• Please take a moment and update your account profile. If you have an updated account profile with basic information on why you are on Air Warriors it will help other people respond to your posts. How do you update your profile you ask?

    Go here:

    Edit Account Details and Profile

Burning questions about OCS, flight school and Navy life

TheBubba

I Can Has Leadership!
None
For what I spend on rent/utilities: Living in privatized military housing: All of my BAH goes to rent. Plus another 140 or so for cable/interweb/phone.
 

Spekkio

He bowls overhand.
Question for you AD guys...

How much of your BAH do you actually spend on rent/mortgage? I know that for some it's like 50% and for others it's like 150%. I'd like to try to bank at least some of my BAH as a lowly O1 without having to live in a cardboard box in Tijuana.
I live in a single bedroom apt and spend like 98% after electric/cable/internet/phone.
 

Clux4

Banned
I personally saved alot more when I was renting. There are definitely pros and cons to owning a home. I also envy guys that saved their BAH throughout deployment because they could put their life in a storage.
Back when the market was good, you knew you could sell and make some equity and buy at your next duty station. Unless you plan on retiring in the area, you may want to rent.
 

rugby mike

New Member
I was thinking of buying at each PCS station I went to and then turning it over to a property management company to rent it out and use the money to pay the mortgage while building equity. Has anyone done this?
 

picklesuit

Dirty Hinge
pilot
Contributor
I was thinking of buying at each PCS station I went to and then turning it over to a property management company to rent it out and use the money to pay the mortgage while building equity. Has anyone done this?

My parents tried this back in the mid-90's when they PCS'd from VA to CA. They had problems dealing with the renters from a distance, although a good management company may take care of that for you better, at a cost. The biggest problem they said was that the people living in your house do not see it as such...they don't care if their little curtain climber draws on the wall, or if the sheetrock gets a hole in it, they don't own it. The "renters mentality" is also that they must have any problem fixed this exact second, at any hour, and god forbid they have to do any maintenance on their own. After several years of renting they got tired of seeing their investment beat up by people who didn't care and fixed it up and sold it. They made money on the sale, as the house market was in a good boom at the time they did.

That was just their experience...they have since sold every house they bought when they left, and they lease right now as my stepmom is stationed in CA. (well, was stationed, now just a GS-whatever doing her same job as a dirty civilian)

Except for this recent depression in the markets (and I am no expert here) it is my understanding that homes/property usually appreciate in value, so they are good investments. It seems to be a good buyers market right now, if you can get a mortgage that is, and I can't see housing prices being depressed for another 3 years. Might be worthwhile to buy/sell as opposed to buy/rent/buy...

just my opinion, not backed by any professional/practical experience...
Pickle
 

picklesuit

Dirty Hinge
pilot
Contributor
Just to clarify, leasing a storage locker for $100/month (or whatever) rates full BAH?

Never heard that, sounds like a good deal.

It doesn't matter where you live, you rate BAH with permduty orders...the govt. doesn't expect you to pack yer shit up and move out every time you deploy. They figure you will keep yer house/apt. and if you are fortunate enough to be in a situation where you can get out of the lease and box yer crap up, lucky you. Uncle Sam doesn't care if you live in an RV park (I know lots who do) or a cardboard box (not so many in this category) or a mansion. They pay you the BAH you rate and let you do with it what you will. I have had some friends who managed to get their spouse/kids to live with the grandparents while they were gone and got BAH for that zipcode without actually renting any property...made bank.
 
Top