Fort Hood Orders to Fort Carson: Your BAH Goes Up, and So Do Home Prices
See 2026 BAH at both posts by rank, what to do with the Killeen house, how to clear Fort Hood, and how paying off debt makes a Colorado Springs payment fit.
Moving from Fort Hood to Fort Carson raises your BAH at every grade, but Colorado Springs homes cost more than homes around Killeen, so the real question is how much house the new BAH buys.
A PCS from Fort Hood to Fort Carson moves a Soldier and family from Bell and Coryell counties in Central Texas to the south edge of Colorado Springs. If you live in Killeen, Harker Heights, Copperas Cove, Belton, or Temple, this page is for you. We are the JD.Mortgage Team at PRMG, a no-overlay VA lender based in Colorado Springs. 25+ years, 3,100+ closed loans, Scotsman Guide Top Originator 2026. Lending in 49 states. New York excluded. We qualify Fort Hood families on Fort Carson BAH once orders are in hand, and we use manual underwriting when a file needs it. If another lender said no, that is usually where our work starts.
Last updated: October 6, 2026
Guidance reference: VA Pamphlet 26-7, Ch. 3 (VA updated July 9, 2026); Ch. 4 (VA updated August 26, 2026)
PCS From Fort Hood to Fort Carson: The Short Answer
Your BAH goes up at every rank when you leave Fort Hood for Fort Carson. For a Sergeant with dependents, the raise is $663 a month. The catch is that Colorado Springs homes cost more, so the families who buy with the least stress are the ones who clear small debts before they sign.
As of Q3 2026 (September 2026): An E-5 with dependents draws $1,695 a month in BAH at Fort Hood (MHA TX286) and $2,358 a month at Fort Carson (MHA CO046). That is a $663 monthly increase (DoD 2026 BAH Rates, TX286 and CO046). VA uses 41% as a check point, not a limit, for how much of your income goes to debt payments. Above 41%, we take a closer look at your file. That step is not needed if the money left over each month after your bills is at least 20% above VA’s chart. The chart is $1,117 a month for a West-region family of four. If you fall short of that 20% cushion, a supervisor can still approve the loan with a signed note that lists the strengths in your file (VA Pamphlet 26-7, Ch. 4). A seller can pay up to 4% of reasonable value in seller concessions (extras the seller pays for you beyond normal closing costs). That money can pay off your debts (VA Pamphlet 26-7, Ch. 8).
Fort Hood BAH vs Fort Carson BAH 2026 by Rank
These are the 2026 monthly BAH rates with dependents for MHA TX286 (Fort Hood) and MHA CO046 (Fort Carson, Colorado Springs). They took effect January 1, 2026. E-1 through E-3 with dependents are paid the E-4 rate.
| Grade | Fort Hood (TX286) | Fort Carson (CO046) | Monthly Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| E-4 | $1,662 | $2,160 | +$498 |
| E-5 | $1,695 | $2,358 | +$663 |
| E-6 | $1,920 | $2,433 | +$513 |
| E-7 | $2,070 | $2,487 | +$417 |
| E-8 | $2,238 | $2,553 | +$315 |
| E-9 | $2,409 | $2,646 | +$237 |
| W-2 | $2,139 | $2,514 | +$375 |
| O-1 | $1,731 | $2,376 | +$645 |
| O-2 | $1,917 | $2,430 | +$513 |
| O-3 | $2,340 | $2,595 | +$255 |
| O-4 | $2,577 | $2,778 | +$201 |
| O-5 | $2,748 | $2,913 | +$165 |
Single Soldiers: without dependents, an E-4 goes from $1,374 at Fort Hood to $1,689 at Fort Carson (+$315). An E-5 goes from $1,530 to $1,860 (+$330).
Junior NCOs and lieutenants get the largest raise, $498 to $663 a month. Field grade officers and senior NCOs get $165 to $315. DoD sets BAH from local rents, so the gap tells you Colorado Springs rents run well above rents around Fort Hood. The raise is sized to cover a more expensive place to live. Rates here come from the DoD BAH Rate Lookup.
