What is BAH?

Basic Housing Allowance(BAH) in Hawaii is given to military personnel assigned to permanent duty at a Hawaii Military Base to find adequate off-base housing. It is a non-taxable monthly stipend that varies for each service member depending on the following 3 factors:

• Dependents. Those married and/or with children will receive more allowance.
• Pay Grade. Naturally the higher your rank, the more BAH you're eligible for.
• Location. The stipend is intended to closely correlate with the average monthly rent in the area.

How much is BAH in Hawaii?

It's no secret that Hawaii has some of the highest costs of living in the nation and with that, you may be wondering how  how far your BAH in Hawaii will go. Below is a chart to help you identify Enlisted, Warrant Officer, and Officer BAH Rates in Hawaii for 2020. Be aware that Honolulu BAH and Oahu BAH are the same; Honolulu is the county name for the entire island.

Honolulu, Hawaii 2020 BAH Chart

GRADE WITH DEPENDENTS WITHOUT DEPENDENTS

E01                 $2,784                     $2,088

E02                 $2,784                     $2,088

E03                 $2,784                     $2,088

E04                 $2,784                     $2,088

E05                 $2,913                     $2,397

E06                 $2,967                     $2,664

E07                 $3,132                     $2,787

E08                 $3,318                     $2,928

E09                 $3,507                     $2,937

W01                $2,979                     $2,748

W02                $3,210                     $2,925

W03                $3,438                     $2,940

W04                $3,537                     $3,003

W05                $3,660                     $3,177

O01E               $3,171                     $2,916

O02E               $3,402                     $2,931

O03E               $3,555                     $2,955

O01                 $2,925                     $2,655

O02                 $2,964                     $2,871

O03                 $3,426                     $2,943

O04                 $3,702                     $3,144

O05                 $3,894                     $3,252

O06                 $3,927                     $3,423

O07                 $3,966                     $3,486

What is COLA?

The Cost of Living Allowance is a non-taxable allowance purposed towards off-setting the costs of non-housing goods and services for higher priced areas both domestic and foreign. For more information on Hawaii COLA, use the Overseas COLA Calculator to select your location.

Hawaii Military Housing | Buy, Rent, or Stay on Base?

The answer to that question is going to be a very personal decision, unique to your situation. Oahu homeownership has historically proven to be very lucrative to Hawaii VA homebuyers, as average appreciation rates over the last 40 years pencil out to roughly 6% per year. Some choose to sell their homes at the end of their tours while many convert their homes to investment properties or future retirements homes, with plans to return to their island home.

See one our below PCS Guides to explore the different housing opportunities, unique to your base assignment:

We encourage you to be thorough in your pursuit of housing on Oahu and strongly suggest sitting down with us so that we can equip you with all of our Oahu Real Estate Market knowledge so you can approach your renting vs. buying with confidence. Give us a call, text, email, or schedule a VA Consultation with us below. We would be happy to help you research your new island home.