Air Force

Travis AFB

Verified profile · 2026-07-01

Fairfield, CA · ~15,000 assigned

Overview

Installation overview

BAH Cost Index

1.18

Median Home Price

$520,000

Average Commute

12–25 min

VA Loan Activity

Moderate

What this installation is

Home to the 60th Air Mobility Wing and David Grant USAF Medical Center, the Air Force's largest medical center — a major strategic airlift hub roughly an hour from both Sacramento and the San Francisco Bay Area, which pulls its housing market between two very different regional cost levels.

Editorial guidanceWritten for context, not sourced from official DoD mission statements — see methodology.

Financial

BAH & cost of living

Typical monthly BAH at Travis AFB

Pay grade	With dependents	Without dependents
E4	$3,090	$2,697
E6	$3,498	$3,054
O3	$3,537	$3,087

VerifiedReal 2026 DFAS with-dependents rate. Without-dependents figures are estimated — see the full BAH Calculator.

Full calculator

Housing market snapshot

Median home price

$520,000

Average commute

12–25 min

VA loan activity

Moderate

Run your own numbers before assuming buying makes sense here — commute and price data above are the inputs, not the verdict.

Compare buying vs. renting

Neighborhood Explorer

Where families live

Sort by what matters to you — price, commute, or our recommended order.

VerifiedReviewed by the panel credited at the top of this page — commute and price ranges are directional, not guaranteed for any specific address.

Sort by

Fairfield

Family-Friendly

Commute: 8–15 min
Median price: $480,000
Walkability: Car-Dependent
Home styles: Single-family

Best fit: Shortest commute, largest inventory

Schools serving this area

Fairfield High School — Average

Vacaville

Very Family-Friendly

Commute: 15–25 min
Median price: $550,000
Walkability: Somewhat Walkable
Home styles: Single-family

Best fit: More amenities, slightly longer commute

Schools serving this area

Vacaville Elementary — Above Average

Suisun City

Family-Friendly

Commute: 10–18 min
Median price: $460,000
Walkability: Somewhat Walkable
Home styles: Single-family, Condos

Best fit: More affordable, near-post option

Vallejo

Mixed

Commute: 25–35 min
Median price: $500,000
Walkability: Somewhat Walkable
Home styles: Single-family, Condos

Best fit: Bay Area-adjacent, longer commute, transit options

Schools

Schools families ask about most

Average

Fairfield High School

high school

Largest, closest high school option to the main gate. Commute implication: this is the zoned option for families living in 1 of the neighborhoods above.

Editorial guidanceEducational-fit notes, not an official state rating.

Above Average

Vacaville Elementary

elementary school

Frequently cited as worth the slightly longer commute versus Fairfield. Commute implication: this is the zoned option for families living in 1 of the neighborhoods above.

Editorial guidanceEducational-fit notes, not an official state rating.

Builders

Who's building here

Pacific Rim Builders

Builder with active communities near Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam and Travis AFB — the two highest-cost, most Pacific-facing installations on this list.

Typical price positioning: $480k–$900k
Construction style: Single-family and condos, higher-density lots typical of Hawaii and Bay Area-adjacent markets
Best-fit buyer: Dual-income households or buyers bringing a larger down payment — both markets require a different affordability conversation than most installations, and Hawaii specifically requires factoring COLA into the math.

Editorial guidanceNot a paid placement — see methodology.

PCS Timeline

Your relocation, step by step

8–12 weeks before report date

Orders in hand, plan the move

Confirm report date and entitlements with your losing unit's admin section
Decide buy, rent, or wait-and-see for your destination
Start a PCS folder: orders, LES, dependents' records

Common mistake: Waiting on the housing decision until move week — the best rentals and quick-close new builds get taken early.

4–8 weeks before

Lock the logistics

Schedule your HHG shipment (or start a PPM/DITY estimate)
Line up financing pre-approval if buying
Start the lease or purchase process at your destination

Common mistake: Booking movers at the last minute during peak PCS season (May–August), when good dates disappear fast.

1–2 weeks before

Final details

Confirm final walkthrough / turnover for on-post housing if applicable
Transfer or schedule utility disconnect/connect dates
Update your address with DEERS, banks, and insurance

Common mistake: Forgetting to schedule utility connection at the new home in advance — showing up to a house with no power is common and avoidable.