Killeen and Central Texas vs Colorado Springs: What Housing Costs
Texas and Colorado tax a homeowner in opposite ways. Texas has no state income tax, but local property taxes are high. The Texas Comptroller notes Texas property tax is locally assessed and administered. Colorado flips that: low property tax and a flat state income tax.
| Cost | Killeen, Harker Heights, Copperas Cove | Colorado Springs (Fort Carson) |
|---|---|---|
| Home prices | Lower. Fort Hood BAH is lower at every grade, which tracks cheaper local housing. | Median sale price in the mid-$400,000s (late summer 2026). Prices climbed sharply 2020 to 2023 and mostly held. |
| Rent vs BAH | E-5 with dependents BAH is $1,695. | A 3-bedroom rents for about $2,100 to $2,400. E-5 with dependents BAH is $2,358. |
| Property tax | High. Set locally. A $140,000 school district homestead exemption applies only to your principal residence. | Low by national standards. |
| State income tax | None. | Flat state income tax, with military pay exemptions in some cases. |
| Homeowner’s insurance | Storm risk is part of the price. | High and rising. The Front Range is one of the most active hail corridors. |
| Utilities | Summer air conditioning drives the bill. | Near the national average. Winter heating replaces summer cooling as the big month. |
Your Texas tax status can move with you. SCRA lets you keep your home state of legal residence when orders move you, so a PCS to Colorado does not by itself make your military pay taxable in Colorado. Less state tax on your pay also means more residual income.
The line item that surprises Fort Hood families is insurance. Get the roof age and an insurance quote before you sign.
Paying Off Debt to Cover the Colorado Springs Payment
Take a Sergeant (E-5) in Harker Heights with a spouse and two kids, holding Fort Carson orders. The truck is financed. There are credit cards, a personal loan from near post, and a furniture account. At Fort Carson, those bills sit next to a bigger payment. BAH below is the real 2026 rate. Base pay, debts, and payment are rounded examples.
Before: Buy With the Debts Still Open
- Base pay (example): $3,900
- Fort Carson BAH, E-5 with dependents: $2,358
- Gross monthly income: $6,258
- Debts: truck $400, credit cards $210, personal loan $260, furniture $110 = $980
- Housing payment in Fountain (example): $2,150
- Total: $3,130 ÷ $6,258
- Debt-to-income ratio = 50.0%. That is above 41%, so we take a closer look. That closer look is not needed if the money left over each month is at least 20% above VA’s chart. For an active-duty family of four, that is about $1,273.
After: Pay Off Three Accounts First
- Gross monthly income: $6,258 (no change)
- Paid off: cards ($5,200), personal loan ($6,800), furniture ($1,900) = $13,900
- Debts left: truck $400
- Housing payment (same home): $2,150
- Total: $2,550 ÷ $6,258
- DTI = 40.7%. Under the 41% benchmark, and $580 more a month counts toward residual income.
Why payoff beats a down payment on a VA loan. A monthly debt counts against you twice. It raises your DTI ratio, and it lowers your residual income, which VA measures separately under 38 CFR 36.4340. Put the same $13,900 down instead, and the payment drops by far less than $580 a month. On a $350,000 home, $13,900 is also under 5% down, so it would not even lower the 2.15% first-use funding fee tier.
Where Fort Hood families find the payoff money:
- Savings. Money you set aside at Fort Hood.
- Seller concessions. VA lets the seller pay up to 4% of reasonable value, and that can pay off your debts at closing (VA Pamphlet 26-7, Ch. 8). On a $350,000 Colorado Springs home, 4% is up to $14,000. See our VA seller concessions page.
- Equity from the Killeen area house. If you sell in Harker Heights, Copperas Cove, or Killeen, the net proceeds can clear debts before you close at Carson.
❌ Myth: “The Carson BAH is higher, so I can afford the same size house I had at Fort Hood.”
✅ Fact: BAH rises because rent rises. The same size house costs more in Colorado Springs, and the debts you carried in Texas now sit against a bigger payment. Clearing small balances first often matters more than the BAH raise.
Not sure which Fort Hood debts to pay off first? We run your DTI and residual income on Fort Carson BAH before you sign.
Run My NumbersWhat to Do With Your House at Fort Hood: Sell, Rent, or Keep
Start with the Texas homestead exemption. The school district exemption is $140,000, but only on the home that is your principal residence (Texas Comptroller). Once you buy at Fort Carson and live there, the Killeen area house is no longer your homestead. Texas Tax Code 11.43(g) says you must tell the appraisal district in writing before May 1 after your right to the exemption ends.
Sell
Selling frees cash to pay off debt and restores full VA entitlement once the VA loan is paid off. Time the sale to close before your Carson closing if you need the cash.
