Here’s what that reduction in Basic Allowance for Housing is costing troops Privatized housing at Kirtland Air Force Base. (Todd Berenger/Air Force) Most troops paid at least $1,000 a year out of pocket in 2020 because of reductions in the Basic Allowance for Housing, according to an analysis by government auditors. “The fact that DoD has been reducing the Basic Allowance for Housing has not gotten a whole lot of attention, so it may be a surprise to some service members and their families,” Elizabeth Field, director of the Government Accountability Office’s Defense Capabilities and Management team, told Military Times. “For military families living off base in housing they find in the local economy, the reduction means that they’ve had to share more of the cost of housing than they have in the past.”