Housing

Living in government housing provides easy access to a wealth of community services and amenities such as schools, youth programs, commissary/exchange, and food services. This is especially true in overseas locations, where you will find yourself much more dependent on the support facilities and services on the installation, than those in the United States.

Effective September 2009, Misawa is under an "On-Base First" Family Housing policy that was established for active-duty accompanied members and Mil to Mil co-located in Misawa.

Effective 17 November 2022, the Installation Commander implemented an "On-Base First" Unaccompanied Housing (UH) policy, established for Active-Duty members on unaccompanied orders E4 (with 3 Years or more Years of Service) through E6 assigned to Misawa. If on-base UH is available upon your arrival, members must accept an on-base unit.

As soon as you have your orders to Misawa, you should contact the Misawa Housing Office (MHO) or Air Force Unaccompanied Housing. Please submit an advance application for assignment (DD Form 1746) and Sex Offender Disclosure form to the MHO at with a complete copy of your PCS orders. The effective date of the application is the date you depart your prior installation (including members with TDY in route) or the date ordered to active duty. Please be sure your application identifies and includes supporting documentation for an impending promotion or gain of dependents so that you can be placed on the appropriate waiting list.

Applications can also be submitted upon arrival during your first visit to the MHO. MHO staff will be able to assist in the completion of the application and will review PCS orders and housing options with you. All incoming personnel must report to the MHO within 24 hours of arriving. In general, personnel can expect to wait up to 1 month to obtain a military family housing assignment.

Military Family Housing units on the Misawa AB are located in two separate housing areas, Main Base and North Area. There are apartment-style homes, both two and three bedrooms. In addition, there are town houses with two-, three- and four-bedroom units available. Generally, two-bedroom units are 1,038 square feet, three-bedroom units are 1,470 square feet and four-bedroom units are up to 1,585 square feet.

The housing area located on Main Base is where majority of the amenities are situated and most people work. North Area housing is a 10-minute drive from the Main Base. The area has a small fitness center, gas station, base beach and multiple dog parks.

Newcomers who are authorized and plan to live off base in the Misawa community should plan to pay several upfront costs prior to moving into their house or apartment. Standard practice by housing agencies at Misawa is to charge one month's rent, a security deposit equal to and/or first/last month's rent, which are all due when securing lease signing.

The MHO maintains a listing of off-base rental properties, maps of the Misawa area and English-speaking real estate agents to assist you in your search.

Japanese homes are generally much smaller than those in the United States, so be prepared for those differences. Housing allowance ceilings are normally enough to cover the homes that are available.

Housing amenities include stove, dishwasher, refrigerator, washer, and dryer. These amenities will be provided to authorized members residing in both on and off-base housing. Do not bring these items with you.

Call the Misawa Military Housing Office at 011-81-176-77-3200 or DSN 315-226-3200 for more information and questions regarding housing at Misawa Air Base. You can also visit their "Misawa Military Housing Office" Facebook page or e-mail them.

Air Force Housing website to find your new home with the Air Force. This website serves as a one-stop shop for Airmen and their families to obtain information about the housing options and support services available to them at Air Force bases world-wide. Once you have your Misawa orders at your losing base you should make contact with the Misawa Military Housing Office.

http://www.housing.af.mil

Visit InMyArea.com to search for utility providers based on your zip code. This website serves as a one-stop shop where you can explore your options, compare prices and purchase services.

We recommend not bringing vehicles to Misawa. Although you may be entitled to ship a car to Misawa, Japanese law requires extensive work to convert vehicles to Japanese specifications prior to being able to license and operate the car. In almost all cases, the conversion costs several thousand dollars and is the sole responsibility of the owner. We recommend that all U.S. cars are sold or stored before moving to Misawa. There are many reasonably priced used cars available for your time here. Cars range in price from $1,500-$6,000.

Base Services

Force Support Squadron: Recreation at Misawa Air Base includes arts and crafts, bowling, library, auto hobby, theater, golf, gym, tennis, swimming, outdoor activities, recreation center.

Commissaries: one commissary on base

Exchange system: one Exchange and one Shoppette

Financial Institutions on base: Navy Federal Credit Union and Community Bank, Misawa Branch