Westside Regional Center Housing: Life-Sharing on LA's Westside
West Los Angeles is one of the most expensive housing markets in California. Average rents in Santa Monica, Culver City, and Brentwood regularly exceed $2,500 for a one-bedroom apartment. For families searching for disability housing on the Westside, those numbers can feel like a dead end before the conversation even starts.
But the cost of rent is only part of the problem. Finding a landlord willing to work with you, locating an accessible unit, and securing the right daily support structure all have to come together at the same time, in the same neighborhood. That is the real challenge facing adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) and their families across the Westside Regional Center service area.
There is a path through it. Life-sharing through Supported Living Services (SLS) is changing what is possible for WRC families, even in zip codes where the housing market feels impossible.
What the Westside Regional Center Covers
The Westside Regional Center (WRC) serves adults and children with developmental disabilities across a wide stretch of LA's Westside and South Bay. The service area includes Santa Monica, Venice, Marina del Rey, Playa Vista, Culver City, Mar Vista, Pacific Palisades, Malibu, West LA, Brentwood, Century City, Westchester, El Segundo, Inglewood, and Hawthorne.
These are communities with strong job markets, walkable neighborhoods, good public transit access, and the kind of day-to-day amenities that support independent living. They are also communities where the cost of housing has priced out many of the people who want to live there most.
WRC funds a range of services for eligible individuals, from day programs and employment support to residential options. When it comes to housing, the three primary pathways are group homes, Supported Living Services, and life-sharing.
The Three Housing Pathways
Group homes are licensed residential facilities where multiple adults with disabilities live together with 24/7 professional staff. They work well for individuals who need constant supervision or have complex medical or behavioral needs. But for adults who want more independence, more choice, and a life that feels like their own, group homes can feel limiting.
Supported Living Services (SLS) take the opposite approach. Instead of moving into a facility, the individual lives in their own apartment or house in the community. A support team helps with daily living skills like cooking, budgeting, transportation, and health management. The individual chooses where they live and how their day is structured. Regional Center funds the support services. You can read a full breakdown of how SLS works in our guide on Supported Living Services in California.
Life-sharing is a specific model within SLS. The individual is matched with a compatible supportive roommate who lives with them. The roommate provides daily support, but the relationship is genuine, not clinical. They share meals, split household responsibilities, go grocery shopping together, watch movies on the couch. It looks like what it is: two people sharing a home.
Why Life-Sharing Works on the Westside
Here is the cost reality that makes life-sharing especially powerful in WRC's service area.
A one-bedroom apartment in Culver City might run $2,400 a month. A two-bedroom in the same neighborhood might be $3,000. Split that two-bedroom between a client and their supportive roommate, and suddenly each person's share of rent drops well below what a one-bedroom would cost alone. The Regional Center funds the support services on top of that, so families are not paying out of pocket for the caregiving component.
This is not affordable housing. It is not subsidized. It is two adults sharing a real apartment in a real neighborhood, with the support services funded separately through the Regional Center. The expensive zip codes that felt out of reach become accessible because the cost structure changes when you are splitting rent with someone who actually wants to live with you.
For families who have been told their adult child cannot afford to live on the Westside, life-sharing reframes the entire conversation. The question shifts from "Can we afford Santa Monica?" to "Can we find the right roommate match in Santa Monica?" That is a much more solvable problem.
How to Request SLS Through Your IPP
If your family member is a WRC client, the path to life-sharing starts with your Individual Program Plan (IPP). The IPP is the document that outlines what services and supports your loved one will receive through the Regional Center. Here is how to move forward:
Contact your WRC service coordinator. Let them know you are interested in Supported Living Services and specifically in life-sharing as a housing model. If you do not have a service coordinator assigned, call WRC directly.
Request an IPP meeting. During this meeting, you and your coordinator will discuss your loved one's goals, current living situation, and what level of support they need. Be specific about wanting SLS added to the plan.
Ask about SLS vendors. WRC works with approved SLS agencies, including Homies. Your coordinator can provide a list of vendored providers who operate in the Westside service area.
Get matched. Once SLS is approved in the IPP and a provider is selected, the matching process begins. At Homies, we take matching seriously. We look at personality, lifestyle, daily routines, interests, and support needs to find a roommate who is genuinely compatible. You can see how our matching process works in detail.
Move in. Once a match is confirmed and housing is secured, your loved one moves into their new home with their roommate. Support services begin immediately.
The entire process can take a few weeks to a few months depending on IPP timing and availability. But the first step is always the same: tell your service coordinator this is what you want.
Homies Works With WRC
Homies is vendored with the Westside Regional Center and actively serves clients across WRC's service area. We handle the roommate matching, help coordinate the housing search, and provide ongoing SLS support once your loved one is settled.
Our team participates in IPP meetings, coordinates directly with WRC service coordinators, and adjusts support plans as your family member's needs evolve. If something is not working, we change it. The goal is a living situation that your loved one actually enjoys, not one they merely tolerate.
We have matched clients in Santa Monica, Culver City, West LA, and surrounding neighborhoods. Every match starts with the same question: What does your loved one want their daily life to look like?
Take the First Step
If you are a WRC family exploring housing options, or an adult with IDD on the Westside who wants to live more independently, we would like to hear from you. You can learn more about life-sharing for Regional Center clients, read our family guide, or see how the process works step by step.
Reach out to your WRC service coordinator and ask about SLS. Then contact Homies so we can start the conversation about what a good match looks like for you.