Edwards housing allowance unchanged for 2008

  • Published
  • By 1st Lt. Brad Kimberly
  • 95th Air Base Wing Public Affairs
EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. --  Servicemembers stationed here will see a familiar sight on their paychecks in 2008 -- the amount of their housing allowance. 

Wednesday, the Department of Defense released the 2008 Basic Allowance for Housing rates, which indicated Edwards servicemembers would receive the exact same allowance they received in 2007. 

"We received a significant bump in the housing allowance between 2006 and 2007," said Col. Bryan Gallagher, 95th Air Base Wing commander. "At the time, housing prices and rental rates in the Antelope Valley were far outpacing what our servicemembers were receiving in their paychecks, and we successfully lobbied for allowance increases ranging from 22 to 35 percent." 

Since then, a nationwide decline in the housing market has affected home prices and may be partly to blame for the stagnant allowance rates. 

"Rental rates have gone down somewhat," said Jeanette White, the Military Family Housing coordinator here. "It's all market driven. Supply and demand determine the rental rates." 

The recent drop in home values has caused several landlords to sell off their rental homes, she said. Those sales have flooded the housing market with available space. 

Foreclosures may also be having an effect on the shrinking housing market. 

According to RealtyTrac, a foreclosure tracking company, Lancaster and Palmdale have 1,048 foreclosed homes scheduled to be auctioned on the courthouse steps and another 2,270 foreclosed homes owned by the bank or lender. Still, another 3,000 homeowners are behind in payments, but the lenders have not yet foreclosed. These numbers represent an increase of more than 77 percent since May -- an upward trend that shows no signs of slowing. 

Even though the housing market is tumbling, the 2008 BAH rates weren't reduced, Ms. White said. However, if the housing market continues to fall, it may result in reduced BAH for 2009. 

"If the BAH rates were to drop, people who were already stationed here would still be paid at the higher rate, but servicemembers who permanently change their station to Edwards after a rate drop would fall under the new rate," she said. The rate protection would continue for as long as the servicemember has uninterrupted eligibility. 

"Given the current market conditions, we're very lucky that our housing allowances remained stable for 2008," Colonel Gallagher said. "As we head into the new year, our housing team will continue to analyze market conditions in the Antelope Valley and ensure the DoD has all the information it needs to make informed and appropriate decisions about housing allowances for our people." 

Cost of living allowance rates for 2008 have not yet been released. 

For more information about Basic Allowance for Housing and a searchable database of historical rates, visit http://perdiem.hqda.pentagon.mil/perdiem/bah.html or contact the housing office at 277-4506.