Educators Get A Housing Lifeline In San Mateo

SAN MATEO, CA — A 74-unit apartment building in San Mateo is set to become workforce housing for local educators under a new partnership aimed at addressing the county's high housing costs.

The San Mateo County Board of Education, San Mateo County Superintendent of Schools and the Housing Endowment and Regional Trust of San Mateo County, known as HEART, collaborated to purchase the development, which was built in 2021.

Subscribe

"Many educators cannot afford to live in the communities where they work, so this investment helps ensure that the people who support our students can live closer to the schools and communities they serve," said Marco Chávez, San Mateo County superintendent of schools.

HEART purchased the apartment building using its bonding capacity, while the County Office of Education provided a loan from a dedicated facilities fund. Bonds covered the remaining cost of the project.

The building is currently occupied, and existing tenants will remain in place. As units become available, they will be offered at below-market rates to eligible teachers, paraeducators, counselors and other school employees who serve students in programs operated by the County Office of Education.

HEART expects the entire building to be occupied by San Mateo County educators within 10 years.

"We can keep the existing tenants in place while making units affordable for educators," said Armando Sanchez, HEART's executive director.

The project comes as high housing costs continue to create challenges for schools trying to recruit and retain employees in the Bay Area.

A few units will become available to teachers and staff each year. As the project's bond debt is paid down, more units are expected to become available at deeper levels of affordability.

HEART will manage and operate the property, oversee the financing and report the housing benefits to the County Office of Education.

Once the bonds are repaid, the building will be owned by the County Office of Education and generate revenue for the organization.

Hugo Torres, president of the San Mateo County Board of Education, said the housing investment is intended to benefit students as well as school employees.

"This investment is ultimately about students," Torres said. "When educators can afford to live in the communities they serve, schools are stronger and students thrive."

The acquisition is part of HEART's broader affordable housing work in San Mateo County. The organization said it has invested more than $35.3 million toward the development of 1,743 affordable homes throughout the county.

The San Mateo County Office of Education serves 84,000 students across 23 local school districts.