Anyone stationed at Ft Hood?

[KrystalS]

Well we were supposed to be going to Ft Riley but DH found out yesterday he's being sent to Ft Hood. I'm not happy about it at all. I've heard horrible things about Hood. I'm hoping anyone who's been or is there now can put a rest to my worries! We are planning to live on post. Mostly because I've heard the crime rate in the Killeen area is really high, and DH will be in the field a lot and likely be deployed again so I need a place where I feel safe alone.
I know that Hood is HUGE so I'm trying to figure out which housing areas I need to look into. I would like to be as close as possible to DH's work. He's going to 1/7 CAV if anyone happens to know where that is located on post.

[wendmatt]

DH was there for 4 years before we met. He said it's a huge post so of course there is some crime there, same as every post. You just learn the bad areas to avoid. He said it's nothing like as bad as you made out but it's also not the nicest place he's been stationed. It's less than an hour to Austin which is an awesome city. We're in San Antonio now (since July) and I love being in TX. He has no idea about housing areas coz he lived off post and it's grown alot since he was there. Sorry I'm not too helpful but wanted you to know that I'm sure it will be alot better than you are imagining. Good luck with the move.

[JBaxter]

My brother is there now. He and his family live in Harker Heights. Believe me my SIL would NOT live in a high crime area. My nephews are almost 6 and 3 and seem to have a wonderful little community. Walk to the park, neighbor hood kids etc. Nephew plays on a kickball league rides the bus 3 blocks to school ( K). My brother is just back from his 3rd tour in Iraq and SIL was there with the boys for the past year on her own.

[lmwbasye]

We lived at Hood for 4 years and really liked it. You just need to pay attention to the area around where you are looking for housing. We still own our house off of Stan Schluter Loop towards Harker Heights and I lived there alone for awhile while DH was deployed and felt completely safe. Harker Heights is great and Copperas Cove was pretty decent. It's not as bad as some people make it out to be. I worked in the school system there and felt it was fairly decent (of course...depends on the school). Austin is an hour away and there is so much fabulous stuff to do there. Not sure about living on post since there was a huge waitlist there while we lived there. Not sure how it is now.

We are fixing to move in 5 months (again..LOL) and Hood is on our short list of requested posts. Feel free to ask any more questions. I can go into more detail, but not totally sure what sort of specifics you are looking for.

[lmwbasye]

Oh, and we MUCH MUCH MUCH prefer Hood to Riley. MUCH MUCH MORE!! LOL

[KrystalS]

Oh, and we MUCH MUCH MUCH prefer Hood to Riley. MUCH MUCH MORE!! LOL

Thank you so much for posting!! Very reassuring!

[hardysmom]

My BIL was stationed there a couple of years prior to deployment in Iraq.

They'd had a pretty cushy army life prior to that post-- Germany, grad school in Florida, West Point, etc... so SIL was nervous.

The bought fantastic house in Copperas Cove. We went down to visit a few times... HUGE yard, felt rural, but close-in.

They've lucked out and have stayed in Germany since BIL's time in Iraq, but I know if they came back to the states, Hood would be high up on their lists.

The kids were just baby/toddlers at the time, so I don't know much about the schools. My SIL is German and is pretty picky. She actually liked Hood and LOVED being so close to Austin.

Hope this helps.
Stephanie

[army_mom]

Fort Hood isn't bad. It's a big Army post with a lot of people so, yes, crime can be an issue. There are a lot of nice places to live both on and off post that are perfectly safe and nice. Killeen does have some very nice neighborhoods close to post and renting a house is pretty easy. We live in Harker Heights, which is only a 10-15 min drive to post. If you live on post, they do have some nice, newer housing areas. I don't know much about those as we have never lived on post.

Austin is close and a great city. Dallas/Fort Worth, San Antonio, or Houston are not too far with lots to do. Some outlet mall only 45 minutes south and a really big ones about 2 hours south. If you need a daycare for DC on post, register as soon as you arrive as it could be months before a slot opens. Feel free to ask questions...its been 8 months since I've been there and we are fairly new to the area ourselves but I'll do my best.

1-7 Cav is currently redeploying from Iraq so it will be at least a year before your DH has to deploy again :-)

Feel free to ask any questions.

[KrystalS]

1-7 Cav is currently redeploying from Iraq so it will be at least a year before your DH has to deploy again :-)

Feel free to ask any questions.

Thanks! Yes thats why we ended up getting orders switched to Hood b/c the unit at Riley was getting deployed and since DH redeploys in May they wouldn't send him there. I hate the idea of another deployment when this one isn't even over yet!! But thats army life I guess.

What is your DHs commute like? I've heard traffic is horrible there. DH really likes to come home after pt and for lunch, not sure if this will be possible living off post.

[army_mom]

It really just depends on where you live. The post is really very big so even if you live on post at a housing unit away from where DH does PT, it may take just as long to get home as it would off post. If you could get a house near his unit, it would probably be better for you since he likes to come home twice a day. Yes, traffic can be very bad, especially for PT and at the end of the duty day. If you are having a hard time deciding where to live (mostly off post), have DH take the drive from house to work and PT area during the hours he expects to drive. It may *look* like a short commute, but certain areas can get very congested as 190 is the primary means for EVERYONE to get to and from post and EVERYONE pretty much works the same hours. I always left home 10 minutes early to miss all the traffic (makes a HUGE difference) and would spend those extra 10 minutes at daycare with DD before leaving her for the day. Our commute to post from Harker Heights is roughly 15 min no traffic to 35 min with traffic.

The good thing with your DH coming home in May but Cav coming home now is that he gets at least 12 months from HIS date of return. If they leave in 1 year, he gets to stay and deploy when his time is up.