Housing Program

Loyola’s University Assisted Housing (UAH) Program is designed to encourage home ownership near campus-specific locations (Lake Shore and Water Tower campuses and the Health Sciences Campus) by assisting eligible Loyola faculty and staff with closing costs and down payments for the purchase of a home or condo as a primary residence. Employees do not have to be first-time buyers to take advantage of this great benefit.

Loyola’s housing program partners with the Northside Community Development Corporation to educate and prepare all participants for home ownership, as well as to connect Loyola faculty and staff with available University, city, county, and state funding to make homeownership a reality.

Each year, the program will provide up to 25 faculty and staff members with a five-year forgivable loan of up to $10,000; however, the amount of the loan given will depend on the faculty or staff member’s median household income (HUD MHI Table) and the purchase location (see the eligible Lakeside Program Areas Map and Health Sciences Program Areas Map for more details). Our program does not have income limits. Employees will be eligible for the lower or higher loan amount dependent on the two variables mentioned above. Employees are only eligible to receive ONE loan per lifetime.

Updated 12.2024

• Increase the access to and the affordability of housing for faculty/staff near the Loyola Campuses.
• Enhance work-life balance by decreasing commuting time to and from campus, and encouraging homeownership.
• Improve quality of life for faculty and staff by facilitating home ownership.
• Increase involvement in campus life (curricular and extra-curricular events & programs) by encouraging faculty and staff to live near campus.
• Invest in neighborhoods and communities around the Loyola campuses.

Download the Housing Brochure for more information.

Employees must meet ALL of the following criteria to be eligible for the UAH program loan:

• Must have completed one year of full-time, benefits-eligible service with Loyola University Chicago.
• Must be an employee in “good standing” and with prospects of continued full-time employment.
• Must attend UAH’s Homebuyer Education and Counseling session (8 hours); attend a One-on-One Mortgage Readiness Assessment (conducted by our non-profit partners); and demonstrate a commitment to working with the UAH Program by meeting pertinent regulations stipulated by participating lenders, including, but not limited to, credit counseling and additional education at least 30 days before closing.
• Must purchase a home (as primary residence) within the program areas. (No exceptions)
• Must be able to qualify for mortgage financing with an interest rate of no more than 200 basis points above the Fannie Mae conventional 30-year mortgage rate
• Must be able and willing to contribute at least $1,000 or 1% of the purchase price (whichever is greater) from their own savings

Program Application - NO APPLICATIONS ARE BEING ACCEPTED AT THIS TIME

• UAH Program Areas Map (PDF)—(Lakeside Campuses)
• HSD Housing Map (PDF)—(Health Sciences Campus)

• Human Resources verifies that you meet the eligibility requirements.
• Human Resources will respond to your application, and if eligible to participate, the next steps in the process will be noted. We also list the housing partner's contact information and we give them your information as well.
• Schedule and attend the Homebuyer Education and Counseling course conducted by our nonprofit partners, Northside Community Development Corporation, which administers the lakeside and Health Sciences program areas. These requirements should be completed at least 30 days prior to going through the closing process.
• Develop your own housing access plan during the One-on-One Mortgage Readiness Assessment conducted by our nonprofit partners.
• Alert your lender about the program requirements that include the secondary lien that will be placed on your new home by Loyola University Chicago until the obligations of the forgivable loan are fulfilled. This step is important as it may/may not impact how your primary loan is financed and determine whether or not this housing program is right for you.
• Nonprofit partner issues a home ownership education course completion certificate.
• Remember to contact the nonprofit partner at least 10 business days once you have a closing date scheduled.
• Human Resources verifies that you still meet UAH program eligibility requirements at time of closing. If you fail to meet the eligibility requirements at closing the loan will not be disbursed.
• You are required to sign a loan agreement and a promissory note with nonprofit partner at closing.
• UAH program funds issued at closing to your closing office—Faculty/staff member becomes a homeowner.

A required Homebuyer Education and Counseling course and the One-on-One Mortgage Readiness Assessment are both offered by our non-profit partner, Northside Community Development Corporation, which administers the Lakeside program areas and West Cook Homeownership Center, which administers the Health Sciences program areas.

The homebuyer course covers topics of budgeting, credit, shopping for a home, purchase contracts, mortgage comparison, real estate professionals, closing, property taxes, refinancing, and assistance programs available in the Chicago region. After completing the Homebuyer Education and Counseling course, employees can then schedule the one-on-one mortgage readiness assessment with our nonprofit partners. This is where employees will develop their own housing access plans by reviewing budgets, determining mortgage prequalification amounts, and pulling credit reports. All course requirements should be met in advance to closing.

If you want to purchase a residence in the Lakeside or Maywood program areas, the Human Resources Department will provide you with the contact information needed for the housing partners program area after you have submitted an application and eligibility is verified. 

If you have already received a forgivable loan, currently participating in the program and have questions please contact the housing coordinator you worked with when starting the program. Please note that our housing partners can service both the Lakeside and Maywood campuses. If you are unsure which housing provider serviced your account, please email benefits@luc.edu.

Each year, the program will provide up to 25 eligible faculty or staff with a five-year forgivable loan of up to $10,000; however, the amount of the loan given will depend on the faculty or staff member's median household income (MHI) and the geographical location of the purchase location, as described below:

*Please refer to the program map for target areas.

If approved for a loan, a faculty or staff member does not have to repay the loan, provided that for five years from the date of purchase the employee:

• Remains employed by the University,
• Maintains ownership interest in the purchased property,
• Continuously occupies the purchased property as the principal residence, and
• Does not refinance the property for cash.
• Understand that they will be taxed on the loan for five years.

If a faculty or staff member fulfills the requirements noted above for five years, there is no obligation to pay back any money. However, in the event a faculty or staff member does not satisfy these requirements, any amount that has not been forgiven will immediately become due. Faculty or Staff members terminating employment prior to fulfilling the terms of the loan should contact the Benefit Department benefits@luc.edu and their housing program provider to obtain information on the repayment of the outstanding loan balance.

30 days after your closing the imputed income process will begin. During the five years following the employee’s date of purchase, 20 percent of the loan amount will be forgiven each year. The amount of the loan that is forgiven in any one year constitutes taxable income to the employee. Faculty and staff members will see the imputed income (forgiven loan amount) added to their paychecks and appropriate federal, state and social security taxes withheld.