Up to $150,000 is again available to eastern Placer workers looking to buy a home in the North Lake Tahoe region. The Placer County Board of Supervisors Tuesday unanimously approved a relaunch of the Workforce Housing Preservation Program following updates to the program’s guidelines and loan documents.
A view of the stars from a cabin in North Lake Tahoe with the program badge in the top-left corner.WHPP helps local workers secure housing by providing 16% or up to $150,000 of the home’s listing price. In exchange, the home is deed restricted for 55 years so that only qualified local workers can occupy the residence. This financial assistance does not need to be paid back and the deed restriction restarts with each sale or transaction of the property.
“The North Lake Tahoe region has a significant housing shortage,” said Placer Principal Planner Nikki Streegan. “The Workforce Housing Preservation Program plays an important role in making homeownership accessible to local workers. Our goal is to create a secondary market to ensure that these homes will be available to local workers for many years to come.”
The program, which has been on hold for eight months, does not have income caps for applicants and can significantly reduce mortgage payments for North Lake Tahoe employees. For example, if the applicant is eligible for the maximum deed restriction disbursement of $150,000, their mortgage payment could be reduced by approximately $1,000 per month (at 7% interest over 30 years).
Homes considered for the program must be located in unincorporated eastern Placer County. An eligible candidate must have at least one member of their household who is 18 years of age or older and employed with full-time status at a location within the Tahoe Truckee Unified School District geographical boundary. Workers who work remotely within the TTUSD boundaries must also work for an employer whose principal place of business is within those boundaries.
Originally launched in 2021, the program has distributed $767,000 to North Lake Tahoe workers to fund the purchase of seven homes. Future funding for the program is expected to grow later this month as staff is scheduled to return to the board and present a funding contract to secure a $3 million investment from the TOT-TBID Dollars at Work program on April 23.
Learn more and apply for the Workforce Housing Preservation Program online here.
