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Pay
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While stationed at Iwakuni and living On Base, you will receive:
Note: If you are accustomed to living off base and receiving BAH, and choose to live on base at Iwakuni, you will not receive BAH. However, if you calculate the sum of your rent plus utilities you pay for now, and compare it to the few bills you will have to pay living on base, I think you will find that your finances will work out even more to your advantage living at Iwakuni. If you choose to live off base, you will incur the typical costs of rent and utilities, but you will also receive BAH to help defray those costs.
While stationed at Iwakuni and living Off Base, you will receive:
OHA (Overseas Housing Allowance), as it is reported on the rates tables, consists of two recurring monthly payments, the OHA Rental Ceiling (the amount provided to cover your rent) and the Utility/Recurring maintenance/miscellaneous Allowance (the amount provided to cover your utilities), as well as a one-time Move-In-Housing Allowance (MIHA) to help offset the expense of moving into off-base housing.
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Banking and Currency
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Banks on base include Navy Federal and Community Bank FSNB (part of Bank of America). There are NO Marine Federal banks upon Iwakuni. There are ATMs available for your convenience, and credit cards are accepted most locations.
You can exchange US Dollar and Yen on base at the bank or at the Cash Cage in the Exchange. You can withdraw Yen directly from your checking or savings account at any Community Bank ATM, two of which are located in the Crossroads Mall Food Court and outside the 7-Day Store by the Exchange. You can withdraw Yen in 5000 Yen increments, and 5000 Yen is roughly equivalent to $50, depending on the exchange rate.
Prices on base are listed in USD (US Dollars).
When shopping off base, it is generally easier to pay in Yen than with credit cards. Be aware that your credit card company may charge a small currency conversion surcharge if you use your card off base.
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Bills
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On Base:
Living on base in Iwakuni is like living on base in the US. You only have to pay for internet, telephone, and whatever debts you bring with you or miscellaneous bills you incur. Expect to spend about $45 for internet acces, $35 for basic telephone service plus long distance charges. You will not pay rent, electric, cable tv, or water bills while living in base housing. Any other bills you have will be purely on an individual basis, such as vehicle payments, insurance, cell phones, etc.
Off Base:
Living off base in Iwakuni, you will pay the same bills as what you would expect to pay off base in the States, including rent (which begins around $1000/month) and utiliites (which average $200-$500).
The Family Housing Office will have the utilities turned on in time for your move. There are several ways to pay for your utilities: at the utility company, at 7-11 (similar to stateside 7-11’s), or by deduction from your Japanese bank account, which the housing office will also assist you with obtaining.
Normally for a 3 or 4 bedroom house a total of 4 months rent is required up front (some agents require 5 months rent up front). This includes one month's rent for an agent fee, 2 month's rent for damage deposit, and the first month's rent. (Agent fee is reimbursable with copy of receipt. Damage deposit will be refunded upon completion of contract minus any damages.)
Refer to the chart on the official MCAS Iwakuni website for specifics on monthly rent and utility costs for off base housing based on the number of bedrooms in the quarters.
You can add various expenses into your lease, such as: heaters, installation of satellite (required if you want AFN channels), additional AC units, move-out cleaning fee, etc. You just have to make sure you don't go over your OHA ceiling and that you consider the cost of your other bills in addition to what you add so you can be sure you have enough to cover everything. For example, if your rent is $900/month and your OHA ceiling is $1400/month. That gives up to $500/month to add in little extras depending on what you need.
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Electricity
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On Base:
In base housing, everything is set up for American electrical plugs. As with base housing in the US, you will not incur a bill for electricity.
During the summer months, there are often Green Out periods, during which the base is near its allotted electrical useage as determined by their agreement with the Japanese electric company which supplies the base. You will be asked to conserve electricity during Green Outs. This is done by turning off lights and air conditioners in rooms where they are not being used, and by powering down electrical equipment (such as computers, coffee pots, televisions, washers, dryers, dishwashers, etc) during the peak hours of the day. The base is charged more for electricity during the middle of the day, so not using devices that consume large amounts of power during those hours is the most effective conservation tactic.
Off Base:
If you decide to live off-base, you will need to use adaptors to make your American plugs work with the Japanese sockets. Adaptors are provided by the base at no cost to you.
Part of your OHA (Overseas Housing Allowance) is categorized as, "Utility, Recurring maintenance, miscellaneous Allowance" which is about $550 and is provided to cover your utility bills. If you go over this amount, you will have to pay for it out of your own pocket.
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Appliances
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On Base:
The only appliances you will need are your small kitchen appliances (microwave, coffee pot, toaster, etc). The housing units here come with refrigerators, stoves, and dishwashers. The standard sized American washers/dryers will fit in both the midrises and townhouses, but if you are new and did not bring a washer or dryer, housing can supply one to you for your tour. If you are already a resident in housing and your washer or dryer dies on you, they can also supply loaner ones
to you but please remember that this depends on the availability of appliances in the warehouse, as sometimes the supply runs low, especially during the PCS season.
