Finding a Place to Live

Yokosuka

Government Housing

In 2015 Military Family Housing (MFH) at Yokosuka main base, and Ikego Hills annex totaled 2,564 homes and apartments. The Negishi Heights MFH area is no longer available for housing assignments. Housing units differ in age, construction, and layout. MFH includes recently constructed modern town houses and high rise apartments - kitchen and bathroom areas are small, and closet space is limited. There are no basements or usable attics in family housing but all MFH has air conditioning and heating. Although government quarters are not luxurious, they provide a comfortable living environment.

NAVY HOUSING ELIGIBILITY, ASSIGNMENT AND TERMINATION CRITERIA- CNIC INSTRUCTION 11103.5 

All MFH units are furnished with household appliances such as refrigerator, electric cooking stove, microwave oven, washer, dryer and dishwasher. Accordingly, it is suggested that you do not bring your own appliances with your household goods.

Married personnel are required to attend the military family housing application brief which is held Monday through Friday at 08:30 am in the Yokosuka Housing Services Center. A housing brief for all personnel (military and civilian) is held daily 09:00 - 10:00 am, Monday through Friday in the Yokosuka Housing Services Center (Note: There are no housing briefs on the first Wednesday of the month). Attendance at the Newcomer's Brief is required prior to receiving housing services at the Yokosuka Housing Services Center!

Families with dogs may not be assigned to high-rise apartment towers, except first -floor units in Ikego. Small pets, e.g., no more than two cats (spayed or neutered), fish, gerbils, birds) may be allowed in high-rise units. All pets must be registered with the Base Veterinary Services, have proper inoculations, and be micro-chipped for identification. Documentation certifying registration and inoculations must be submitted to the Housing Services Center (HSC) prior to offer of assignment of Military Family Housing (MFH). Pet cats in high-rise units must be spayed or neutered. Related documentation is to be presented at the HSC prior to offer of assignment of MFH. No more than 2 pets (i.e., two cats, two dogs or one dog and one cat) are permitted in MFH.

Newly arriving housing-eligible personnel will be provided a list of all units available for immediate assignment (if any) within their respective eligibility category. Housing selection must be made from the housing unit availability list by the close of the next business day once the list has been provided to you. If no selection is made, the first available unit shall be assigned based upon the list of available units. If no units are available in the respective eligibility category, applicants will be placed on a wait list and authorized to move off base with full Overseas Housing Allowance (OHA). A government funded local move is authorized for those who are assigned a MFH unit at a later date. In this situation, even if the assignment is declined, members may continue to live off-base with OHA allowed – and their housing assignment is considered complete for purposes of this process.

If no units are available for applicants who have been authorized for pet dogs, they will be authorized to move off base with full OHA. For those applicants authorized OHA, acceptance of OHA and the subsequent move off-base will complete the housing.

Non-Government Housing

Please use the following link to the Yokosuka Housing webpage as your source for housing information.

Yokosuka Housing Office

As discussed in the Financial Assistance section, moving into Non-Government Housing can be costly, advance planning and budgeting is key when moving into the Japanese Community. Any reassignment to an overseas duty station can be expensive, but with initial housing expenses ranging from $5,000 to $10,000 Yokosuka is near the top of the list.

The Housing Office has books of houses/units available along with their agents. The agents can negotiate with the owners of units you're interested in to meet your need and acceptable price range. There are many homes available but keep in mind this is Japan, many places are western style but it's not America. Some of the most common complaints are: lack of closets or storage (an average 2 bedroom apartment is about 850 square feet); small rooms; virtually no yard space; closeness to neighboring units; lack of insulation causes difficulties in heating/cooling; proclivity to mildew; and lack of parking. These complaints are often heard, but many houses suffer from either none or just a few of these perceived problems. It may take you some time to find exactly what you are looking for and you may have to compromise on your ideal home. Looking for a house ahead of time is tricky because most of the rental information is written in Kanji (Japanese) and very difficult to read. The Housing Office is aware of this and is more than willing to lead the way.

