We have recently found out that we will be moving to Osan in the May-June '08 time frame. We do not have orders yet but my husbands new Group Commander has already e-mailed us to welcome us. So I think it's pretty much a done deal... I have so many questions that I'm not sure where to start. I have been reading other posts and have been unable to find answers that could pertain to us, so here it goes...

Info...
Husband- Capt. (0-3E) Filling an 0-4 position
3 Kids (12-boy, 11-girl, 9-girl)
We believe he is considered Key&Essential, but not sure.
2 Shih-Tzu's both under 12 lbs.

?'s
1) Where is Officer housing located? Apartments? Houses?

2) Size of housing?

3) We are bringing our car, but it is a Suburban... Is this bad?

4) Does anyone know if it would be easier for him to take the dogs with him or if I should bring them with the kids and myself?

5) How helpful is the Housing Office? Will they send us floor plans and be able to answer questions that we have about storage and things like that?

6) Does anyone know if you are allowed to store household goods in the states at Govt. Expense if you are allowed your full shipment weight? Because we currently own things that require a garage... 4-wheelers, tools... that sort of thing... Should we get rid of all of that stuff or would it be better to store it?

We are not doing concurrant travel regardless as to wether it is offered or not because we are in Alaska at Eielson AFB right now and miss family, so we are going to spend time with family before we go from one side of the earth to the other...

If anyone has any pics of Officer housing I would greatly appreciate it. We are able to find pics that specify as to wether they are for O's or E's. The only pics of Officer housing that I've found says "Senior Officer" which usually pertains to 0-6 and above...

Pleeeeeeese if anyone has info I would greatly appreciate it... I am going crazy here. We never thought we would be offered a CS tour, and after living in Alaska for 3 years this is going to be really hard for me. It will be a total of 5 years away from family that we are very close to. For some that may not be hard for me it is devistating. So if anyone can help me I would be very grateful.

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Heather

Welcome to the site Heather, I believe you and your family will love it here.

I'll try to help with you question's the best I can, I'm not at Osan but 16 miles south at USAG Humphreys.

1) Housing is a big mess at Osan right now, they are building new high rise towers and I believe they are behind on opening them up. Expect to live downtown.

2) Depending on how much you want to spend, if you live downtown.

3) The suburban is a very big truck, If you plan on going sight seeing alot or going places besides other bases it maybe problem. The parking spaces are very small downtown and you may have problems parking.

4) I think you should bring the dogs because there is no telling where he will be living when he first gets here.

5) cannot help you

6) I would say yes, but you'll have to talk to your local transportation office.

fishe can also help you with #6

Calm down and breath...and you'll be fine, Korea is a great place for family. Most will agree on here.

Also for the suburban, read the threads on driving in Korea. Alot of people on this board say public transportaion is the way to go

Welcome and enjoy..

Chuck

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CH-47 SI

They must find it difficult...

Those who have taken authority as the truth, rather than truth as the authority. --Gerald Massey

Right now all the housing is in the same bulidings, but the new places aren't finished yet. They should be finished by the time you get here, but you never know. That being said There aren't any pictures since they aren't don yet. I doubt you'll get put in the old housing since they are talking about renovating it.

My experiences with housing office has been fine
(and very limited) but I have heard a lot of complaints, especially about one lady in particular (although I believe she's been fired) because she lies to people and tells them whatever they want to hear to get them to do what she wants.

As far as the Suburban I've been told that the Koreans won't get near you in that massive SUV, which is of course a plus, but on the flip side some of the parking spots are small and may not be able to fit your vehicle.

This is all I really know, someone who is more helpful will be along shortly. :)

Welcome to the forum! I live in Seoul, and can only give general advice, since it was many, many years ago when I lived on Osan.
If I had known what I now know, before I came here 3 years ago, I would never have shipped my Mazda MPV van. I would have sold it, and a lot of the stuff (about 8000 lbs.), that I put in storage in Augusta. You collect a lot of useless stuff in 35 years. Give all your old clothes to goodwill. New clothes are cheap here, if you shop around.

