For generations, Altadena, Calif., enjoyed significant growth, a strong middle class, a low crime rate and one of the largest areas of Black home ownership in that region of the state.

The beginning of 2025 was marked with devastation for residents of the hills surrounding Los Angeles. There were at least 30 deaths and as much as $164 billion in property damage after the Eaton and Palisades wildfires, which ignited Jan. 7 and burned for weeks. About 14,000 acres and 9,400 structures burned in several communities and devastated historically Black Altadena. 

But according to a new report, speculators have arrived in the area to add insult to injury. Nearly 150 properties that were harmed by the flames have been purchased and about half of them by corporations, according to Dwell. Those numbers may seem small, but they represent a pattern of consumption of available properties because 42 percent of those corporate sales are by six companies.

Dwell’s probe found that among the most noticeable buyers was a company called Black Lion Properties LLC. Its purchases have largely been in Altadena where it now owns at least a dozen lots, purchased for a reported $8.9 million. This is apparently a new company, set up in August 2024 by two brothers, Edwin and Jesse Castro. Records show Edwin Castro gained $2 billion in lottery winnings by purchasing a Powerball ticket at an Altadena gas station in 2023.

The Castros say they are focused on the restoration and preservation of Altadena after the fires, according to Lottery USA. 

On its face, the quick purchase of the properties by Black Lion may not seem alarming, but 145 different buyers have made purchases in Altadena, the Los Angeles Times reports. Survivors are worried about how these purchases could reshape the area while many haven’t even had the chance to come back to their homes.

The influx of corporate buyers includes several other companies, including Ocean Development, which now owns at least 16 lots since the fires; NP Altadena I LLC, which holds 12 lots, and Iron Rings Altadena which has four lots so far. But the eyebrow raising detail about this company is its connection to Virtua Capital Management, which has been in trouble with the Securities and Exchange Commission in the past. 

This type of activity inspired a May report from Strategic Action for a Just Economy (SAJE), an L.A.-based economic justice nonprofit. It shows that the already gentrifying community – it saw a 20 percent drop in residents of color between 2015 and 2023 – could now fall victim to land speculators seeking opportunities for profit at the expense of existing residents.

“This erosion is particularly concerning because Altadena has historically been one of the few places where Black families could buy homes and build generational wealth, even as they continued to face discrimination and structural barriers,” Alex Ferrer, SAJE policy analyst and co-author of the report said in a prepared statement.

The study found that 94 percent of sales after the Eaton fire from February 11 to April 30, 2025 were to corporate entities. In the same period in 2024, only five percent went to companies.

The buying up of the properties could mean further loss for a community that is trying to find a way to heal in the wake of the most devastating natural disaster in generations in Los Angeles. Rebuilding is estimated to take years and little help is coming to residents who need housing help from FEMA.

But the hope is that the State of California will come in and provide the necessary assistance before the residents have lost all options.

“This report confirms what we’ve feared: generations of families in Altadena are at risk of displacement,” Doug Smith, vice president of policy and legal strategy at Inclusive Action for the City told L.A. Focus. “We must act with urgency. That’s why we’re joining over 400 residents in demanding a $200 million state investment to help nonprofits acquire properties and return them to the community.”

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