Housing in Pensacola

[GodSpeed1997]

Still a long way out, but I was wondering what fellow SNAs or NFOs are doing for housing down in PCola. Trying to figure out which option is best. Are most of you guys looking at apartments, or renting or buying a house? Genuinely curious what the majority is doing and which is the easiest and also smartest option.

 

[flgator92]

Trying to figure out which option is best. Are most of you guys looking at apartments, or renting or buying a house? Genuinely curious what the majority is doing and which is the easiest and also smartest option.

Yeah, you're a bit far out. Worry about getting through OCS first. Closest alligator and all. Not to mention I'm sure there's a ton of content on this forum dedicated to this question.

But I'll try to give you an unbiased assessment of Pensacola living: a lot of people live out the back gate. Why? It's super close to NASP. That's an advantage. Downside: you live out the back gate (and that gate is usually only open during "workday" hours). It's also far from anything fun in Pensacola, not to mention nicer dining, etc. It's the boondocks. I never lived here and rarely made it over to back gate country because it was such a haul from my place.

Perdido: it's closer to the beach and the world famous Flora-bama, but far from downtown (even farther from Pensacola Beach) and still a solid 15-20 minutes from base depending how far out in Perdido you live. If you have buddies who live on the other side of town (like near downtown which is the heart of the dining/bar scene in Pensacola proper), it's quite the drive (and you probably won't make it too often, good luck ubering from downtown bars). I never lived here.

Warrington (including West Pensacola): it's closer to main base (10-15 minute drive), and right next to Corry Station. It's near some strip malls/fast food dining and a stone's throw from downtown (not an expensive uber). Downside: while there certainly are nice places and I had some buddies live there (looking at you: @Mike Leach's Air Raid), there's a lot of seedy neighborhoods with cars up on blocks nearby and considerable crime in certain hotspots, again Mike Leach can speak to that firsthand ?. YMMV.

East Hill/Scenic Heights: one of Pensacola's consistently nicer neighborhoods and a lot of military do live there. Close to downtown and the nightlife, it's safe and quaint. I lived there, loved it. Downside: about a 20-25 minute drive from the front gate - so a little further than back gate life but has a ton of nice amenities that's a short drive away.

Near the airport (KPNS): that's where I live now. Again, quaint areas with nice subdivisions. Further north is UWF area where I know some live (especially if they have roommates who work/fly in Milton). It's a 25-35 minute drive depending on where you live, which is a downside. (My commute is 20 minutes early in the morning, 25 in heavy traffic and the drive isn't bad - quite nice if you take Scenic Drive.)

So, Back gate, Perdido, Warrington, East Hill/Scenic, and Airport and beyond (including Ferry Pass) are common places to live. Each have good reasons to live there and bad reasons. Make an assessment: do you want to live closer to where you work (and have to drive far to get to fun places), or live near fun places (and drive farther to get to work). The choice is yours.

EDIT: Oh yeah and there's downtown. Upside: you live amongst all the fun action/nightlife. Not a bad commute. Downside: when there's a festival/hockey game/Blue Wahoos game going on, foot traffic and parking can be a nightmare. And, it's very expensive if you want a nice place (like a posh apartment). May need to heavily roommate it up.

 

[GodSpeed1997]

Yeah, you're a bit far out. Worry about getting through OCS first. Closest alligator and all. Not to mention I'm sure there's a ton of content on this forum dedicated to this question.

But I'll try to give you an unbiased assessment of Pensacola living: a lot of people live out the back gate. Why? It's super close to NASP. That's an advantage. Downside: you live out the back gate (and that gate is usually only open during "workday" hours). It's also far from anything fun in Pensacola, not to mention nicer dining, etc. It's the boondocks. I never lived here and rarely made it over to back gate country because it was such a haul from my place.

Perdido: it's closer to the beach and the world famous Flora-bama, but far from downtown (even farther from Pensacola Beach) and still a solid 15-20 minutes from base depending how far out in Perdido you live. If you have buddies who live on the other side of town (like near downtown which is the heart of the dining/bar scene in Pensacola proper), it's quite the drive (and you probably won't make it too often, good luck ubering from downtown bars). I never lived here.