Your situation is unique, but I will venture to advise you considering the information you have given. You can bring the Suburban, but I'd guess you will never, ever, have a better opportunity to get rid of that dinosaur than in Alaska!
Assuming it sucks gas, or even diesel, it will be a burden here. There are lots of used vans available here for bargain prices, that are much smaller. The suburban would be so expensive to feed and park and drive on side streets, it would be scratched and dented in the first month. My six cylinder van can hold 7 with the back fold down seat. It is considered compact, much smaller than a Suburban. Insurance is cheaper here. If you move into an apartment, you may not be able to maneuver that tank into the underground parking.
Street parallel parking usually is too short. This is more like Europe, with many narrow streets and few free parking spots. You would be paying a lot to park it, if you could get it down the alley to the parking lot!
Buses, taxis, and the subway are cheap, and without parking fees! On base bus is free. Let somebody else feed that monster for two or four years.
You may be able to ship one four wheeler,in HHG. I don't know. Sell them.
The more weight you save, the more goodies you can buy from Thailand and China.
This is going to bring criticizm, but I can take it. With 3 kids in school, I would make an attempt to get re-assigned to Seoul (Yongsan) unless he is in love with the particular job. Not that I don't like Osan, but it won't cost anything to ask Randolph assignments. I just personally think Seoul is better for large families.
The part about missing family really worries me. If you are really "devastated" by missing your family, you have missed something along the way. Your family is with you now! You left father and mother, and now owe your allegiance to your husband and children! Read Dr. Laura.

Thanks everyone for the replys. Unfortunately we don't have an option to move to Seoul. The job that has been offered to my husband is considered a "fast track" job. It is great for his career. We chose this assignment, it was either this or take our chances with the non-vol list to Iraq or Afganistan for 365 days. When you are number 32 on the list your chances don't look too good. So we made a choice of Korea when we still had a choice to make. We never thought they would offer us a Command Sponsered tour. For the last 2 1/2 years we have planned on returning to the Lower 48 for our next assignment. Now all of a sudden plans change, but I know that's part of the military lifestyle. And yes I know that my family is with me, but it is still hard. I was an army brat and married my husband while he was in the Army, we spent 12 years in before we jumped ship and went into the Air Force. He now has 16 years in and we are almost done... But it is still tough going from one hard tour to another. We will make the best of it. There are just so many un-knowns about this assignment. We already have to sell my husbands '06 Silverado, so we can't get rid of the Surburban. It will have to come. I don't have any intentions of taking it off Base. We have already agreed that we will use alot of public transportation. And if we only had 1 4-wheeler bringing it would be an option, unfortunately we have 5, ours and the kids little ones. So I'd prefer to just store them for the 2 years that we are at Osan. And like I said we also have tools that belonged to my Grandfather that there is no option of getting rid of. As for clothes, we already planned on getting rid of most things. But now we also have to get rid of the washer, dryer, fridge and a living room set. And Joe, trust me I know what you mean about accumulating alot of things over the years. This just seems so overwelming. That's why I'm on this site, hearing peoples replys is very helpful, and I do appreciate all of the feed back. I know by the time we are ready to pack out everything will be great. It is just going to take some time to get use to the idea of moving to Korea.

I do have one more question though, how is off base living? I read that they usually don't allow CS familys to live off base.

Again "Thanks" to everyone. You have all been very helpful in soothing my fears about this upcoming move.

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Heather

Chiming in with my limited knowledge

Actually, to date, my husband has spent 10 years in Korea, nine of those at Osan.

Regarding your Suburban:
It is my understanding that the locals do not appreciate / like American cars; or any car that isn't Korean made, for that matter. There is a risk of having your car vandalized.
If you are still making payments on the vehicle, check with your loan company. Some of them will not allow you to take the vehicle out of the country.
Like others said, you can get a vehicle pretty cheap for your tenure at Osan. That is what my husband and I plan to do when we go there next year. We will be selling both of our vehicles before we go and banking the money so that we can purchase a new one when we return.

