and what that has meant for tenants struggling to keep a roof over their head. Part Three will focus on a city program designed to bring illegal housing units up to code and give owners a path to legalization — and how it has fallen short of expectations. At the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti ordered residents to remain in their homes as much as possible. With a deadly new virus spreading, he said, “One thing is crystal clear in the fog of these days: We are all safer at home.”