Rent It Out
The renter pool around Fort Hood is mostly Soldiers, and their BAH sets the ceiling. An E-5 with dependents gets $1,695 a month. Your rent has to beat the new payment, which now includes property tax without the homestead exemption. VA does not require a signed lease for this home. On your Carson loan, its rent can cancel out its payment, but it never counts as extra income. With no lease yet, we can still use the rent when homes in your area rent very easily (VA Pamphlet 26-7, Ch. 4, Topic 2.n).
Keep the VA Loan on It
Keeping the Fort Hood VA loan ties up the entitlement you used. You can still buy at Carson with your remaining, or second-tier, entitlement. A higher-priced home may then need some money down, so we run it first. If you rent now, SCRA lets you end a residential lease on PCS orders (50 U.S.C. 3955).
Clearing Fort Hood: Out-Processing and the Transportation Office
Most of the Fort Hood PCS process runs through one building. The Copeland Center, Building 18010, sits at Legends Way and T.J. Mills Boulevard. It holds Out-Processing (3rd floor), Reassignments (2nd floor), and the Personal Property Processing Office, per the garrison’s PCS Outbound page.
Fort Hood PCS Brief and Clearing Papers
E-1 through E-4 attend the out-processing brief, held Monday through Thursday at 0900 in Room B112 of the Copeland Center, no later than 14 duty days before departure. Sergeants and above take the brief online and submit documents no earlier than 14 days before departure. After 2 business days, you can pick up your installation clearing papers. Bring a signed DA 137-1 Unit Clearance Record to final out-processing (Fort Hood Out-Processing).
Fort Hood PCS Transportation Office
The Personal Property Processing Office is in Building 18010 on T.J. Mills Boulevard, open weekdays 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. You set up household goods in the Defense Personal Property System through Military OneSource, then print and sign the forms for each shipment. First-time PCS moves need face-to-face counseling, held Mondays at 1300. If you do a personally procured move, keep your weight tickets and receipts for the settlement.
Pantry Box, Cleaners, and Refund Paperwork
Movers usually will not pack open food or liquids, so set aside a pantry box to carry or give away. Book cleaners early if you are clearing on-post housing or a rental. Keep every trip receipt for your travel claim at Fort Carson.
The Drive: Fort Hood to Colorado Springs
Plan on about 800 miles and two days of driving. Most families head north out of Killeen through Central Texas toward Wichita Falls or Lubbock, then up to Amarillo. From Amarillo, a common path is US-87 northwest through Dumas and Dalhart to Clayton and Raton, New Mexico. There you pick up I-25 north over Raton Pass, through Trinidad and Pueblo, to Colorado Springs.
Amarillo, near the halfway point, is the natural overnight stop. Raton Pass is the high point of the trip and can get snow and ice from fall through spring. Check road conditions before you leave Amarillo. Panhandle crosswinds matter if you tow a trailer.
Colorado Springs sits just under 6,000 feet, far above Central Texas. Drink more water the first week.
Fort Carson vs Fort Hood: What Changes Day to Day
| Topic | Fort Hood | Fort Carson |
|---|---|---|
| Weather | Long, hot, humid summers. Mild winters. | About 300 days of sun. Dry air. Snow that melts fast. Hail in summer. |
| Schools | Texas public school districts in Bell and Coryell counties. | Fountain-Fort Carson D8 runs the on-post schools. D8 and D49 fill fastest in July. |
| Gates and commute | Commutes from Killeen, Harker Heights, and Copperas Cove. | Gates 1, 3, and 20 run 24/7. Fountain and Lorson Ranch are 10 to 15 minutes via Gate 20. |
| Outdoors | Belton Lake and Stillhouse Hollow Lake. | Pikes Peak region trails and mountains on the west side of town. |
| Big city | Austin to the south. | Denver is 60 to 75 minutes north on I-25. |
For neighborhoods by gate, on-post housing, and in-processing at the Mountain Post Soldier Center, see our full PCS to Fort Carson guide.
Your Timeline From Fort Hood Orders to a Fort Carson Closing
Build it backward from your Fort Carson report date.
120 days out: Pre-approval and the Texas house decision
Get fully pre-approved on Fort Carson BAH. Decide whether the Killeen area house gets listed, leased, or kept, and which debts to pay off first.
75 days out: House hunting and a contract
Take house-hunting leave. Ten days of PTDY is common. Write the offer with seller concessions aimed at your Texas debts.