Regarding housing:
I know nothing about on base; other than his first year there, my hubby lived on the economy. To date, paying the rent is something that was done in cash and involved a couple trips to the bank to withdraw the full amount. Utilities there seem different to me - something about the more you use, the more it costs?

I visited him on his last tour there (before we were married) and I really liked his apartment that he had in town. However, the bathroom was not heated. Good thing I was there in the summer! LOL!

If you have specific questions that come up, please PM me and I will have my husband answer them. Do keep in mind that he has never gone there with a wife before, and never with kids or pets.

Also, as far as I understand, in addition to shipping HHG to Osan, we are entitled to non-temporary storage here in the States while we are over there. I'm delighted about that, because I really don't want to haul everything overseas with me.

I'm not sure what led you to this line of thinking...

Actually, most of the locals would give an arm or a leg to own a nice American made car ~ because ownership of a foreign made car in Korea is a BIG status symbol.

Hi, Heather!

Congratulations on your assignment to Osan! I'm sure you'll enjoy your time here, as I can honestly say I have, and hope you find the experience as enriching as I have! To answer some of your questions:

1) Where is Officer housing located? Apartments? Houses?

There really isn't a "segregated" officer housing, officer and enlisted ranks alike are housed in either the Towers, or the Mustang Valley Village complex. Most of the key essential personnel, I believe are housed in the Towers. By the time you arrive next Spring/Summer, at least one of the newly constructed towers should be opened, and you will probably be among the first residents there. I've heard that the "model apartment" that's now open is absolutely lovely, so I think you'll be rather pleased.

It is a "Tower" living situation, however, so do be prepared for that sort of "high-rise" living. There isn't much "green space" for dogs, however, since you have smaller dogs, that might not be so much of an issue. There's a nice dog run near the commissary that's a good place for a little puppy "R N R" :)

Overall, perhaps due to the smaller population of spouses here, at least in my experience, there's much more "blurring of lines" as far as officers/enlisted spousal relations go, far less segregation and formality overall.


2) Size of housing?

The housing here, upon the whole is much smaller than what you may be used to in the states. The new Towers, I understand, will have larger living spaces, but you still likely won't have as much space as you do in the States. Most I know that live in MVV really struggle with the size, as they're *much* smaller than most are used to.

3) We are bringing our car, but it is a Suburban... Is this bad?

If you're living on base, I wouldn't think it would be an issue at all. However, do be aware that in an off base situation, you may well have trouble finding a space to park,etc, as most things are geared toward the much smaller cars more commonly found here. With the opening of the new towers, there should also be the opening of the new parking garage for residents, so you should be fine there.


4) Does anyone know if it would be easier for him to take the dogs with him or if I should bring them with the kids and myself?

I would think it's really a matter of preference. The vet clinic here at Osan is *wonderful*, we have nothing but praise for those who work and volunteer there.


5) How helpful is the Housing Office? Will they send us floor plans and be able to answer questions that we have about storage and things like that?

As an NCS spouse, I haven't dealt with the housing office in the same capacity as a CS spouse would.. so I'm not sure how applicable my experience would be. The American representative I worked with was *very* helpful,and upon more than one occasion helped us with answering some questions. Some of the Korean staff, however... well, as helpful as they attempted to be, they weren't as familiar with the English language as I would have preferred, getting them to understand what was being asked was difficult, and as a result, weren't really as helpful. As far as the word of mouth, I've heard.. when it comes to dealing with the housing office, get everything in writing.. and yes, I'd heard the same thing SLC's heard about the one particular representative in housing. :)


6) Does anyone know if you are allowed to store household goods in the states at Govt. Expense if you are allowed your full shipment weight? Because we currently own things that require a garage... 4-wheelers, tools... that sort of thing... Should we get rid of all of that stuff or would it be better to store it?

I don't believe you are allowed to transport your full weight allowance over here, there's a smaller weight allowance in effect, but you are authorized NTS storage while you're gone. As far as things that require a garage, you might wish to leave them behind,as as far as I'm aware, there are no standing garages in housing at all. There are bike racks,and storage areas of that nature, but..that doesn't help a great deal with storing tools or more than one 4 wheeler. :)



The OSC here at Osan is *extremely* active,and a very good group of ladies. I'm sure you'll find your niche. I would also highly recommend volunteering, there are always many openings on base, and it's a great way to meet people.

