What will my BAH rate be when stationed at Fort Drum, while having our main apartment in Queens, NY?

SPC Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 16 Jan 2020 11:21:27 -0500

My wife and I will be stationed at Fort Drum, NY soon. Our family and friends live in Queens, NY. Our main apartment will be in Queens, NY, where we stay during weekends and holidays. We'll be getting a small studio near Fort Drum for duty days. My question is, will our BAH be the rate of Fort Drum, NY, or Queens, NY?

Response by LTC Kevin B. made Jan 16 at 2020 11:26 AM

LTC Kevin B. — Thu, 16 Jan 2020 11:26:56 -0500

It will be based off your duty station, not where you choose to have your family live.

Response by MSG Private RallyPoint Member made Jan 16 at 2020 11:34 AM

MSG Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 16 Jan 2020 11:34:19 -0500

You will receive BAH based on where you are stationed. Makes no difference whatsoever where your family resides. You and your family could live in Trump Tower, and you will still get BAH for Ft Drum, if that is where you are assigned.

Response by MAJ Javier Rivera made Jan 16 at 2020 2:06 PM

MAJ Javier Rivera — Thu, 16 Jan 2020 14:06:10 -0500

Is all based on your duty station.

Response by MAJ Byron Oyler made Jan 16 at 2020 2:53 PM

MAJ Byron Oyler — Thu, 16 Jan 2020 14:53:06 -0500

Plenty of folks have answered your question and I would like to focus on the distance. I am seeing over three hundred miles you are planning to travel every weekend. Will you really be home to Queens that often to warrant the cost? This is likely a mileage pass from Drum to NY and as a jr enlisted, you are going to have duty outside of M-F quite regularly and staying in a hotel in Queens might be more affordable for the times you will go back verses two apartments.

Response by CPT Private RallyPoint Member made Jan 16 at 2020 9:17 PM

CPT Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 16 Jan 2020 21:17:04 -0500

It appears that you are new to the Army so I would like to offer some advice. It is very unlikely that your Commander and 1SG will allow you to drive from Fort Drum to Queens every weekend. For one, that is a 644 mile round trip every weekend which is a huge expense in terms of gas, not to mention the miles that you will put on your vehicle. Second, the pass mileage varies by post and by Battalion so it’s likely you will have to put in for a pass to drive to Queens every weekend, which is unlikely to get approved since again you are new to the Army, even Senior Enlisted and Officers have to put in a pass if they go outside of a certain radius, so that in the even something happens they can get you back to post and they can keep accountability of their Soldiers. Finally, I don’t know how much you know about Fort Drum but it snows A LOT there, and the likelihood that you will be able to make it to Queens or back to Fort Drum if they get lake effect snow is very unlikely. I had a truck and I wouldn’t drive when we got lake effect snow since they don’t plow and salt if they get 3-4 feet until it has stopped snowing.

Also you don’t only have duties during the week. There will be additional duties that you have to pull, such as Staff Duty, which means you might not be able to go home for a weekend. Plus field time, which to be honest I don’t know how much you’ll have, being a 68X, but you never know. Personally I think it will be more trouble than it is worth and will put more stress on you than you think it will.

Bottom line, I doubt your Commander and 1SG will allow you to drive to Queens every weekend. I know that I wouldn’t let a new Soldier do it, because ultimately, they are responsible for your health and safety and there is too high a risk that something could happen.

Response by TSgt David Holman made Jan 16 at 2020 9:27 PM

TSgt David Holman — Thu, 16 Jan 2020 21:27:24 -0500

So, to answer your question directly, the BAH is always based on the location of the duty station. In this case, your BAH will be based off the zip code for Ft. Drum. That being said, it is not going to be easy to pay for an apartment in Queens and a studio near Drum, if even feasible. I don't know that there are many studio apartments in that part of the state. This is also assuming that you are going to have weekends and holidays off. I am not saying it can't be done, but at E4 pay I wouldn't recommend the risk.

Response by SGT Private RallyPoint Member made Jan 17 at 2020 2:08 AM

SGT Private RallyPoint Member — Fri, 17 Jan 2020 02:08:32 -0500

By far, this is my favorite Rallypoint question ever

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Jan 17 at 2020 3:58 AM

SFC Private RallyPoint Member — Fri, 17 Jan 2020 03:58:00 -0500

Anything outside the 250 mile pass radius would require leave. Taking eight days of leave a month would be unsustainable.

But as other people pointed out, BAH is paid based on where you are stationed, not where you have the poor judgment to take up residence. Otherwise, everyone would reside in NYC or San Francisco.

Response by LTC Private RallyPoint Member made Jan 17 at 2020 9:08 AM

LTC Private RallyPoint Member — Fri, 17 Jan 2020 09:08:40 -0500

BAH rate for an E4 with dependents at Fort Drum is $1248/month. For future reference, you can google "BAH rate for "enter duty station here"" and it will give you that information

Response by SSG Private RallyPoint Member made Jan 17 at 2020 8:37 PM

SSG Private RallyPoint Member — Fri, 17 Jan 2020 20:37:49 -0500

I’m going to say you are going to have some financial issues in the future. BAH for drum is 1278. I’m a going to say you will not be able to afford both. Plus you will also need a mileage pass due to the driving distance. And you will have to drive 300 miles after 1700 on Friday which will get you there around midnight and then have to drive back on Sunday morning. It’s not worth it

Response by SPC Private RallyPoint Member made Jan 20 at 2020 3:04 PM

SPC Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 20 Jan 2020 15:04:05 -0500

You’re really going to try pulling off going back to NYC every weekend? Good luck with that. By the way BAH for Fort Drum is $1290and that’s what you’ll get