University Hills, Irvine, California

University Hills is a housing development on the campus of the University of California, Irvine (UCI) in southern Irvine, California, United States, consisting of 1066 for-sale homes and 360 rental units. University Hills was developed by the Irvine Campus Housing Authority, a not-for-profit corporation under the control of the university. UC Irvine developed the area as " a way to compensate for high Orange County housing costs that can keep a recruit from accepting a job at the university." The land in University Hills is owned by the University of California and leased to homeowners; terms in the lease limit home ownership to university employees and restrict resale prices so that the homes remain affordable.

University Hills, as its name suggests, consists of a hill. University Hills rises from East Peltason Drive which forms its northern boundary at approximately 140 feet (43 m) above sea level. There is a gradual rise for about half a mile until the hill levels off at about 300 feet (91 m). As a result, from Vista Point on Urey Court, all of Irvine and most of Orange County is visible. University Hills is located on one of the northernmost and westernmost hills of the San Joaquin Hills.

Although UCI had looked into creating faculty housing since 1969, no on-campus faculty-housing was built until the completion of the Las Lomas Apartments in 1982. Las Lomas, located on what would become the northwest end of University Hills, offered apartments to faculty members for rent. Soon after the completion of Las Lomas, the Irvine Campus Housing Authority (ICHA) was created and began construction on University Hills proper. The very first houses, completed in 1986, included a mixture of townhomes and detached houses; in addition, 13 lots were made available for custom-built homes. Construction on University Hills has proceeded in a number of small phases, consisting of a few streets each.

Beginning in 1987, University Hills residents became involved with a dispute with the Orange County tax assessor over their property taxes; the residents claimed that, since the land they lived on was owned by and part of a tax-exempt educational institution, they should only be assessed on the value of the buildings and not on the total value of the property. However, in 1992 the California Supreme Court ruled that the homes in the community did not meet the conditions of the tax exemption on land used for educational purposes.

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