Naperville was named the top city for home owners in Illinois and ranked sixth in the nation. Even the 25 percent of renters in our town get choices, which is more than can be said about our military families.
As a military family, we lived in base housing. It wasn’t luxurious, but it was clean, decently maintained, near the base, and our housing allowance covered everything.
In 1996, however, the Military Housing Privatization Initiative became the biggest-ever corporate takeover of U.S. federal housing. It transferred ownership of more than 200,000 family housing units to private developers and property managers with 50-year confidential operating contracts in partnerships with the service branches.
In an investigative report, Ambushed at Home, Reuters News reported how these developers and property managers treat our military families. They revealed that families living on U.S. bases were exposed to lead poisoning, mold-related illnesses, ceiling collapses and pest infestations. These private ventures, which house around 700,000 tenants, collect nearly $4 billion in annual rent payments. U.S. Military Advances Sprawling Mission to Quell Housing-Safety Scandal By Reuters Top News April 2019.
After years of complaints, military families have formed advocate groups to lobby for change. Previously, many were afraid of being punished for speaking out because they are in effect renting from their bosses. And after the Reuters report, the armed services (with additional prodding from some U.S. Senators) are attempting to make changes, including renegotiating those apparently inadequate contracts.
I always felt that the best thing about military housing were the neighbors. We had the emotional support of families who understood us, we were all serving our country, many times far from home. We are fortunate here to have choice in owning or renting our homes, but we would do well to develop the same sense of mutual support among neighbors as military housing neighbors have.