Warrington (including West Pensacola): it's closer to main base (10-15 minute drive), and right next to Corry Station. It's near some strip malls/fast food dining and a stone's throw from downtown (not an expensive uber). Downside: while there certainly are nice places and I had some buddies live there (looking at you: @Mike Leach's Air Raid), there's a lot of seedy neighborhoods with cars up on blocks nearby and considerable crime in certain hotspots, again Mike Leach can speak to that firsthand ?. YMMV.

East Hill/Scenic Heights: one of Pensacola's consistently nicer neighborhoods and a lot of military do live there. Close to downtown and the nightlife, it's safe and quaint. I lived there, loved it. Downside: about a 20-25 minute drive from the front gate - so a little further than back gate life but has a ton of nice amenities that's a short drive away.

Near the airport (KPNS): that's where I live now. Again, quaint areas with nice subdivisions. Further north is UWF area where I know some live (especially if they have roommates who work/fly in Milton). It's a 25-35 minute drive depending on where you live, which is a downside. (My commute is 20 minutes early in the morning, 25 in heavy traffic and the drive isn't bad - quite nice if you take Scenic Drive.)

So, Back gate, Perdido, Warrington, East Hill/Scenic, and Airport and beyond (including Ferry Pass) are common places to live. Each have good reasons to live there and bad reasons. Make an assessment: do you want to live closer to where you work (and have to drive far to get to fun places), or live near fun places (and drive farther to get to work). The choice is yours.

EDIT: Oh yeah and there's downtown. Upside: you live amongst all the fun action/nightlife. Not a bad commute. Downside: when there's a festival/hockey game/Blue Wahoos game going on, foot traffic and parking can be a nightmare. And, it's very expensive if you want a nice place (like a posh apartment). May need to heavily roommate it up.

Awesome feed back. Yeah I leave to OCS soon, just trying to get a decent idea on housing down there. What would you say the average time is between graduating OCS and classing up? Also we’re you able to move down in PCola as soon as you graduated OCS?

 

[jointhelocalizer]

It varies with a lot of stuff. I have heard 3-6 months being a reasonable range. Waits are usually a bit longer in the summer and fall due to the push from ROTC and USNA (and other Academies). Also, each class can only have so many Navy SNAs in it. The spots are broken up into Flight Docs, USCG, USMC, NFO, International, Navy Corpus, and Navy Whiting. Sometimes there are pushes for one of the TAWs. So if there is less of a wait in Corpus and you're slated for Whiting, you'll see some people behind you class up before or with you. There are also special cases like swim hold, NAMI complications, etc. that can delay you more.

A good resource is the SNA/SNFO Housing Swap Facebook group. People are always looking for roommates.

TL;DR: Expect 3-6 months, but YMMV.

 

[GodSpeed1997]

It varies with a lot of stuff. I have heard 3-6 months being a reasonable range. Waits are usually a bit longer in the summer and fall due to the push from ROTC and USNA (and other Academies). Also, each class can only have so many Navy SNAs in it. The spots are broken up into Flight Docs, USCG, USMC, NFO, International, Navy Corpus, and Navy Whiting. Sometimes there are pushes for one of the TAWs. So if there is less of a wait in Corpus and you're slated for Whiting, you'll see some people behind you class up before or with you. There are also special cases like swim hold, NAMI complications, etc. that can delay you more.

A good resource is the SNA/SNFO Housing Swap Facebook group. People are always looking for roommates.

TL;DR: Expect 3-6 months, but YMMV.

Thanks! What do you do after graduating ocs while waiting then? OHARP? I heard that was postponed as well but I’m not sure. And can you choose to go to PCola to do that?

 

[Randy Daytona]

Yeah, you're a bit far out. Worry about getting through OCS first. Closest alligator and all. Not to mention I'm sure there's a ton of content on this forum dedicated to this question.

But I'll try to give you an unbiased assessment of Pensacola living: a lot of people live out the back gate. Why? It's super close to NASP. That's an advantage. Downside: you live out the back gate (and that gate is usually only open during "workday" hours). It's also far from anything fun in Pensacola, not to mention nicer dining, etc. It's the boondocks. I never lived here and rarely made it over to back gate country because it was such a haul from my place.

