‘Let’s Talk About Housing’: Key Findings of the Community Input Session

Sunken Gardens in Santa Barbara, Califor

HTF was created by countywide community leaders to address our region’s critical affordable housing needs by building innovative financial partnerships between the private, public and nonprofit sectors.

HTF Mission

The Housing Trust Fund of Santa Barbara County is a non-profit financing agency and Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) whose mission is to expand affordable housing opportunities for low-to-middle income residents and workers of Santa Barbara County, California. HTF helps maintain the socio-economic fabric of Santa Barbara County by addressing the fundamental building block of healthy communities – housing that is affordable to local workers and residents.

What We Do

We Fund Affordable Housing Production

Our long-standing Revolving Loan Fund is operated in partnership with community lenders to offer below-market interest rate loans and technical assistance to eligible affordable housing sponsors of rental and home ownership projects that expand affordable housing opportunities for Santa Barbara County residents.

REVOLVING LOAN FUND

We Provide Homebuyer Assistance

The Workforce Home Buyer Program provides deferred or low-cost, interest-only down payment loans to help low-to-middle income working families and individuals purchase an entry-level, market rate home in the Santa Barbara County community where they work, enabling a stable residence that strengthens the family and the local neighborhood.

WORKFORCE HOMEBUYER PROGRAM

We Promote Housing Innovations

4 people in a Apis Cor 3D printing workshop

The new Housing Innovations Program will research and demonstrate innovative technologies that can reduce the cost of constructing affordable housing and encourage sustainability through the use of natural, recycled, climate resilient and fire-resistant building materials and state-of-the-art energy systems.

HOUSING INNOVATIONS

About HTF

Where We Work

HTF’s geographical service area encompasses the entire County of Santa Barbara, California, including the urban cities of Carpinteria, Santa Barbara, Goleta, Buellton, Solvang, Lompoc, Santa Maria and Guadalupe and the unincorporated rural areas.

WHERE WE WORK

The People We Serve

HTF finances affordable rental and homeownership housing for low-to-moderate income working families, single parents, farm workers, senior citizens, homeless persons, and other persons with special needs throughout Santa Barbara’s diverse communities.

PEOPLE WE SERVE

Community Need

In Q2, 2022, Santa Barbara County was the fifth least affordable small metropolitan housing market in the nation, according to the National Association of Builders. Our high housing costs have created a severe shortage of affordable housing and a huge ‘affordability gap’ between the cost of housing and what people can afford.

COMMUNITY NEED