Electrical power in Japanese off-base residences is only 30-50 amps at 100 volts/50 cycles. On-base quarters are also provided with 100-volt/50-cycle power, and the load is also about 30-50 amps, depending on the type of housing unit. On-base quarters do have 220-volt outlets to accommodate standard American-style clothes dryers and electric ranges. Do not plan on finding Japanese quarters that will have space for a dryer, or provide a 220-volt outlet. Likewise, space restrictions preclude the installation of an American-style washing machine or a large refrigerator or deep freezer in a Japanese house. The odds of finding a place with enough space are very small.

Most U.S. appliances and other electrical equipment usually list a requirement for 110-120 volts/60 cycles. The difference in the locally available electrical current does not prohibit the use of many items, but anything with a timer or clock (washer, convection oven, microwave, clocks, etc.) will lose 10 seconds each minute (10 minutes per hour) and therefore will not operate properly.

Appliances or tools with motors, such as a vacuum cleaner or blender, will operate at a slower speed, due to the 50-cycle power frequency, but will still function adequately. Use of a transformer can help increase voltage from 100 to 110-120 volts, but IT WILL NOT boost the frequency to 60 cycles.

Many electrical appliances or home electronic devices sold in the United States are equipped with a standard 3-prong plug. Outlets for these types of plugs are almost never found in Japanese homes. 3-to-2 prong plug adaptors may be a handy item to bring with you, so you can use most of your appliances as soon as you find suitable quarters. These plug adaptors are also available on base.

Japanese homes cannot accommodate an American-style electric range. There is neither space nor an adequate electrical supply to support this appliance. On-base quarters are supplied with full size electric ranges and ovens. Off base homes usually have a 2 or 3 burner gas range. Also of note: Japanese kitchens do not have American style ovens. Instead they have fish ovens which are shallow and can only accommodate a small fish. Do not plan on cooking roasts, turkeys, or large pizzas in these ovens. Many purchase stand along convection-type ovens to enable baking and roasting American style.

The GOOD NEWS is that CFAY Housing (Self-Help) can provide you with Japanese appliances for your off-base rental quarters, if they have not already been installed by the house owner/landlord. If you are reading this information on a paper printout: do you have Internet access, or do you know someone who does? The Yokosuka CFAY Services Center has an extensive Internet Site which offers the latest, regularly updated information about housing in the Yokosuka area. It includes details on how to care for a Japanese home (they're quite different from stateside homes.)

Yokosuka has no Public Private Venture (PPV) or mobile homes available but housing does offer the Rental Partnership Program (RPP). RPP is designed to help military and DoD civilian personnel and their families find affordable, secure, quality off-base rental property. The program is available to anyone entitled to the CFAY housing referral service, which includes a wide variety of Department of Defense personnel and their families. Units meet all CFAY off-base housing acceptability criteria, including hot and cold running water, screens on all windows, sufficient electricity, parking and proximity to Commander, Fleet Activities, Yokosuka. If you are interested in RPP please contact the CFAY Housing Services Center.

Please contact the CFAY Housing Services Center for your housing questions and needs at DSN 315-243-4663 or internationally at 011-81-816-4663.

Japan has specific laws regarding SOFA sponsored service members purchasing real estate in Japan. Please contact NLSO for more information, DSN 315-243-5141, internationally at 011-81-816-5141 or online.

Sasebo

The Housing Service Center will be one of your first stops after arriving in Japan. You will find us conveniently located in building 91, the same building as PSD and Personal Property. Our office hours are Monday-Friday 08:00 am – 4:30 pm. Our DSN phone number, mailing address, Web site and e-mail address can be found on the last page.

Upon arrival to the Housing Services Center (HSC), you will need to register for our mandatory Housing Briefing. At the time you register for the Briefing, you will be given an Application Packet complete with all appropriate paperwork to be filled out and a list of documents you will need to provide us on the day of your briefing. Required documentation includes PCS Orders, Detaching Information Report, Page 2 and Dependent Entry Approval. Briefings are conducted on Monday and Thursday afternoons at 2:00 pm. Attendance of the HSC Briefing is mandatory for all incoming personnel before the off-base house hunting process can begin. For Military families, off-base leasing may not be an option as a mandatory assignment policy to Military Family Housing is in place.