First 30 days at the new installation

Get settled

In-process at your gaining unit and register at the newcomers office
Enroll kids in school and register vehicles if required by the state
Confirm your BAH rate actually reflects your new duty station and dependency status

Common mistake: Not double-checking that BAH updated correctly on the first LES at the new station — pay errors are common right after a PCS.

VA Loan Guidance

Financing this move

Purchase information first, refinancing later — the order a relocating family actually needs it.

Eligibility

VA Loan Eligibility & Entitlement

Who qualifies, how entitlement is calculated, and how to pull your Certificate of Eligibility.

Buying here

The VA Funding Fee, Explained

What it costs, who's exempt, and how it factors into your closing costs.

Buying With a VA Loan, Step by Step

From pre-approval to closing — what's different about a VA purchase versus conventional.

Already have a VA loan?

The VA IRRRL Refinance

A streamlined refinance for veterans who already have a VA loan — when it helps and when it doesn't.

Looking for loan assumption or SCRA protections? Those live in the full VA Loan Center.

IllustrativeFull VA Loan Center

Local Intelligence

What a local would tell you

Traffic, weather, utilities, and the things that don't show up in a listing.

Traffic

I-80 congestion toward the Bay Area is a real factor if a spouse commutes toward Sacramento or San Francisco for work.

Weather

Hot, dry Central Valley summers with cooler, wetter winters, and occasional wildfire smoke in late summer and fall.

Insurance

Wildfire risk affects homeowners insurance availability in some Vacaville-adjacent areas — confirm coverage before committing to a specific address.

Recreation

Within reach of Napa Valley, Sacramento, and the Bay Area for weekend options.

Veteran Resources

David Grant USAF Medical Center on post is a major regional military medical hub; the VA Northern California Health Care System serves the broader area.

Live data — coming soonThese notes are written editorially today. Live traffic, weather, and flood-zone data feeds are a planned future integration — see the README’s architecture notes.

Related Guides

Worth reading before you move

PCS Center

SCRA Protections During a PCS

Lease termination rights and interest rate caps every service member should know.

6 min read · Reviewed by Legal review panel

PCS Center

Leaving the Military: A Housing Timeline for Separation

You're not PCSing to a new duty station — here's what to plan for instead, and when.

9 min read · Reviewed by Transition & VA lending panel

PCS Center

Shipping Your Pet and Vehicle During a PCS

What the military covers, what you pay for, and the quarantine paperwork that trips people up.

7 min read · Reviewed by PCS relocation panel

PCS Center

Dual-Military PCS: Getting Stationed Together

Join-spouse programs improve your odds of co-location — they don't guarantee it.

7 min read · Reviewed by PCS relocation panel

What to do next

Not a funnel — pick whichever actually moves you forward.

Tool

Estimate your BAH at Travis AFB

Tool

Run buy vs. rent for this move

Mission

I need to decide whether to buy or rent

Run your actual numbers, on your actual timeline, before you commit either way.

When you're ready to execute

Two partners, only if you need them

PCS & Two-Home Moves

Homebird

A PCS often means selling at your losing base and buying — or renting — at your gaining one, on a fixed timeline. Homebird runs the whole thing as one coordinated move: sourcing your listing agent and purchasing agent, a right-fit lender, movers, insurance, and getting your new place actually livable — utilities, internet, and home security — whether or not you have an employer relocation benefit.

1.Sell your current home — Listing agent sourced and managed for you.
2.Buy or rent at your next base — A purchasing agent who knows the area.
3.Move in and get connected — Movers, insurance, utilities, internet, and home security — coordinated on your timeline, not pieced together after you arrive.

See how Homebird fits your PCS ↗

Opens www.homebird.com in a new tab.

VA Financing

Salute Mortgage

Salute Mortgage is our financing partner for VA-eligible buyers — including as the right-fit lender inside a Homebird-coordinated move. Check eligibility, run the numbers, and talk to a licensed loan officer when you're ready, not before.

1.Confirm eligibility — Pull your Certificate of Eligibility.
2.Run the numbers — Compare VA financing against conventional.
3.Talk to a loan officer — Only when you're ready to move forward.

Check my VA eligibility ↗

Opens salutemortgage.com in a new tab.

Salute Mortgage LLC — Company NMLS #2601951. Licensed in Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Kansas, Louisiana, Minnesota, Missouri, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, and Wyoming. This is not an offer to enter into an agreement; not all customers will qualify; rates and programs are subject to change without notice. Equal Housing Opportunity. NMLS Consumer Access.