Automated Housing Referral Network: AHRN.com

  • Published
  • By the 14th Civil Engineer Squadron Housing Office
  • Special to Silver Wings
COLUMBUS AFB, Miss. --  Everybody knows it's difficult to find good housing from across the nation or sometimes from across town. It's an old story that has a new ending: The Columbus AFB Housing Welcome Center is implementing a new internet-based housing referral system to overcome that problem. It's www.ahrn.com.

AHRN.com is a nationwide, joint service, DoD-sponsored website that offers a 24/7/365 single source of available housing to incoming military and their families. AHRN.com directly connects service members with local property managers via the internet often facilitating a door-to-door move that saves time, expenses and headaches.

"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 Kay Quinlan, 14th Civil Engineer Squadron Housing.

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, which will be available upon their arrival.

The idea behind AHRN.com is simple: free of charge, local property managers and military register their available properties on the site, often several months before the property will be available. 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," said Ms. Quinlan.

The Columbus AFB 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," Ms. Quinlan said. 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," says Ms. Quinlan.

It is available to all service members who are supported by the Columbus AFB.

For more detailed information about the local AHRN.com website, call Kay Quinlan at 434-2840, or visit the website at www.ahrn.com to list or search for property.