stationed at fort bliss soon (El Paso, Beaumont: 2013, rent, crime) - City-Data Forum

mrsrobinson73 · 01-20-2009, 03:15 PM

Hello all :0)
I hesitate to post yet ANOTHER thread about "what its like to live in El Paso". I have been reading the El Paso forums for a week straight ~ i think my eyes are BUGGY even. And now im so scaired! I hear so many BAD THINGS about El Paso, and the people who post positive things are kind of told "hey thats YOUR opinion, but if you be honest you'd tell them the truth"

BOTTOM LINE..............being in the military our wages are the same no matter where we go ~ so, that being said, is it reasonably affordable for a military family to get a nice decent house there? We will probably be there for a long time, and maybe even just stay there. I was born and raised in alamogordo for the first half of my life, but its been a long time. The talk of property taxes SCAIRE me. I've owned houses in california and washington, but to be honest dont' even know what the taxes were (bad i know) but i just know that on a $150,ooo.oo house our monthlyl payment was $1200.00

We are going there, regardless, but i would like to beleive there are redeeming qualties about El Paso other than just good weather and mexican food! Not that those aren't good qualities! I have three kids and jsut want to live and be happy.

I plan on taking the kids all over new mexico and texas for day and weekend trips and well anyway, just looking for a new angle here maybe?

he he i really have read almost all the threads and have really enjoyed looking at the pics of el paso on the pic thread

thanks...........

mrsrobinson

Muhnay · 01-20-2009, 03:18 PM

Really.. Get paid the same anywhere.. Ok when you get here, let me know how much your BHA drops.

no need to be SCARED. ( no I ).

Good luck. Fort Bliss will be a great post come 2013 when the majority of the building is done, and the new standard of living is in full swing here.

mrsrobinson73 · 01-20-2009, 03:23 PM

um yea our base pay wont change, but your right the BAH will. But, its not THAT big of a difference to be honest. We get 1150 in Tacoma Washington ~ and it will to go 1054 at El Paso ~ so, not enough to make a drastic difference.

Sorry about the typo will try to never do THAT again LOL. I had a lot more than that one, but you didn't correct them all??

So you think that the economy and fort bliss will create a new standard of living? In a good way? That is good to hear. Thanks for the reply.

Muhnay · 01-20-2009, 03:30 PM

Was not trying to be a spelling Nazi.. just trying to help with one word.. thats all.. the one word you kept drawing attention too with the big letters. =)

Really then your getting lucky with the bha, Bah, I always call it bha = Basic Housing Allowance. I know families that have been dropped to below 600 here and they cant make the rent on that alone, guess they either raised it, or you or I got some faulty info. I cant believe the BHA is that close compared to the two cities, I have to look into that.

No I dont think the economy will.. I think Fort Bliss will loose its stigma of being a BASSACKWARD post.. and come in line with the rest of the Army. Oh times are gonna get rough here when all you soldiers fall upon us. Crime will shoot though the rough, resources will be strained, and thats just the beginning. Good luck.

mrsrobinson73 · 01-20-2009, 03:45 PM

yea well I guess im just scared! he he. Well, if you look up the BAH rates, for our rank and dependents it has Fort Bliss at 1054. Im *hoping* thats right, but all the other rates are right too so I don't know why Bliss would be the only one incorrect. I was surprised too at the difference in housing, but my husband also got promoted since then ~ so that could be part of it.

I didn't know Fort Bliss was considered a backwards post lol. Course I don't ever hear ANYTHING about it, and if it was a great one, like Lewis, or Carson, then I suppose I would have heard about it.

Im still nervous and scared. No one wants to know that where they are going is a horrible place ~ and thats the "feeling" I get from posters. So I really like reading the positive ones LOL.

thanks again ~

mrsrobinson73 · 01-20-2009, 03:54 PM

oh and it is Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH)~ that much I AM positive about :0)

usmc el paso · 01-20-2009, 04:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Muhnay

Was not trying to be a spelling Nazi.. just trying to help with one word.. thats all.. the one word you kept drawing attention too with the big letters. =)

Really then your getting lucky with the bha, Bah, I always call it bha = Basic Housing Allowance. I know families that have been dropped to below 600 here and they cant make the rent on that alone, guess they either raised it, or you or I got some faulty info. I cant believe the BHA is that close compared to the two cities, I have to look into that.

No I dont think the economy will.. I think Fort Bliss will loose its stigma of being a BASSACKWARD post.. and come in line with the rest of the Army. Oh times are gonna get rough here when all you soldiers fall upon us. Crime will shoot though the rough, resources will be strained, and thats just the beginning. Good luck.

That is your opinion and one that I don't agree with at all. I think the positives of the tremendous growth at Ft Bliss will far outweight the possible negatives. I do agree with you however that crime might rise a little bit since we will be getting close to 80k new inhabitants to our city. But don't think it will be a radical change to worry most El Pasoans. Keep in mind that Greater El Paso Chamber of Commerce is doing a good job of attracting higher paying jobs from conpany's like Automatic Data Processing to our city and is also trying to spin off more health related jobs and industry with the Medical Center of the Americas with it's main tenant as the Paul L. Foster School of Medicine.

mrsrobinson73 · 01-20-2009, 04:30 PM

wouldn't the additional troops help boost the economy even just a little? I mean, that many troops are going to need places to live, stores to shop at, and mexican food to buy??? Especially troops coming from Germany as there is NO shopping here at all and believe me the woman are just ready to shop at walmart, target, and MALLS.............. would that not help the economy at all?

usmc el paso · 01-20-2009, 05:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mrsrobinson73

wouldn't the additional troops help boost the economy even just a little? I mean, that many troops are going to need places to live, stores to shop at, and mexican food to buy??? Especially troops coming from Germany as there is NO shopping here at all and believe me the woman are just ready to shop at walmart, target, and MALLS.............. would that not help the economy at all?

Of course and that is not just your opinion or mine, every economic expert has indicated that this will be the biggest economic boost to the city of El Paso since the railroad was first established in the late 1800's. Here is a link of the positive effects of the expansion at Ft Bliss and what it will mean to the economy.

BRAC impact massive: Beaumont hospital may be rebuilt

Moderator cut: copyrighted article

usmc el paso · 01-20-2009, 05:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mrsrobinson73

wouldn't the additional troops help boost the economy even just a little? I mean, that many troops are going to need places to live, stores to shop at, and mexican food to buy??? Especially troops coming from Germany as there is NO shopping here at all and believe me the woman are just ready to shop at walmart, target, and MALLS.............. would that not help the economy at all?

Here is another article explaining the massive impact BRAC will have on the El Paso economy.

Massive Fort Bliss expansion revitalizing outlook for El Paso

Moderator cut: copyrighted article

I would take the opinions of the experts over the opinions of bloggers that have a "gut" feeeling as to what the economic impact will or will not be.