PCS to Davis-Monthan Air Force Base
Davis-Monthan is one of the three anchors of Tucson's job market, with roughly 10,000 to 11,000 military and civilian jobs. It is home to the 355th Wing and the 309th AMARG, the aircraft boneyard you will see from the road. The base is in the middle of a mission change, with the A-10 retiring, so check current base news if your move depends on a specific unit.
The housing allowance
The 2026 Basic Allowance for Housing for Tucson is $1,695 a month for an E-3 or E-4 with dependents. Rates change every year and vary by rank and dependency status, so use the official Department of Defense BAH calculator for your own rate rather than any table, including this page. The PCS Pay It Forward Davis-Monthan guide is a good companion read.
BAH figure: 2026 rates for the Tucson military housing area, via PCS Pay It Forward, accessed November 2026.
Where base families land
Rita Ranch and Vail are the most popular off-base areas, and it is not close: 10 to 15 minutes to the base gates, the top-ranked Vail Unified school district, and newer houses that fit a military budget, with a median around $410,000 in a November 2026 snapshot. Three-bedroom rentals in the area run roughly $1,600 to $2,200 a month (PCS Pay It Forward Davis-Monthan guide).
East and southeast Tucson are the other common choice: closer-in neighborhoods, older housing stock, shorter drives to the rest of the city, and school assignments that vary street by street, so verify the school for the exact address.
On base: Soaring Heights Communities runs base housing. Waitlists are common, so apply as soon as you have orders if base housing is part of your plan. There are no DoDEA schools on base; kids attend the local districts.
The timeline to work backwards from
- As soon as you have orders: apply for Soaring Heights if you want on-base housing, and get your VA loan paperwork moving if you plan to buy.
- Three months out: narrow to two areas, usually Rita Ranch and Vail against one closer-in option, and start watching listings so you learn prices before you have to act.
- One month out: house hunt by live video tour if you cannot travel. Slow pans, the AC age plate, the roof from the yard, the street in both directions.
- Offer and closing: do not waive the inspection, even on a tight PCS timeline. Roof, AC, termites, and pool equipment are the desert list. Remote closing is routine here.
- First week: utilities on (Tucson Electric Power, Southwest Gas, Tucson Water for most base-area homes), pest control scheduled, and your Arizona vehicle registration and emissions test on the calendar.
Buying sight unseen, done right
Plenty of Davis-Monthan families buy before they arrive, and the version that works always has the same shape: areas picked first, a lender who has done VA loans for PCS buyers, video tours that feed a decision, a full inspection, and a closing handled from wherever you are. The out-of-state playbook on this site is that process in full. Buying the house remotely is reasonable. Buying the neighborhood remotely is where the mistakes happen.
Start with the free guide, then let us talk areas
The Tucson Relocation Guide covers costs, climate, water, all the areas, schools, and the out-of-state buying playbook. Updated November 2026, free, no spam.