Housing Relief

The Defense Department has temporarily expanded the Housing Assistance Program with a $555 million boost from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to help military members who have trouble selling their primary residence in the midst of the economic downturn. That means those members at bases undergoing BRAC 2005-directed drawdowns don’t have to prove the BRAC action drove the local housing market down. That should be good news for Eglin AFB, Fla., where the 33rd Fighter Wing, which deactivates under BRAC 2005, earlier this year created a single location for its airmen to get assistance as they face reassignment issues like the depressed housing market.