Affordable Housing for Nurses? UC Health Is Proving It’s Possible.

When Sydney Lanham, 26, returned to her hometown of Steamboat Springs as a newly graduated nurse, she faced a challenge shared by healthcare workers across resort communities: finding affordable housing in a market where prices had soared beyond reach. 

For Sydney and her 9-year-old daughter Genevieve, the solution came through an innovative approach by her employer.

UCHealth invested $30 million to purchase Creek's End, a 42-unit apartment complex specifically designated for healthcare workers at Yampa Valley Medical Center. This initiative created opportunities for nurses like Sydney to afford to live in the town where they work. 

Why Affordable Housing Matters for Healthcare

The lack of affordable housing wasn't just a personal issue for employees and families, but it threatened the hospital's ability to maintain services, including critical Level 3 trauma care, maternity services, and specialty care that rural areas are often in danger of losing.

"People would apply for jobs, then they'd tell us, 'I'm not going to interview because I looked at housing, and there's nothing for me to even rent,'" Soniya Fidler, president of Yampa Valley Medical Center, told UC Health. 

Even for people like Sydney, who had grown up in Steamboat, the combination of the town's high status as a ski resort town, the explosion of rental properties, and financial changes from the pandemic led to skyrocketing home prices that many average families could not afford. 

The housing crisis affecting healthcare workers extends beyond Steamboat Springs. Similar challenges plague other mountain communities like Aspen, Telluride, and Vail, where tourism and investment properties have driven housing costs beyond what essential workers can afford. The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated these pressures as remote workers and investors flocked to scenic areas.

UCHealth's approach represents a significant shift in how healthcare employers view their role in supporting workforce needs. Rather than accepting housing limitations as inevitable, they've taken direct action to remove barriers to recruitment and retention.

Housing as Hope

The Creek's End complex offers a mix of one-, two-, and three-bedroom units to accommodate diverse staff needs. Residents pay no more than 30% of their household income on rent—a significant departure from market rates in this ski resort town. Most importantly, housing security is guaranteed as long as employees remain full-time at the medical center.

The housing initiative benefits a wide range of staff beyond nurses—including advanced practice providers, facility workers, radiology technicians, and childcare teachers. This comprehensive approach recognizes that maintaining quality healthcare requires supporting the entire workforce.

For single mom Sydney, who now works as a nurse at the same hospital where she gave birth as a 17-year-old high school student, the housing opportunity has been transformative.

 "The stars aligned," she says of securing both employment and affordable housing in her hometown, just minutes from the hospital and her parents.

Alma Johnson, who works in the hospital's childcare center, had previously lived without running water while working as a mountain guide near Telluride. When she first saw her Creek's End apartment, she cried at the luxury of having hot running water. 

"It feels like a big leap of faith has played out after a lot of hard work and a lot of luck," Alma says. "I'm so grateful."

Investing in the Future

The investment is already showing results. Employees report greater job satisfaction, reduced stress, and a stronger connection to the community. 

For the hospital, this translates to improved staffing stability and the ability to maintain specialized services that might otherwise be unsustainable in a rural setting.

Looking forward, hospital leaders aim to eventually provide affordable housing for up to 25% of Yampa Valley Medical Center employees. While Creek's End represents just the beginning of this effort, it demonstrates how targeted investment in workforce housing can yield broad benefits for healthcare delivery in challenging markets.

For nurses and other healthcare professionals considering opportunities in high-cost areas, this model suggests a promising trend: employers recognizing that addressing housing needs is essential to fulfilling their healthcare mission. 

As one Creek's End resident simply stated: "This life would not be possible for my family without these apartments."

A Broader Trend

UC Health joins other hospitals and healthcare systems building or investing in housing for its employees. Other hospitals that have joined the ranks include:

• Emory Healthcare
• Trinity Health’s St. Mary’s Hospital
• N.C.-based Novant Health
• Martha’s Vineyard Hospital

The American Hospital Association (AHA) has long made the case for hospitals investing in affordable housing, citing that stable housing is the foundation of a healthy community, but there are also critics of the move. 

Some say that with hospitals buying or building housing structures meant for employees, it lessens the opportunities for home-owning, strengthens hospital power, and could be a workaround to avoid raising wages to afford housing prices in the area. 

🤔Nurses, share your thoughts below.