Spangdahlem housing welcomes AHRN.com Published May 5, 2009 By 52nd Civil Engineer Squadron Housing Office SPANGDAHLEM AIR BASE, Germany -- When moving to from an overseas location, everybody is usually curious about housing. What does housing look like? What types are available? On base? Off base? How much does community housing cost? What can I expect to spend? What are my housing allowances? It's an old story that has a new ending: Spangdahlem AB housing is implementing a new internet-based housing referral system to overcome that. It's the Automated Housing Referral Network, located at AHRN.com. AHRN.com is a joint service Department of Defense, sponsored Web site that offers 24-hours a day, seven-days a week a single source of available housing to incoming military personnel, their families and DoD civilians. AHRN.com directly connects servicemembers with local property managers via the Internet. "This housing referral network is a quantum leap forward from the process we use in our office and the word-of-mouth (sponsor) method," said Denise Hastye, 52nd Civil Engineer Squadron housing director. With the Internet, incoming military and families are able to reach out from anywhere and get an updated list of available housing from a much larger pool of diverse properties. The idea behind AHRN.com is simple local property managers and military owners register their available properties on the site, often several weeks before the property will be available free of charge. These properties are then easily visible to incoming personnel when they search the site for available housing. "It's our job to promote the site to all local stakeholders to ensure that it builds momentum and synergy," Mrs. Hastye said. The Spangdahlem AB Housing Welcome Center is looking forward to expanding its AHRN.com program by encouraging local property managers to register in the system. "The larger the database, the more useful it will be to people searching for places to live," said Josephine Cardenas, 52nd CES deputy housing director. To make registering properties a worry-free proposition, AHRN.com incorporates several layers of privacy protection. In return for registering their properties, AHRN.com provides property owners with a consistent resource of quality tenants. "It's a win-win for everyone who uses the site," Ms. Cardenas said. "Thank you for providing this service! It made finding a home so easy and I love the one I decided to rent. It was one less thing to worry about in our move. We rolled into town and were home," said a military member who used AHRN.com. AHRN is available to all service members supported by the Spangdahlem, Geilenkirchen and Kalkar Housing Offices. For more detailed information about the local AHRN.com Web site, e-mail 52ces.ceh@spangdahlem.af.mil for a brochure or visit the Web site at www.ahrn.com to list your property or search for one.