SAN FRANCISCO (AP) _ San Francisco will start helping teachers and police officers make down payments on their first homes to keep them from leaving the high-cost city.
Credential teachers and police officers could receive up to $20,000 in interest-free loans to help cover the down payments.
If teachers work for the school district for 10 years, they don't have to pay back the loans.
The new city budget sets aside $1 million for teacher loans, enough to cover about 50 down payments.
Police will also be eligible for $20,000 loans as part of a new contract agreement between the city and the officers' union.
There's enough funding to cover 25 interest-free loans for police, which will be forgiven if officers work in San Francisco for five years.