Perdido: it's closer to the beach and the world famous Flora-bama, but far from downtown (even farther from Pensacola Beach) and still a solid 15-20 minutes from base depending how far out in Perdido you live. If you have buddies who live on the other side of town (like near downtown which is the heart of the dining/bar scene in Pensacola proper), it's quite the drive (and you probably won't make it too often, good luck ubering from downtown bars). I never lived here.

Warrington (including West Pensacola): it's closer to main base (10-15 minute drive), and right next to Corry Station. It's near some strip malls/fast food dining and a stone's throw from downtown (not an expensive uber). Downside: while there certainly are nice places and I had some buddies live there (looking at you: @Mike Leach's Air Raid), there's a lot of seedy neighborhoods with cars up on blocks nearby and considerable crime in certain hotspots, again Mike Leach can speak to that firsthand ?. YMMV.

East Hill/Scenic Heights: one of Pensacola's consistently nicer neighborhoods and a lot of military do live there. Close to downtown and the nightlife, it's safe and quaint. I lived there, loved it. Downside: about a 20-25 minute drive from the front gate - so a little further than back gate life but has a ton of nice amenities that's a short drive away.

Near the airport (KPNS): that's where I live now. Again, quaint areas with nice subdivisions. Further north is UWF area where I know some live (especially if they have roommates who work/fly in Milton). It's a 25-35 minute drive depending on where you live, which is a downside. (My commute is 20 minutes early in the morning, 25 in heavy traffic and the drive isn't bad - quite nice if you take Scenic Drive.)

So, Back gate, Perdido, Warrington, East Hill/Scenic, and Airport and beyond (including Ferry Pass) are common places to live. Each have good reasons to live there and bad reasons. Make an assessment: do you want to live closer to where you work (and have to drive far to get to fun places), or live near fun places (and drive farther to get to work). The choice is yours.

EDIT: Oh yeah and there's downtown. Upside: you live amongst all the fun action/nightlife. Not a bad commute. Downside: when there's a festival/hockey game/Blue Wahoos game going on, foot traffic and parking can be a nightmare. And, it's very expensive if you want a nice place (like a posh apartment). May need to heavily roommate it up.

Concur on East Hill. I lived there for years. Easily able to drive to both mainside and Whiting. In addition, if you buy a house there, you will have no problems renting it out so you can build some housing equity.

 

[PMPT]

most important bit of advice ...

I know you are full of piss and vinegar and want to get going and go slay fire dragons, but chill out when you get to Pcola and enjoy the time you have been given in a fun little city with truly world-class beaches. You will look back on your time in pensacola extremely fondly. Don't worry about when you class up or NIFE ... just chill and enjoy getting a pay check with virtually zero responsibility other than morning muster.

 

[flgator92]

What would you say the average time is between graduating OCS and classing up?

No idea man. And, to be honest, it doesn't really matter. You'll be down in Pensacola on orders and getting paid to do next to nothing until you class up -- then you'll be overloaded and incredibly busy in preflight, and then flight school, once you get to primary and beyond. Cherish the down time and don't worry about the things you can't control (like a preflight class up date).

Also we’re you able to move down in PCola as soon as you graduated OCS?

I did. My folks live pretty close to Pensacola (couple of hours away) and far from an NRD headquarters so OHARP wasn't practical. My understanding is that your orders upon commissioning from OCS give you the option of doing OHARP recruiting duty back at the NRD closest to home as a no cost government TDY in-transit to your ultimate duty station in Pensacola. So your orders should have a no later than report date to Pensacola, and then until that date you can do OHARP. But since OHARP is a no cost TDY you can do it or you can report to Pensacola. That's how it was written on my orders, apparently others have orders that say you SHALL do OHARP, so again YMMV.

 

[Prin]

Current gouge is that NFO wise OHARP will be stopping following the graduation of 02-21. So keep that in mind i guess

 

[Prin]

if you have any questions about ocs or how things are functioning here shoot me a message