Cottage Health Now Offering Employees Up to $500K for House Down Payments

I bet you thought hospitals were medical facilities.  Many school districts have been housing speculators

 And developers, while the students are no longer the priority.  In Santa Barbara, Cottage Hospital is moving away from health care, in the housing market.

“Cottage Health has doubled the amount of down payment assistance it offers to employees looking to buy homes in the Santa Barbara area.

The changes to the program were made to address the hospital’s issue of hiring new employees, which has become tougher as local housing prices have skyrocketed.

Eligible employees who provide at least 5% of the down payment can receive up to 40% of the total price of the home, up to a maximum of $500,000. The nonprofit health system used to offer up to 15% of the total price for its down payment assistance program.

Wonder why the cost of health care is so much?  Where did Cottage Hospital get the money for housing?  From their patients.  Wonder how much Medicare and Medical money is also going into this?

Cottage Health Now Offering Employees Up to $500K for House Down Payments

The Santa Barbara-based Cottage Health says down payment assistance program helps it recruit and retain employees

by Daniel Green, Noozhawk, 5/17/25    https://www.noozhawk.com/cottage-health-now-offering-employees-up-to-500k-for-house-down-payments/

Cottage Health has updated programs to offer eligible employees more down payment assistance. The program helps recruit and retain employees, Cottage Health officials said

Cottage Health has doubled the amount of down payment assistance it offers to employees looking to buy homes in the Santa Barbara area.

The changes to the program were made to address the hospital’s issue of hiring new employees, which has become tougher as local housing prices have skyrocketed.

Eligible employees who provide at least 5% of the down payment can receive up to 40% of the total price of the home, up to a maximum of $500,000. The nonprofit health system used to offer up to 15% of the total price for its down payment assistance program.

Cottage Health operates Santa Barbara, Goleta Valley and Santa Ynez Valley hospitals; the Cottage Children’s Medical Center; Cottage Rehabilitation Hospital; primary care clinics; urgent care clinics; and virtual care services.

According to Scott Wester, CEO and president of Cottage Health, housing assistance helps the organization recruit new employees.

“When working with the level of technical expertise that Cottage needs, sometimes we have to go out of the region to look for the qualified talent in those job disciplines,” Wester said. “And one of the big deterrents is the housing situation.”

By offering this program, it makes the jobs more enticing and adds motivation to move to Santa Barbara.

Wester credited Cottage Health’s Board of Directors for supporting the program and the increase in down payment assistance. It makes Cottage stand out from other employers in the area, he said, and other healthcare companies across the nation have reached out to learn more about the program.

The mortgage assistance program offered employees a low-interest loan, and the new down payment assistance program establishes a shared equity partnership, Cottage Health says.

Cara Williams, the vice president of human resources, said the changes went into effect in May and some employees have already begun closing offers on new homes.

Williams added that full- and part-time employees will be eligible if they meet the qualifications.

“It is all benefit-eligible employees,” Williams said. “So, that includes both full-time and part-time. You have to be employed by Cottage for at least one year and in good standing, (and) the home purchase has to be in the Tri-County area.”

The Tri-County area counts as Santa Barbara County, Ventura County, and San Luis Obispo County. The employee also must live at the residence.  

Williams said that it also helps local employees who are interested in moving into new homes.

“We often hear when employees get married and start expanding their family, and if they can’t find homes, then they sometimes have to relocate and leave. So, we’re hopeful that we’ll be able to recruit, retain, and really have all of our employees be able to benefit from home ownership,” Williams said.

Cottage Health has been working to provide more employee housing in recent years. In September, the organization announced two housing projects that will provide 204 housing units for employees in Santa Barbara and Goleta.

The first site will be at the current Cottage Rehabilitation Hospital at 2415 De La Vina St. and will feature 44 homes. The second site is near Goleta Valley Cottage Hospital, where the organization has agreed to purchase 160 units to make available to hospital employees.

Both sites are scheduled to open in 2029.

Cottage Health has provided below-market housing to employees in the past. In 2012, Cottage built 81 homes for its Bella Riviera condominium project on Santa Barbara’s Upper Eastside.

The company says that 145 medical professionals have benefited from the project so far, and there were 84 people on the waitlist for units as of last year.