For years, Kathleen dreamed of owning a home where she could build stability and one day welcome a foster child. Working as a community outreach supervisor at the Valley Transportation Authority (VTA), she has dedicated more than 14 years to serving Santa Clara County – yet despite steady employment, the dream of buying a home near her work felt impossible.
Her challenge reflects a larger crisis. According to the California Association of Realtors 2025 Affordability Index, only 27% of households can afford a median-priced home in Santa Clara County. And U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development data shows the median income for a one-person household in the county is $136,650. Public servants like Kathleen – often earning between $90,000 and $120,000 – fall between 66% and 88% of this benchmark. In most places, that would be enough to comfortably own a home. But in Silicon Valley, it leaves essential workers struggling to live in the communities they serve. Despite stable employment, they often face housing costs that exceed what traditional affordability guidelines recommend, illustrating how severe the region’s affordability crisis has become.
In 2018, Kathleen completed the County’s foster parent resource training and realized her one-bedroom apartment wasn’t large enough for the future she envisioned. She started house-hunting, but the pandemic forced her to pause. A few years later, she discovered Housing Trust’s Empower Homebuyers SCC program, funded by the County of Santa Clara’s Measure A Affordable Housing Bond. With up to $250,000 in down payment assistance available, her second attempt to purchase a home finally became possible.
“The down payment assistance made a real difference – homeownership was within my reach,” Kathleen says.
Today, she is a proud homeowner in Gilroy, where her mortgage is the same as what she once paid for a one-bedroom apartment. With more space, stability, and access to nature, she is preparing move forward as a foster parent in the same county where she serves the public each day.
Housing Trust sunset the successful Empower Homebuyers program after helping 96 households buy a home. They now offer two down payment assistance programs: the Home Access Program in Contra Costa and Alameda counties, and the HELP Program in Santa Clara County and the cities of Menlo Park and East Palo Alto – giving longtime renters, including nonprofit staff, teachers, healthcare workers, and public employees like Kathleen, the chance to purchase their first home.
“This home gives me the foundation to pursue long-held dreams,” Kathleen says.