2023 Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH)

The Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH) provides money to cover service members' housing and related costs in the civilian market when government quarters are not provided. If you live in privatized military housing, you will receive BAH.

Your BAH rate is based on your paygrade, your dependency status and the location of your duty station. The rates change Jan. 1 of each year.

Learn more about BAH

The national average BAH rates for service members with and without dependents rose by 12.1% from 2022 to 2023. Because the Defense Department calculates the rates based on a combination of local costs of rent and utilities for various housing types, any fluctuation among those factors in a given location affects BAH rates for that location. The "significant increase" reflected "unique market conditions" in 2022, according to the Defense Department.

BAH rates have been directly tied to the costs of rental housing in local markets since 2008. While BAH rates fluctuate based on the previous year's housing cost averages, individual rate protection prevents your BAH from going down as long as your situation stays the same. If the BAH rate for your location increases Jan. 1, you will receive the increase. If it decreases, you will not normally see any decrease.

Your BAH rate can decrease in only three ways:

If you PCS to a new location, you will receive the BAH rate that is in effect at that duty station on your report date.
If you are demoted, your BAH will change to the current rate for your lower paygrade, which may be lower than the BAH at your previous paygrade. Promotions won't lower your BAH, even if the higher paygrade has a lower BAH rate than your old paygrade. You will receive whichever rate is higher.
If your dependency status changes (from with dependent to without dependent or vice versa), your BAH will change to the rate effective on the date of your dependency change.

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