45 days out: Appraisal, insurance, power of attorney
Order the VA appraisal, lock a hail-aware insurance quote, and sign a POA if one spouse will still be clearing Fort Hood at closing.
10 days out: Close so household goods go straight to the house
Close before your shipment arrives so it skips storage. VA expects you to move in within 60 days. A later move-in can work when you name a set date tied to a reason like your report date, but generally not more than 12 months after closing.
Holding Fort Carson orders and a report date? We build your closing date backward from it before you take leave.
Plan My ClosingPCS From Fort Hood to Fort Carson: Frequently Asked Questions
How much does BAH go up on a PCS from Fort Hood to Fort Carson?
BAH goes up at every grade. In 2026, an E-5 with dependents gets $1,695 a month at Fort Hood and $2,358 at Fort Carson, a $663 raise. An E-7 goes from $2,070 to $2,487. The raise reflects higher Colorado Springs rents.
Where do I get Fort Hood PCS clearing papers?
You get them from Out-Processing on the 3rd floor of the Copeland Center, Building 18010, at Legends Way and T.J. Mills Boulevard. E-1 to E-4 attend the brief in Room B112 at least 14 duty days before departure. Sergeants and above brief online. Clearing papers are ready about 2 business days after your data goes into the system. Bring a signed DA 137-1 to final out-processing.
Where is the Fort Hood PCS transportation office?
The Personal Property Processing Office is in Building 18010 on T.J. Mills Boulevard, open weekdays from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. You start your household goods move online through Military OneSource and the Defense Personal Property System. If this is your first PCS, you also attend face-to-face counseling on a Monday at 1300.
Can I buy a house at Fort Carson before I clear Fort Hood?
Yes. With orders in hand, we count Fort Carson BAH as income and can close before you finish clearing. VA treats move-in within 60 days of closing as reasonable. A later move-in can work when you name a set date tied to a reason like your report date, but generally not more than 12 months after closing. A power of attorney lets one spouse sign if the other is still in Texas.
Should I sell or rent my house in Killeen when I PCS to Colorado?
It depends on whether the rent covers the full payment. Around Fort Hood, most renters are Soldiers, and an E-5 with dependents gets $1,695 in BAH (housing allowance). Once the house stops being your homestead, the property tax goes up. Keeping the VA loan ties up entitlement (your VA home loan benefit), though what you have left can still buy at Carson. VA does not require a signed lease. The rent can cancel out the Killeen payment if nothing suggests it will be hard to rent, but it never counts as extra income. With no lease yet, we can still use the rent when homes in your area rent very easily.
Do I lose my Texas homestead exemption when I PCS to Fort Carson?
Yes, once you buy and live in a new principal residence in Colorado. The Texas homestead exemption, including the $140,000 school district exemption, applies only to your principal residence. Texas law says you must notify the appraisal district in writing before May 1 after your right to the exemption ends. Expect a higher tax bill if you keep it as a rental.
Do I pay Colorado income tax after a PCS from Fort Hood?
Not on your military pay if Texas stays your home state of legal residence. SCRA lets you keep your home state of legal residence when orders move you. Texas has no state income tax, so many Fort Hood Soldiers keep it. Confirm your state of legal residence on your LES.
Related Pages
About the Author
J.D. Peck is an Area Manager and Mortgage Loan Originator (NMLS #314883) with the JD.Mortgage Team at Paramount Residential Mortgage Group, Inc. (NMLS #75243), based in Colorado Springs. 25+ years, 3,100+ closed loans, Scotsman Guide Top Originator 2026. Lending in 49 states. New York excluded.
Last updated: September 24, 2026. VA loan facts sourced from VA Pamphlet 26-7 and 38 CFR. BAH figures from the Department of Defense 2026 BAH Rates tables (with and without dependents), MHAs TX286 and CO046, effective January 1, 2026. Installation details from the U.S. Army Fort Hood garrison PCS Outbound, Out-Processing, and Personal Property Processing Office pages (home.army.mil/hood) and the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts.
Run Your Fort Carson Numbers Before You Leave Texas
We price your Colorado Springs payment on Fort Carson BAH, test DTI and residual income, and show which Fort Hood debts to clear first. You get a plan for the Killeen house and a closing date built around your report date.
Source: JD.Mortgage Team at PRMG, PCS From Fort Hood to Fort Carson: BAH, Housing Costs, and VA Loans, updated September 2026, https://jd.mortgage/pcs-fort-hood-to-fort-carson/
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