BAH....Thank you!

[SHANMWEBB]

Just read about the BAH for 2008....YAY for us!! As an E6 here at Fort Lewis, our BAH is going up $200 a month! Seems a little strange to me, when last year it actually went down $10....I do wonder how they get their figures from year to year, because I don't feel like the cost of living has really changed much since we got here in 2005....but oh well, not for me to decide.

Not that it matters much to us at this exact moment, since we just give all the BAH back for some lovely post housing.....but maybe we will be able to buy a house in the next year like we've talked about.

Anyone else seeing a good jump in BAH?

[Shrike]

I'm not sure why BAH in the states isn't handled like OHA overseas - have a housing limit up to which you are paid. If you want more house than your allowance pays for, you pay out of pocket. Add in the monthly utility allowance, and things are kept simple.

[Measure Man]

Originally Posted by Shrike

I'm not sure why BAH in the states isn't handled like OHA overseas - have a housing limit up to which you are paid. If you want more house than your allowance pays for, you pay out of pocket. Add in the monthly utility allowance, and things are kept simple.

Good grief Shrike...the OHA system SUCKS!

It is much simpler to just pay you what you are "worth" and let you balance that with where you want to live...the people who most get screwed...is anyone paying child support.

For example...when i was in the states...I got $1600/mo in BAH. Now, since I didn't have full-time custody of my kids...I could rent adequate single quarters for around 1100...and use the other 500 to pay child support...since that is what I earned dependent rate BAH for anyway, the children.

Overseas however...if I rented adequate single quarters for 1100...that's all I get paid!! I'm still entitled to rent $1600 that would be suitable for a family...but either way...nothing to pay the child support...and there is no reason I would need a huge house living alone.

Why should they get all into what everyone is spending and pay only that? Anywhere else you'd work, you get paid a salary and they could care less what you pay in rent. Pay what someone earns based on their rank/dependency status...and let them decide where to live and if they want, pocket the remainder.

Not to mention people who may want to share a place to save expenses...not overseas, it only cuts your pay the same amount, so why bother?

If anything...make the OHA system like the BAH, not the other way around.

[Shrike]

Originally Posted by Measure Man

Good grief Shrike...the OHA system SUCKS!

It is much simpler to just pay you what you are "worth" and let you balance that with where you want to live...the people who most get screwed...is anyone paying child support.

For example...when i was in the states...I got $1600/mo in BAH. Now, since I didn't have full-time custody of my kids...I could rent adequate single quarters for around 1100...and use the other 500 to pay child support...since that is what I earned dependent rate BAH for anyway, the children.

Overseas however...if I rented adequate single quarters for 1100...that's all I get paid!! I'm still entitled to rent $1600 that would be suitable for a family...but either way...nothing to pay the child support...and there is no reason I would need a huge house living alone.

Why should they get all into what everyone is spending and pay only that? Anywhere else you'd work, you get paid a salary and they could care less what you pay in rent. Pay what someone earns based on their rank/dependency status...and let them decide where to live and if they want, pocket the remainder.

Not to mention people who may want to share a place to save expenses...not overseas, it only cuts your pay the same amount, so why bother?

If anything...make the OHA system like the BAH, not the other way around.

In your situation, it's definitely beneficial for you to be on a BAH scale. My experiences differ.

At the bases I was stationed at in the states, the only places I could afford to live (as a junior NCO) were in "the hood". That was just for rent; once utilities were piled on, I was paying $150-400 a month out of pocket, depending on the time of year.
Overseas (and now as a SNCO, not that that makes much of a difference), my wife and I rent a house that is paid for in full monthly, and our utilities are covered - no out of pocket expenses, period.

I would have no problem with Uncle Sam making BAH/OHA part of base pay based on rank, etc., and saying "that's what you're getting, now find a place you can afford." I don't ever see it happening, however, as that would boost retiree pay.

[Measure Man]

Originally Posted by Shrike

I would have no problem with Uncle Sam making BAH/OHA part of base pay based on rank, etc., and saying "that's what you're getting, now find a place you can afford." I don't ever see it happening, however, as that would boost retiree pay.

...it would also make it taxable...long term would probably work out for those who retire...but having tax-free allowances is a big and often-overlooked benefit.

When I bought my house...was nice that i was paying for it with a tax-free allowance...and then deducting the interest from my taxable income...it's a pretty sweet deal.

[CommunityEditor]

BAH rates to rise an average 7.3% in 2008 (http://www.militarytimes.com/news/20...rates_071212w/)
2008 BAH Rates -- Without Dependents (http://www.militarytimes.com/static/...BAHwithout.xls)

The average increase in housing allowances next year will be more than twice what it was for 2007, a reflection of a soft housing market, the subprime loan debacle and widespread rental vacancies across the U.S.

Service members will receive an average Basic Allowance for Housing increase of 7.3 percent effective Jan. 1, compared to an average increase of 3.5 percent last January.

Defense officials say the 2008 increase works out to about $83 per month for service members with dependents. A typical E-4 with family members will get about $63 more per month in BAH, while the average E-8 with dependents will get an additional $79 per month.

Personally, I think the increase was definitly needed, at least in my area. My husband and I are both e-4s stationed at Fort Drum, NY. When we returned from Afghanistan earlier this year, everyone with vacancies upped their rental prices knowing there would be a whole brigade in need of a place to live and there is not nearly enough on post housing. We are expecting our first child and will not be paid the with dependent rate until she arrives, but we still needed to get a place big enough for her. Before the increase, to get a 2 bedroom apartment within an hours drive of post we would have been paying at least $200 out of pocket without getting a phone line or cable hooked up.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Personally, I think the increase was definitly needed, at least in my area. My husband and I are both e-4s stationed at Fort Drum, NY. When we returned from Afghanistan earlier this year, everyone with vacancies upped their rental prices knowing there would be a whole brigade in need of a place to live and there is not nearly enough on post housing. We are expecting our first child and will not be paid the with dependent rate until she arrives, but we still needed to get a place big enough for her. Before the increase, to get a 2 bedroom apartment within an hours drive of post we would have been paying at least $200 out of pocket without getting a phone line or cable hooked up.

Shouldnt both you and your husband both be recieving BAH?

[VanMan]

Yeah I'm down here at Fort Rucker for flight training and this BAH rate increase makes me want to live off post. There isn't any way that the on post homes at Fort Rucker are worth 1200+ a month. I wish they would give us some of that back!

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Shouldnt both you and your husband both be recieving BAH?

If you're married to a service spouse, the higher in grade would get the BAH.