It is not necessary to mail or fax your application to the HSC before you arrive in Sasebo. Your name will not be added to the waiting list until you report to Sasebo. You must apply and/or confirm your application (If sent prior to your arrival) within 30 days of your report date. In most instances your control date will be the date you detach from your last permanent duty station, and that control date determines where you are placed on the waiting list. Your name cannot affect anyone already in the freeze zone regardless of your control date. If you will be going on temporary duty prior to arriving in Sasebo, then you may wish to fax your application and all necessary data (stated above) to the Housing Office once you have detached from your permanent duty station for Housing Office planning purposes. Either way, you must apply for government housing within 30 days of your report date in Sasebo in order to receive the detach date as your control date. Additionally, if you do not apply or confirm your application within 30 days of your arrival, you will lose your original control date and you will no longer be authorized a locally funded government move from a rental unit to Military Family Housing.

Military & USCS Family Housing (MFH)

Sasebo has two separate locations: 217 units are located at Main Base, and 532 units are located in Hario Village. Tower units account for 58% of our housing inventory.

Dragon Vale housing is found directly across the street from CFAS and residents can utilize all base facilities including the commissary, medical and dental clinic, 2 gyms, swimming pool, Movie Theater, banks, restaurants, chapel, post office & Navy Exchange. Located within the Main Base housing area you will find Sasebo Elementary School (Grades K-6), E.J. King High School (Grades 7-12), Teen Center, Youth Center, and Child Development Center.

Hario Village housing area is a scenic and peaceful community located 20 to 30 minutes’ drive from CFAS.

There are two free shuttles that are offered between Main Base and Hario Village: the Home to Work Shuttle that operates on weekdays in the morning and afternoon, and the Friday and Saturday Shuttle Bus that operates on Friday and Saturday evenings. In addition to 532 family housing units, Hario Village has the larger commissary, Navy Exchange Home Store, 24 hour gym, swimming pool, outside tennis courts, Teen Center, Youth Center, Child Development Center, community center, chapel, post office, medical/dental clinic, Hario Cantina Restaurant, gas station, ATMs, Movie Theater, and small food court. Also located at Hario Village is J.N. Darby Elementary School serving grades K-6. Middle school & high school students are provided bus service to/from E.J. King School in Dragon Vale.

When you arrive in Sasebo, you are placed on the primary waiting list. You can nearly always expect your offer to be a unit located in Hario Village as 72% of all Military Family Housing is located in Hario. Due to the involuntary housing policy, military families will be required to accept their offer of Military Family Housing regardless of location or unit type. Offers will be limited to one offer (which may include several units if available). Offers are made based on family composition and do not consider pets. If no unit is available on your arrival, you will need to move off-base, remain on the waiting list and must accept the offer once a unit is available on base. Declining an offer will terminate OHA entitlements.

NOTE for dog owners: If upon your arrival there is no unit available that will allow a dog, your TLA will be for 30 days only if a vacant unit that meets your family composition is available for occupancy.

Community Housing

HOMES.mil is a new official Department of Defense (DoD) website, dedicated to helping Service members, Families, and DOD civilians find community housing. You can use HOMES.mil to search for housing available in Sasebo. Create an account on the secure HOMES.mil website and start searching. It's as easy as entering the Installation name, SASEBO JAPAN COMFLTACT (NAVY). You can refine your search to include what is most important to you in your housing search.

Sasebo is in many ways quite different from other bases in the Pacific. Upon arriving in Japan we will assist you in finding off-base housing if necessary. Counselors will explain your allowances for living off-base. Real estate agents drive you to and from your viewing appointments in their cars. Initial move-in costs to live in a Japanese home can normally run from $3,000 to $8,000 or more. The move-in cost is equal to about five months’ rent which includes agent/realtor’s fee, two months security deposit, first month’s rent, and restoration fee. Your disbursing department can loan the entire cost (for eligible personnel) needed to move, and some move-in costs (agent/realtor’s fee and restoration fee) are reimbursed to you by the Navy after the lease is signed. Your Overseas Housing Allowance (OHA), Cost of Living Allowance (COLA) and Utility Allowance will help subsidize the cost of living in Japan. All funds for TLA reimbursement and move in costs are deposited electronically to your DDS account. In order for your spouse to access these funds, they must be a joint owner of your DDS account.

