BAH rates to go up 2.4 percent in 2017

Troops will see an average increase of 2.4 percent in their 2017 Basic Allowance for Housing rates, according to a Defense Department news release.

That evens out to about $41 more per month, the release states, but service members' payouts will vary greatly based on location, paygrade and whether they have dependents; DoD sets the rates based on rental-cost and utility data for a given region, matching different sizes of rental properties with different ranks and dependent status.


For example, and E-4 with dependents living near Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms, California, would be eligible to receive $804 in BAH in 2017, down from $807 last year. But an E-5 with dependents in the same spot will get $858 in 2017, up from $843 the year before.

When rates for a given area go down, service members already in the area continue to receive the old rate unless they move, lose rank or change dependent status, according to a DoD fact sheet.

The full chart for 2017 is available online ( with dependents and without). Service members also can use the BAH Calculator to look up their rates.




The new BAH rates will cover only 97 percent of housing costs. The 3 percent out-of-pocket expense for troops was authorized by the fiscal 2016 National Defense Authorization Act, according to the release. The cost-sharing amounts will vary by grade and dependency status, ranging from $37 to $85 monthly.

It will mark the third year in a five-year plan that requires BAH recipients to pay a percentage of their off-base housing costs out of pocket. By 2019, the share will hit a maximum of 5 percent.

Data for housing costs is collected each year for more than 300 military housing areas in the U.S. Local commands help data collectors determine which neighborhoods should be targeted to compile the information.

Charlsy Panzino covers the Guard and Reserve, training, technology, operations and features for Army Times and Air Force Times. Email her at [login to see] .