Survey of Military Family Housing Major Maintenance Costs

GAO conducted a survey of military family housing costs at McClellan Air Force Base.

During the survey, GAO was advised that the base had replaced wood veneer parquet flooring in 510 of the 540 Capehart housing units with solid oak parquet flooring. The floors were replaced because sanding, which may have been excessive, had reduced the thickness of the original veneer flooring to the point where it could no longer be refinished. Since replacement began, the average cost of these floors has ranged from approximately $2,400 per unit to approximately $5,000 per unit. Despite a trend in new military family housing to use vinyl tile in units where carpeting is not authorized, the base did not consider replacing the floors with materials such as vinyl tile, which is less costly than parquet. In view of the high replacement and maintenance costs of parquet and other wooden floors, GAO believes that, in the future, the base should consider the economic advantages of using less costly materials to replace the hardwood or parquet floors in the other units. In addition, compliance with Department of Defense criteria for floor sanding and refinishing could reduce the need for replacing the floors.