About Housing Around Quantico

[FlyMikeFly]

Greetings fellow Airwarriors! I graduate in May and will be going to TBS at that time. I have a wife, two kids, and a big dog and am wondering about the best way to tackle the housing situation there in Quantico. I understand base housing is a no-go for TBS students. I have also driven through Stafford and Woodbridge and have not been impressed with what I saw. We live in Charleston now, so I can always leave the family here and commute on some weekends. But I have some definite questions, if anyone can shed some light I would be appreciative.

1) Realistically, how much nightly "home time" should I expect on a typical week throughout the duration of TBS?
2) Any obligations on weekends?
3) What is the best area to look for a place to live (with a family)?
4) I know all SNA's go to Pensacola for API, but for primary, how do they determine who goes to Corpus or Vance, or just stays put?

Any help is appreciated.

Mike

 

[Lawman]

Dont overlook Garrisonville to the south of Quantico. Its about 15-20 minutes out of the base but there is a road that leads directly to TBS in something like 8 minutes. Also cost of living isnt going to kill you.

 

[usmcecho4]

Greetings fellow Airwarriors! I graduate in May and will be going to TBS at that time. I have a wife, two kids, and a big dog and am wondering about the best way to tackle the housing situation there in Quantico. I understand base housing is a no-go for TBS students. I have also driven through Stafford and Woodbridge and have not been impressed with what I saw. We live in Charleston now, so I can always leave the family here and commute on some weekends. But I have some definite questions, if anyone can shed some light I would be appreciative.

1) Realistically, how much nightly "home time" should I expect on a typical week throughout the duration of TBS?
2) Any obligations on weekends?
3) What is the best area to look for a place to live (with a family)?
4) I know all SNA's go to Pensacola for API, but for primary, how do they determine who goes to Corpus or Vance, or just stays put?

Any help is appreciated.

Mike

1. Depends on the day of course but you can expect to be done with TBS stuff by 1800-ish most days. Toward the end of the POI you will start finishing in the early afternoon. Work usually starts around 0600-ish.

2. In Alpha 04 I came in 3 Saturdays counting duty.

3. Don't know about any specific places but I know a guy in my platoon that lived on base with his wife and two kids. They will tell you there is no availability over the phone but if you actually show up in person you may get different results. Personally I'd live as close to DC as I could afford. There's tons to do and it's awesome not having to stay in Quantico.

4. You tell the MATSG folks down at API where you want to go and they try to fit your request with their needs.

Semper Fi,
usmcecho4

 

[ArkhamAsylum]

1) Realistically, how much nightly "home time" should I expect on a typical week throughout the duration of TBS?

Concur with above, though 1900-2000 is not uncommon for some companies; later when conducting night events.

2) Any obligations on weekends?

Some must come in for remedial land nav or PT; others elect to go home early after FEX's and come in on weekends to clean their gear.

3) What is the best area to look for a place to live (with a family)?

I'm a big fan of Garrisonville, as it is a bit of a married officer's barracks. Also, a 10-minute drive to work, as opposed to 30-50 mins from Stafford, Dumfries, or Woodbridge.

4) I know all SNA's go to Pensacola for API, but for primary, how do they determine who goes to Corpus or Vance, or just stays put?

Concur with above. Start researching the options during the last few weeks of TBS.

 

[eurotrash]

I'm trying to find apartments in Garrisonville, but the closest properties I can find are in Aquia. Anyone want to recommend some good ones that are in G-ville proper? Appreciate it.

 

[ArkhamAsylum]

Aquia the city, or Aquia Terrace, the apt. complex in G-ville? Aquia the city is quite close to G-ville, so don't write it off.

 

[UORBulldog]

There's a couple places, as well as some houses, right there on/off of Onville, a half mile from the gate, I forgot their names though.

 

[UORBulldog]

Garrison Woods, that's the name of the place

 

[phrogpilot73]

Stay the fuck away from "The Villages of Aquia" apartment complex. They suck beyond believe. Overpriced, and shady management to boot. They sued me. My roommate didn't clean well enough, and rather than simply forfeiting our security deposit, they said they had to replace the carpet (I call BS because I saw the carpet when I left, and all it needed was a cleaning) in the whole apartment. Rather than contact us and ask us to rectify (I had left a forwarding address/phone number) - I got served. Fuck them.

 

[Herc_Dude]

Stay the fuck away from "The Villages of Aquia" apartment complex. They suck beyond believe. Overpriced, and shady management to boot. They sued me. My roommate didn't clean well enough, and rather than simply forfeiting our security deposit, they said they had to replace the carpet (I call BS because I saw the carpet when I left, and all it needed was a cleaning) in the whole apartment. Rather than contact us and ask us to rectify (I had left a forwarding address/phone number) - I got served. Fuck them.

I had a buddy who had a similar experience, the details are not really necessary, but what phrog said is the general consensus of the people who I have known to live there.

BTW phrog, sounds like you are going to that reserve squadron, huh? Congrats and welcome back!

 

[phrogpilot73]

BTW phrog, sounds like you are going to that reserve squadron, huh? Congrats and welcome back!

Yup. Today is my last day as joe-schmo civilian. Tomorrow, I'm officially a Capt in the IRR and hopefully the package for 4th MAW will only take a couple of weeks. The squadron CO called me today, and all I can say is it feels good to be back...

 

[Ave8tor]

Aquia the city, or Aquia Terrace, the apt. complex in G-ville? Aquia the city is quite close to G-ville, so don't write it off.

I moved from Quantico in October. We lived in Aquia Harbour, and it was nice because it was rather close to the back gate. The down side to that it's quite pricey. If you can find a cheap (relatively) place to rent (they are all houses), its well worth the money! Since you will most likely not be getting off before 1900, at least for the first few months, this can pose a problem. When I left, the back gate was only open from 0500-1900, due to the deployments of MPs to Iraq. It's not that much farther of a drive, but when you are tired, it just bugs. I would suggest against living in Aventine Court off exit 140. They are nice places, but the apartments are stacked four high and if you live on the top floor, it can be a pain in the ass (we had a friend w/ a prego wife that hated those stairs). Plus, the traffic northbound on I-95 or Jeff Davis Hwy can back up pretty early. There are a few places between the north and south gates along Jeff Davis Hwy that are pretty decent. One last bone that I can throw to you, is to check out the following websites. They are usually listed by military for military:
www.militarybyowner.com
www.pcsres.com (worked for us in P'cola, don't know if they have listings for Quantico)

 

[pilot06]

You should look into Sky Terrace townhomes located on Onville Rd, only about a mile from the back gate. Rent for a 2 bedroom is about 1200 a month but its worth it to be that close to the gate while at TBS. My wife and I have been here since Dec. and its great. PM me if you have any questions.

 

[mcphart]

To emphasize what ave8tor said: traffic on I-95 is a huge pain northbound in the morning, southbound in the afternoon/evening. Something to consider.

 

[eurotrash]

Thanks for the heads up, I was actually looking at Sky Terrace. I may be holding out for the Pointe at Stafford though, (full right now). It seems to be pretty highly rated.