Kadena AB

Kadena Air Base is on Okinawa. The Air Force housing office there is the Department of Defense family housing office for accompanied service members on the island, not only for people assigned to Kadena. The rates table prints rental ceilings, the utility allowance, and MIHA from the DTMO OHA Rate Lookup.

Read OHA overseas for how the allowance works, and Yokota for the Tokyo-area base. The Japan hub lists both.

1. Housing: OHA, not BAH

If you are cleared to live off base, housing money is Overseas Housing Allowance. DTMO reimburses rent up to the lease or the allowance, whichever is less. Check current rate on the DTMO OHA Rate Lookup after the housing office confirms the locality.

The Air Force housing page says newcomers who live off base should expect several payments at lease signing. It says the usual agency practice is a fee of about half of one month's rent, a security deposit of one month's rent, and the first and last month's rent. It says a three-bedroom unit is typically about 1,100 square feet, and that water, sewage, and trash fees are extra. It does not print a rent average or a utility bill. Those move-in items are what the page calls usual practice, not a ceiling.

The same page says you must report to the housing referral office before you commit to rent, lease, or buy off base. Signing before that briefing can leave you outside the process the office uses to start allowances. Check current rate before you treat any listing price as covered.

2. Government housing and the office

The housing page says that, effective 1 August 2009, inbound accompanied military personnel are required to live on base. It lists government housing at Kadena, Camp Courtney, Camp Kinser, Camp Lester, Camp McTureous, Camp Foster, and Camp Shields, and it says there are more than 8,300 on-base units. It says the DoD commute standard is 60 minutes or less, and that the office tries to offer a unit near the duty station.

Military OneSource describes more than 6,928 on-base units and says accompanied personnel are required to live on base if an adequate unit is available. It says to report within 48 to 72 hours.

Kadena's family housing page says the Air Force is the executive agent for the joint housing program, for accompanied service members of any branch. Customer service is DSN 634-HOME (4663), option 3, [email protected]. The Air Force housing page lists hours of 8:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday, and 8:00 a.m. to noon on Wednesday. The operator number it prints is 098-938-1111, then 634-0582.

Apply with DD Form 1746 and AF Form 4422, emailed to that address. A walk-in within 30 days of arrival can be dated to the day you left the last installation. The page says a family housing unit is not assigned unless the family is present, and that delayed dependent travel can put the sponsor in unaccompanied housing until the family is within 30 days of arrival with tickets.

If no on-base home is available in your bedroom entitlement, the page says you are then cleared to look off base. Turning down a unit because it is not pet-friendly is not accepted as a reason.

Unaccompanied housing rules on the Air Force page are written for Air Force dorms and cover E-1 to E-4. Another service should ask the office what applies.

3. Schools

The housing page points families to the DoDEA Pacific Okinawa district. It does not print a school name or a tuition figure. This page does not add one.

Sample monthly costs

Before you sign

1. Report to the family housing office before you look off base.
2. Accept or decline the on-base offer under the rule the office briefs. Do not assume off-base OHA is available.
3. Confirm the locality with the housing office. Compare the lease with your pay grade in the rates table. Check current rate on the DTMO OHA Rate Lookup if the pay period has changed.
4. Budget the move-in cash the housing page describes, then confirm it on the lease.

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