TLA (Temporary Lodging Allowance) can last up to a maximum of 60 days and the clock starts the day the Military Member reports to his/her command. Example: the sponsor reports to his/her command on 1 September, and family members arrive on 15 October; sponsor and family members are entitled to only 15 days of TLA (the average family takes 34 days to secure community housing). In order to receive TLA, your family must be in Sasebo or, if not, you will need a certificate of non-availability (CNA) from Bachelor Housing Office and if assigned to a sea duty you will also need a letter stating no berthing is available. TLA extensions can be requested, but may not be approved. If you have any questions related to TLA and non-concurrent travel, contact the HSC and request to speak with an on-base counselor. We advise you to make reservations at the Navy Lodge (DSN 252-3608 or COMM Japan 0956‐50‐3608) as soon as you know when you’ll be arriving as they sometimes get booked up well in advance.

You have no doubt heard of how small all of the houses are in Japan. In reality, you will find a wide variety of sizes in both apartments and houses, from very small to quite large. Many houses can accommodate larger families and regular American-style furniture (oversized sectional couches, canopy beds, waterbeds, exceptionally heavy furniture, full dining room sets and pianos are not advised). However, you may find doorways, elevator openings, and stairwells a bit narrow, and ceilings and doorframes a bit lower than what you’re accustomed too.

A standard Japanese kitchen will have a smaller size counter top, 5 or 6 cabinets and a set of drawers. There may be space in the kitchen for additional storage shelves/units. Other rooms in the house will have tatami mats or hardwood floors. Fusuma doors (thick cardboard like paper) and rice paper window screens called shoji doors are also commonly found inside Japanese homes. Japanese homes get cold in the winter and hot/humid in the summer. The Housing Welcome Center will provide you with air conditioning/ heating units and kerosene fan heaters designed to heat and cool single rooms. The average bedroom size for a Japanese home is 9x12 to 12x12. Closet space and storage space is limited, and most closets do not provide rods to put hangers on, but you can easily find hanging racks to purchase from local Japanese stores. Yards are generally small and usually consist of plants, gravel and maybe some grass (many homes do not have a yard at all). Although there are no attached garages, you will find some covered carports. Most common for single family homes is open parking.

*If you are bringing pets to Japan, please be aware that there is a two pet policy in Military Family Housing (MFH). This means you can only have two pets in any combination (two cats, two dogs, one cat and one dog, etc.). This policy is not waiverable. Additionally, dogs are not allowed in towers in MFH. As pets are not a consideration for MFH, you will be offered the next available unit. If you have a dog and are offered a unit that does not allow dogs, your TLA will be no more than 30 days from the possible move in date. Dogs are allowed in only 19% of two-bedroom units and 29% of three-bedroom units in Hario. For Dragon Vale, 50% of two bedrooms and 11% of three-bedrooms will accommodate dogs. None of our TLA-approved hotels will allow pets. MWR has a kennel with 10 spaces available. For more information, please call MWR at DSN 252-3320 or COMM Japan 0956-50-3320. Sasebo does have a base Veterinary Clinic (DSN 252-3585 or COMM Japan 0956-50-3585) to assist you with all information concerning your pets.

Housing supplies appliances (washer, dryer, stove, refrigerator) for both off-base rentals and government housing for qualified personnel. Please do not bring your own major appliances. We do not have storage space for these items and your off-base residence will not accommodate American-style appliances. In addition, there are no rental storage facilities to be found off-base. Please check with your Personal Property Office regarding storage information for your major appliances. You should bring your own microwave oven. A microwave oven can be provided to you while living off-base, if your unit will not accommodate a government oven.

The commissary does their best to accommodate all of the American families here in Sasebo, but their space is limited and they don’t have nearly the variety of food items as the grocery stores in the U.S. So if there are certain brands you prefer, favorite cereals, or special foods you can’t do without, you may want to stock up on these items prior to your move to Japan. Here is a list of additional items you might want to purchase before moving to Japan: electric blankets, air tight containers to store food, shelf units, slippers, favorite make-up, favorite shampoo, clothes rods, rain coats and umbrellas for the rainy season (June – July). When you receive orders to Sasebo, please make a list of your questions and call, write or email the Housing Service Center. Asking us directly will allow you to make plans and receive complete and accurate information regarding housing. If you write or email, please provide the sponsor’s rank, family composition, and types of pets (if any).

DSN NUMBER: 315-252-3402