housing at 1st duty assignment

hopeful_army_NP · Mar 17, 2010

Sounds about right. I too will be at BOLC 29 March and have a report date to Ft. Stewart of June 15. My plan is to report to Ft. Stewart right from BOLC- like June 2, do my inprocess an everything, secure housing, ect. Then I will request leave and go back home and move. I have found several properties that I am interested in at AHRN.com(military site).

My recruiter says there are times when people change assignments at BOLC or something else happens, in that case you would hate to have a lease signed and your money tied up in a property you wher not going to lease.

carolinapooh, BSN, RN · Mar 17, 2010

Don't arrange housing before you leave for officer training. It's rare, but the military CAN change your orders and decide mid-go to send you somewhere else.

You'll get temporary housing there and be given house-hunting days. You also will arrange shipment of your household goods before you leave (and then if the Army changes your orders THEY will reship your stuff at their expense, not yours).

Hopeful - you really need to move your stuff before you go. You will only have about two, maybe three days of leave on the books when you graduate from BOLC. Taking any more than that will put you in the hole and you'll have to work for thirty days for every two and a half days you need to get out of that hole - it will be like working without earning leave. Many commanders will also NOT approve such leave unless it is a bona fide emergency. I know this is unsolicited and I'm sticking my nose in, but I've seen people who have gone in the hole with leave and it takes a long time to correct.

Permissive TDY for house hunting doesn't mean you get ten days' leave. It means you're restricted to the local area to find a place to live. You probably already know that,but I've seen posts where others don't realize that's the intent. If you're caught outside the local area, you can be charged with being AWOL - absent without leave, which is a big deal.

Again, if I'm in your business I apologize.

hopeful_army_NP · Mar 17, 2010

Don't arrange housing before you leave for officer training. It's rare, but the military CAN change your orders and decide mid-go to send you somewhere else.
You'll get temporary housing there and be given house-hunting days. You also will arrange shipment of your household goods before you leave (and then if the Army changes your orders THEY will reship your stuff at their expense, not yours).
Hopeful - you really need to move your stuff before you go. You will only have about two, maybe three days of leave on the books when you graduate from BOLC. Taking any more than that will put you in the hole and you'll have to work for thirty days for every two and a half days you need to get out of that hole - it will be like working without earning leave. Many commanders will also NOT approve such leave unless it is a bona fide emergency. I know this is unsolicited and I'm sticking my nose in, but I've seen people who have gone in the hole with leave and it takes a long time to correct.
Permissive TDY for house hunting doesn't mean you get ten days' leave. It means you're restricted to the local area to find a place to live. You probably already know that,but I've seen posts where others don't realize that's the intent. If you're caught outside the local area, you can be charged with being AWOL - absent without leave, which is a big deal.
Again, if I'm in your business I apologize.

I am thankful for all advice. I shared this plan with my recruiter and he thought it was ok. I have to report by June 15, so I was given a 14 day leave already since BOLC ends June 01, correct? But my plan was to report June 2nd and then request the leave, my orders state I can report early. I guess I will find out more at BOLC and from my sponsor. If this is not the case then I will plan to have everything done by the 15th.

When and where will I move my stuff to if I was to move it before ? I have a spouse and 3 children still using and living with all of our "stuff"

carolinapooh, BSN, RN · Mar 17, 2010

Everyone goes through that. You can arrange to have your stuff moved just before your family leaves to join you. You can arrange to have your stuff moved by the military whenever you want, really - someone just has to be there to authorize the move. My DH had to live in the house with an Aerobed, two pots, two grocery bags of stuff (like toilet paper and that sort of stuff), and two suitcases for four days before he left to come to Texas. The next time the military moves you, you and your family will go through the same thing again. We went through it every time our dad was transferred - we used to make it a game. Kept ice in a cooler and slept in sleeping bags on the floor with pizza from Pizza Hut or a cheeseburger from McDonalds for two or three nights for dinner- it's a big deal to a little kid (and certainly didn't kill us). This is what a friend of mine did and her little boys thought it was a great adventure - they went as far as putting up their tent in their empty living room!