A Note About Clothes Dryer Plugs:
If you are bringing your clothes dryer, make sure yours has a 3-prong, 6-foot power cord, because the base uses only 3-prong power outlets for the dryers, and the exchange has had difficulty getting 3-prong cords in stock recently. Newer houses in the US use 4-prong outlets, so just be sure your dryer has a 3-prong plug or that you buy a 4-prong to 3-prong adapter for it before you PCS. It would be a good idea to go ahead and attach the adapter to the plug before the movers come to pack things up, just so you don't lose it during the move.
Off Base:
The off-base homes are much smaller than American homes. They do not have hookups for American washers and dryers, but you can purchase a Japanese washer and dryer to use, or arrange to include a set when you fill out your contract. You may also opt to switch out the Japanese stove/refrigerator for American ones during the contract arrangement, as well as include any move-out cleaning fees and other miscellaneous items during this time.
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Heating and Air Conditioning
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On Base:
Both midrises and townhouses have central air and heating. The base controls the power cycling for both heating and air conditioning to save money. For example, during the winter the heat may be on for a few hours then off for a few hours. As a result, sometimes it can get a little cold for a couple of hours.
Off Base:
Homes off base are generally not well insulated. There is no central heat or air, and it gets quite hot in the summer and cold in the winter. During winter, I am told that your shampoo will be frozen in the bathroom! The heat is generally an indoor natural gas heater provided only for the bedroom. The electric bills can be quite substantial if you try to use electric heat or air. For example, if you leave your heat or air conditioning on 24/7 you will go over the amount that the government provides you for utilities. The base provides space heaters and dehumidifiers for you to use.
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Television
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On Base:
As with base housing in the US, television access is provided at no cost, by AFN (Armed Forces Network). There are about 10 American channels, and another 30 from other countries, mostly Japanese. Check out My AFN for show times and listings.
Off Base:
AFN is available off-base at no cost; all you need is a decoder box that you can obtain through the Housing Office and a satellite to receive the channels. You will
get 9 or so channels: AFN Prime Atlantic, AFN sports, AFN Prime Pacific, AFN Movie, AFN kids, AFN Spectrum, Pentagon Channel, AFN Xtra and AFN news. If your home doesn't have the satelite set up already you might have to pay to have it installed at a cost of around $100, which you can opt to have written into your lease agreement and pay along with your monthly rent if you prefer not to pay the lump sum up front.
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Telephone
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On Base:
The cost is 4 cents per minute to call the US with Iwakuni's telephone service (KDDI). The monthly fee is around $34. You can get a second line for a little less, allowing you to keep your main phone line open while using the secondary line for dial-up. If you get DSL, the second line will be used for DSL service (yes, I know, that's not how it works in the US, we use line filters, but the base telephone system works differently for some reason). If you previously used your second line for fax, and you get DSL, you can find services that allow you to fax over the Internet connection or through VoIP packages.
Off Base:
Initial telephone hookups vary depending on the condition of the house, age of the telephone line, etc. but average between 2,000 - 9,000 yen ($20 - $90, depending on the current yen rate). Basic fee for services is 2,450 yen (around $25.00). Many people elect to use cell phones or VoIP (eg: Vonage) while living off base.
Off base telephone service is set up through the base telephone office, and the monthly bill may be paid at the convenience stores off base. You will have a local Iwakuni number (32-XXXX) as opposed to a DSN number (253-XXXX) that those who live in base housing receive.
You do have to use a phone card in order to call the US from your off base telephone, and the rates depend on the phone card you use, which is the reason most people use Vonage or some other VoIP provider.
Many people opt not to even get the local phone line, and instead use Vonage through their Internet service and get the Asia plan, which allows you unlimited calls to numbers within Japan as well as unlimited calls to the US, for $34.99 a month (compared with the regular ulimited calls to the US, Canada, and Puerto Rico for $24.99 a month).
Stateside telephones work both on and off base, however, if you use cordless telephones, please avoid those which operate on the 900mHz band, because this is the frequency used by Japanese emergency services and your telephone may disrupt their services.
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Cell Phones
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Cell phones are available, but you may not find them as useful as you do in the US, due to the expense. The cost is about a dollar or more per minute to call the US, and the plans do not include as many minutes as you may be accustomed to in the US. However, one perk is that with Japanese cellular companies, you are not charged for incoming minutes. Additionally, some Japanese cell phone companies have recently introduced ulimited mobile-to-mobile packages, which can be very handy for families and friends who use the same cellular provider.
There is a SoftBank (formerly Vodafone) cell phone kiosk on base. There are other cellular providers located off base, such as AU by KDDI.
Please be aware that the Japanese have different etiquette regarding cell phone use in public places than we are accustomed to in the US. For example, cell phone use on public transportation is usually prohibited in some way due to the potential risk electronic devices may pose to people using pacemakers, as well as the nuisance of additional noise levels during congested travel times.
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(Images: AFN on base, Japanese Yen. Source: Google Images)
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