Objectives, Scope, and Methodology

We reviewed DOD’s military family housing program in the United States to determine whether (1) DOD’s policy of relying primarily on private housing to meet military family housing requirements is cost-effective, (2) the military services are complying with this policy, and (3) DOD’s family housing policies result in equitable treatment for all military families. Relying on Private Housing Is Cost-Effective

Studies by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) and DOD show that the cost to the government is significantly less when military families are paid a housing allowance and live in private housing. These studies and our analysis estimate that the cost difference to the government for each family that lives in private housing, instead of government housing, ranges from about $3,200 to $5,500 annually. First, military families pay a portion of their housing costs out of pocket when living in private-sector housing. DOD and the services have not maximized use of private housing for a variety of reasons, including a reliance on housing requirements analyses that often underestimate the private sector’s ability to meet family housing needs; a concern over quality of life, although there is little evidence that family quality of life is better served through use of government housing; a reluctance to designate a greater portion of existing government housing for use by junior personnel who are less able to afford private housing than senior personnel; and a housing allowance system that results in available private housing being unaffordable in some areas. Current initiatives to increase housing allowances and to encourage private investors to build housing for military families have the potential for reducing costs while meeting military family housing needs. Specifically, the program allows significant differences in the value of the housing benefit that is provided to members of the same paygrade depending on whether they live in private or government housing. Further, housing allowances also can offer service members a greater selection of housing options to fit their needs instead of limiting them to what is available in government housing.
Why GAO Did This Study

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the Department of Defense's (DOD) military family housing program to determine whether the program: (1) is cost-effective; and (2) provides equal housing benefits to all military families.

What GAO Found

GAO found that: (1) DOD reliance on private-sector housing to meet military family housing needs is cost-effective; (2) the government's cost is significantly less when military families receive housing allowances to live in private housing; (3) the cost difference for each military family living in private housing ranges from $3,200 to $5,000 annually; (4) families living in private housing pay a portion of their housing costs and have a greater selection of housing options to meet their needs; (5) DOD is not maximizing its use of private housing due to its reliance on inaccurate housing requirements, concerns with military quality of life standards, reluctance to designate more government housing for use by junior personnel, and inaccurate categorization of affordable private housing; (6) the housing benefits afforded to service members within the same pay grade differ depending on whether the members live in government or private housing; (7) members living in private family housing have less disposable income than members in the same pay grade living in government family housing; (8) DOD has taken initiatives to increase housing allowances and encourage private family housing to reduce service members' reliance on government housing; and (9) DOD needs to take additional steps to ensure the maximum use of private housing and the equitable distribution of benefits among military families.