We all would pick a suitcase of our favorite stuff (kid sized of course) and pick out our favorite clothes, and we just had to deal.

They'll possibly have to go without most of their stuff for a few days. It's part of military life.

Also keep in mind it may take up to three weeks for your stuff to get to your duty station depending on when you're moving and how far you're going. I only went from NC to TX and it took ten days for my stuff to get halfway across country. It got here and went into storage at the military's expense, and once we found a house we arranged delivery. So you'd still be living in an empty house with nothing for a while even if you did get advance leave approved.

You're not given fourteen days leave. You're given fourteen days to report, not that amount of time in leave. You earn 2.5 days of leave for every thirty days served. When I left COT I had 2.5 days leave (our COT is about 5 weeks). I think you'll have about five (isn't BOLC ten weeks?). I burned one day of leave in New Orleans en route to TX from AL and treated myself to a swanky hotel stay for two nights (I got three days to go from AL to TX and I took four).

If you were prior service and already had leave on the books, you'd be authorized to burn UP TO 14 days of that leave en route to your permanent duty station. But if you're not carrying that many days on the books you go in the hole - and I really can't imagine a commander being happy about approving leave for a brand new accession as soon as you arrive - especially when you have no leave anyway. They're going to wonder why you didn't move beforehand like pretty much everyone else. Commanders generally only approve advance leave in an emergency. Your moving is not going to be considered an emergency to a commander who needs you working - especially when you're given the opportunity and the instruction to take care of this up front.

There's a little bit of inconveniencing at the convenience of the Feds that comes with being in the military. As I said, it's part of military life. If I sound like a jerk I'm sorry, but I don't want to see you get to your duty station and have a nasty surprise. Maybe its different in the Army, but I know the travel and household goods/moving directives are written by the DoD and not each branch of the service, so I have a sneaky suspicion that I'm probably right. If anyone else knows any different, point it out - you'll have no questions asked - but I have a bad feeling I'm right.

hopeful_army_NP · Mar 17, 2010

Carolina- Again and always thanks for the insight. So in this case, I can have my items shipped and stored at government expense, then when its time for the items to be moved into our actually house and out of a storage room, the government will pay again? Is this something I pay for upfront and get reimbursed or will this just be paid for?

Then I guess I should plan to have my items deliverd to GA around the 15th?

I understand the time it takes for an out of state move, been through it also as a kid, my mother was an engineer with a government contract company. I just didn't want my family to go longer than they had to.

Good thing for Allnurses

PSULeila · Mar 17, 2010

i swear as soon as i feel like i got this stuff figured out im wrong! lol .. is the ten days of permissive TDY taking away from future days off? my recruiter said I can report 15 june, request the 10 days of permissive TDY and live in temp housing, he said if i found a place the first few days i could go home for the rest and just come back when my days r up.but will this put me in the hole? and leaving the area could get u in trouble? and by not reporting before 15 june to ft bragg is that taking days away also? or are those days mine to begin with since training ends 1 june and im not to report til 15 june? also, how much time would u recommend i give the moving process to get my stuff from PA to NC.. my recuiter said it would only take a couple days but im finding not everything i hear proves true! would u recommend giving it a month? also, whats the best/safest way to ship your goods, do you guys use boxes or get big tupperwear? it seems our stuff goes from truck to storage to truck... im sorry for all the silly questions! its all just new to me

athena55, BSN, RN · Mar 17, 2010

Hi there:

Just my 2 cents but remember when you report to your first duty station you do get those 10 days to find a suitable home/apartment BUT you will also simultaneously be in-processing bot at your hospital/clinic AND at your post. SO as was stated you will be expected to be available. I think most MEDCENS their in processing takes about 3-4 days. During that time you should see your future chief/head nurse and s/he will tell you when you will be expected to show up for duty (and the seemingly endless in-services for new people etc)

Make sure you have about 10 copies of your orders as well!

