1. When you get to the island you attend a mandatory housing brief at the Housing Office. At this meeting you will find out how full housing is for your rank group and bedroom allocations. For me, I am a CGO which automatically qualifies me for a 3 bedroom even though I only have a spouse and one child. If housing for your primary, secondary, and tertiary bases is over 98% then you can have the option of living off-base. Since I am assigned to Kadena AB my locations were: Kadena, Camp Foster, and Camp Lester. As previously discussed in a prior post, when I attended my primary was over 98% and my other two locations were at 100%. I wanted on-base though so I turned down my off-base option.
2. I got a call a few days ago with my 2 house offers. You will have, randomly assigned by the computer, 2 house offers. These house offers can be on any of the three base locations and can be various floor plans. You cannot request a specific base, specific neighborhood, or a specific layout. You get what you get. At least you get a choice between 2 options instead of being assigned your house without seeing it. When the Housing Office called they asked me to stop by to pick up my 2 house keys. This was very quick. I went in, my assignments counselor grabbed me and took me to the place to get the keys. All I got was the 2 addresses and a map with directions to each.
3. I went and looked at both houses. I attempted to GoPro each, however, my GoPro sim card reached its max capacity before all the video I took could be recorded. I didn't realize this until after I had turned the keys back into housing later in the day.
- The first house was located in the Jennings neighborhood on Kadena. It was a 4-plex (4, 2 story homes attached to each other). I had one of the middle units. Now, having visited multiple other CGO houses in this neighborhood I was very excited. Huge floor plans, fully renovated, etc This neighborhood is close to all the amenities. Was I in for a shocker! The house they offered me in this neighborhood was very small (could not fit our king in the biggest bedroom), not renovated, the tub was so tiny and short in height I couldn't even take a bath, had 4 types of flooring that did not match, carpet squares were just installed but already peeling and did not line up to one another. A bit of a disappointment. Now, I can overcome anything with a little (okay, a lot in this case) decorating and laying stick on flooring to cover the unpleasantness that was the current floor.
- Time to check out the second house offer. I was lucky in that I got another offering on Kadena. This time in the Terrace Heights neighborhood. It was a 4-plex (4, 2 story homes attached to each other). I had one of the middle units. Wow! This house was amazing! Archways, wide hallways, renovated, almost twice the size as the first offering, etc. This house is farther from amenities (10 minute drive). Hands down this was the house I wanted!
4. I went back to the Housing Office and informed them of my decision (you have 24 hours to decide, if you want the time to think it over). I gave them the keys back. They scheduled me for my assignment appointment for a few days later. They told me that the house needed no other work or cleaning so I would be able to get my keys the same day as my appointment (usually you pick up the next day after your appointment).
5. I called and set up shipment of our HHG (house hold goods) to be delivered the day after I got the keys.
6. I had my assignment appointment. At this time, I signed the paperwork for the house. Got the radon information (3.9 for the house I selected). If it's over 4.0 they will put radon mitigation equipment in the house, if it's not there already. I was notified that no renovation is expected during my three years on island. I got the proof of housing letter that is needed to enroll a child in school. If you need temporary furniture, you set it up at this time.
7. They will schedule a housing inspection within a few days after you get the residence. It takes about 1 hour. This is when the inspector will go through the house with you and mark any discrepancies. Important, because when you move out you don't want to be charged for damage that was there before you moved in! Also, the inspector will answer any questions you have about the house.
Here are pictures of the house I selected:
 |
| View walking in the house (living room down the hallway) Walkway to dining room on right Next doorway on right is to laundry room Third doorway on right is to half bath Door to left after electrical panel is under stair storage |
 |
| Coat closet on the left Pantry #1 ahead Dining room to the right |
 |
| Dining room |
 |
| From dining room looking into kitchen There is a swinging door between kitchen and living room Pantry #2 is on the far right (directly before the swinging door) |
 |
| Living room Sliding door to backyard |
 |
| Living room Open arch on the left heads back to the front door |
 |
| Backyard |
 |
| In living room looking back to front door Front door is a typhoon door (very heavy metal) All the glass in the house is very thick (for typhoon protection) |
 |
| Downstairs half bath |
 |
| Stairs to second floor (this is located directly left when you walk in the house) |
 |
| Stairway turns and looks onto second floor First door on left goes into the smallest room Second door on the left goes into a large bedroom Door straight ahead is the full bathroom |
 |
| Smallest room (does have a closet on the left wall) |
 |
| Big bedroom Closet is to the right |
 |
| Upstairs full bathroom |
 |
| Master bedroom (same size as the big bedroom) |
 |
| Master bathroom and closet One sink to the left, with a large counter space Walk-in closet straight ahead Toilet and tub/shower to the right Each section has a door |
 |
| Master bathroom tub/shower and toilet |
No comments:
Post a Comment