Report: Immigrants Build Stronger, Safer Communities in Southern California

Researchers have found that the large influx of Asian and Latino immigrants into Southern California over the past 50 years has resulted in stronger and safer multicultural communities.

Researchers said the melting pot of Southern California's five counties were found to be linked to increased property values, lower joblessness and less crime.

"This inaugural study provides a wealth of findings on the area's changing landscape - findings that constitute crucial considerations for successfully planning a future with healthy, sustainable, affordable, safe, economically vibrant and just communities in which residents enjoy the many benefits of Southern California," Valerie Jenness, dean of UCI's School of Social Ecology said. "These reports will provide policymakers, businesses, residents and others with essential information and thoughtful analyses about our region for years to come."

The researchers found that the ethnic makeup of Southern California has changed "dramatically" since 1962. They say that Latino and Asian populations have grown substantially, while the white population has steadily declined. African American have become concentrated within fewer communities.

According to researchers, in South Central Los Angeles, African Americans made up the majority of residents in 1960, with Latinos accounting for 8.5 percent of the population. In 2007, the area was 80 percent Latino and just 15 percent African American.

They found that Neighborhoods with 10 percent more Latinos than surrounding areas at the beginning of the 2000s experienced a 1.3 percent greater increase in home values over the decade.

"A number of findings took us by surprise," John Hipp, leader of the team of researchers behind the Southern California Regional Progress Report, said. "We're looking forward to more extensively analyzing the data to better understand many of the changes that have shaped the region over time."