In another post , you made an inquiry about living off base as opposed to on base. While in the past, yes, Command Sponsored spouses have had difficulty getting permission to live off base, due to a current crisis in the housing area at Osan, that difficulty has at least temporarily been eased, and CS families, specifically those living in the Mustang Valley Village area, which is the subject of controversial negotiations between the KOHOMM,and the military, are being allowed to move off base,and are being given the exception to allow for a 2nd car. The major impetus for this has been the lack of housing available due to the potential closing of that housing area,and the delay in completion of the Towers. Everything, however, is still in a state of Flux, so I would say it's almost impossible to predict what the likelihood of you being allowed to move off base would be.. given that your hubby may be essential/key, I would hazard a guess that your most likely housing will be in the towers, especially since by the spring arrival date, one or both should be completed.

Living off base, while there is no longer such a thing as living on the economy, thanks to a 2005 change of regs that allows even Non-command sponsored spouses to collect OHA at the with dependant rank, you do still pay your rent in cash, usually to either your landlord or his agent. Because some banks have limits on how much you can withdraw in one day, you may have to either withdraw in multiple installments, as Gingersmurf has said, or in some instances, if you call your bank, you can make arrangements with them for that limit to be raised to cover your rent. That's something that would have to be worked out with your bank.

Utilities here off base are indeed, figured differently than in the states. While in the states you get billed on a straight kwh rate, here, they have more of a tier structure. If you use up to a certain number of kwh per month, you're billed a certain amount. If you go over that amount, you move into the next "tier" and your charges are doubled. If you go over *that* amount, you move into the next tier, and your charges are now doubled over the doubled. Electricity can quickly mount up, as many of us have discovered over the summer months. Other utilities, such as oil or city gas, are billed pretty much as they are in the states.

I hope this helps some!

Dee :)

Dee,

Thanks for all the info. You have really answered alot of my questions. I am so glad to find out that we will be able to store things. You have no idea how much easier that will make my life!!! Since we are currently living in Alaska and considered O-Conus, we are not able to stay here with non-concurent travel, which is a bit of a bother but since I plan on visiting family next summer prior to our move to Korea I think it will work out better. This way it will give my husband extra time to wait for on base housing. Even if it is behind, it should be finished by the time we arrive in August, don't you think? Since he should be arriving in May and his new Group CO said they would take care of our housing and that we shouldn't have anything to worry about. I would think he'd know about the housing issues going on right now. I'm just still nervous. They really wanted my husband there for 2 years so I'm hoping they will really be helpful. To be honest, I hate the idea of living in a "TOWER". More so because of the dogs. Although they are small our male Shih Tzu weighs 11 lbs and thinks he weighs 111 lbs. He has an inferiorty complex and thinks he has to bark at every other dog he sees to say I'm tough. So of course I'd prefer a yard. But I understand that those are few and far between. We were enlisted in the Army for 12 years and have only been on the officer side for about 5 years so I am glad that there is no segregation between ranks and housing. We don't have segregation here at Eielson due to the same issues at Osan. About 150 homes are held up in court because the guy the Air Force is leasing them from wants more money. The Air Force said "NO" and moved everyone out. So now they are empty and we all share neighborhoods. Which is great because we actually had about 10 houses around us empty for the first year and a half that we were here. As far as the OSC, I'm not a member here. Would it be a good idea to join there? Do they have Spouse Groups in each unit? We do here but the Med Group is so small that there isn't alot of participation. And we use USAA for our Insurance and financing for our vehicles, does anyone know what their policys are for bringing vehicles over to Korea?

Oh, and how is it boarding pets over there? I'd really rather send the dogs ahead with my husband. I have to board them here or there. My kids and I will be staying with my parents and the dogs are not able to stay with us. If anyone knows prices and where is a good place, I'd really appreciate it.

Again THANKS SO MUCH all of your info really helps alot. It goes along way to soothing my nerves about this move.

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Heather