Yep, I heard the same about housing from my daughter’s friend who is attending UCSB in the fall. That would make me nervous, but not enough to pass it up. I love the school, its location, and its academics. (although my daughter is passing it up)
My neighbor went to SCU and raves about. It’s also a beautiful campus, kind of like a mini Stanford. For me, it would be too small, but I like big schools. For others, you might feel lost at UCSB with larger classes in the first two years.
I think it has to do with what you want. Large with lots of opportunities, or small, with lots of attention.