Oh yeah, it took 16 days before I saw any of my household goods....I spent 10 of those days sleeping on the floor, ha ha BUT I was lucky to find a suitable apartment really close to the MEDCEN so it wasn't all that hard. Hey we've all slept in/on worse things, no?

Good Luck!

athena

Iraq

carolinapooh, BSN, RN · Mar 18, 2010

i swear as soon as i feel like i got this stuff figured out im wrong! lol .. is the ten days of permissive TDY taking away from future days off? my recruiter said I can report 15 june, request the 10 days of permissive TDY and live in temp housing, he said if i found a place the first few days i could go home for the rest and just come back when my days r up.but will this put me in the hole? and leaving the area could get u in trouble? and by not reporting before 15 june to ft bragg is that taking days away also? or are those days mine to begin with since training ends 1 june and im not to report til 15 june? also, how much time would u recommend i give the moving process to get my stuff from PA to NC.. my recuiter said it would only take a couple days but im finding not everything i hear proves true! would u recommend giving it a month? also, whats the best/safest way to ship your goods, do you guys use boxes or get big tupperwear? it seems our stuff goes from truck to storage to truck... im sorry for all the silly questions! its all just new to me

Not silly at all. Yes, if you leave the immediate area during your house hunting days you're technically absent without leave. No, the permissive TDY is granted by your commander and you don't get it until you get to your base. I wasn't forced to in process at the same time I was househunting, although a friend of mine on another unit was, so it depends on your boss as to how that's handled.

The movers will pack your things for you. Anything you pack they are not responsible for - so if you pack something yourself and it gets destroyed, you can't file a claim for it. Let them pack everything and WATCH THEM LIKE HAWKS.

Your stuff will get from your house to your duty station WAAAYY before you graduate from BOLC. They'll come before you leave and it'll be on the road while you're in school. The feds will store it until you get to your station and then you arrange for delivery.

No, the permissive TDY is not counted against your leave, but you're not meant to leave the area. It's not leave.

Athena - where do they get these recruiters?

carolinapooh, BSN, RN · Mar 18, 2010

Carolina- Again and always thanks for the insight. So in this case, I can have my items shipped and stored at government expense, then when its time for the items to be moved into our actually house and out of a storage room, the government will pay again? Is this something I pay for upfront and get reimbursed or will this just be paid for?
Then I guess I should plan to have my items deliverd to GA around the 15th?
I understand the time it takes for an out of state move, been through it also as a kid, my mother was an engineer with a government contract company. I just didn't want my family to go longer than they had to.
Good thing for Allnurses

This is in EVERY case. :) The moving company that comes to get your stuff will store it in the local area at your duty station, and then they'll move it into your house for you. LET THEM UNPACK everything, because that way they'll take all the boxes away. It's a pain in the butt but you'll be amazed at how many boxes you're going to end up with. It sort of scared me....

I was telling you about the length of time it takes your stuff to go to illustrate that, if you did it the way you were saying, you may be living without stuff for weeks. Your stuff SHOULD get to your duty station while you're in BOLC, the Feds will store it, and then when you get an address you'll arrange for delivery. We were without our stuff on the Lackland end for about four days - it really wasn't bad at all.

You don't pay for any of it. It's done at the Fed's expense.

PSULeila · Mar 18, 2010

wow thanks guys.. you all are awesome with the feedback.... when you say don't pack your own things into boxes does that account for everything? like they will come with boxes to box up all your belongings? sounds too good to be true lol

hopeful_army_NP · Mar 18, 2010

Yes, I believe they have to pack it otherwise they can't be held responsible. They are experts and will pack accordingly, then you or your represenative will sign off on everything. If something breaks or comes up missing in the move then the move company will be responsible. I remember reading on a previous post, may have been from Corolinapooh, but I am not positive but anyway the post said to take pictures of important things and video tape things that work such as a TV, computer, video game. It seems to all make sense to me. Just still unsure about the whole report time, permissive leave, house search time etc. I know we will learn more at BOLC and be in touch with a sponsor as well.