You can save money in the long run just by making sure most household repairs stay to a minimum. 

Only low income households and the super rich will be tremendously affected by covid.

The definition, as stated in the  order, says this: if an individual cannot pay all or part of their rent "due to substantial loss of household income, loss of compensable hours of work or wages, a lay-off, or extraordinary  out-of-pocket medical expenses".  

Should that happen, as many as 365,000 California households could be at risk of eviction, UCLA's Luskin Institute reports.

I lived in Echo Park from 2009 to 2019 and watched home prices skyrocket (I remember the first $1M sale, then the first $2M sale) while the neighborhood became marginally safer and nicer.Here's a map of household formation form 2013-2018 (that's the most recent data the Census Bureau has published) in the area you're considering: As you can see, El Monte is very green!

The Southern California Association of Nonprofit Housing estimates there is a current shortage of 551,807 rental homes for households earning less than $41,500 in L.A.

Look at the 2001 recession: unemployment was bad but foreclosures not so much because of high household equity.

If it’s in the case of household safety and health then you have a legitimate case and they would accept to hear it and make that exception. 

Internal Revenue Service, or (iii) received an Economic Impact Payment (stimulus check) pursuant to Section 2201 of the CARES Act;3) the individual is unable to pay the full rent or make a full housing payment due to substantial loss of household income, loss of compensable hours of work or wages, a lay-off, or extraordinary out-of-pocket medical expenses;4) the individual is using best efforts to make timely partial payments that are as close to the full payment as the individual’s circumstances may permit, taking into account other nondiscretionary expenses; and5) eviction would likely render the individual homeless—or force the individual to move into and live in close quarters in a new congregate or shared living setting—because the individual has no other available housing options.

Economic Update(Monday, September 14, 2020)A majority of Los Angeles households face serious financial problems due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with Latinos and Black residents bearing the brunt of the economic pain, according to a new poll conducted by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation for the Harvard School of Public Health.