Davis-Monthan Air Force Base sits inside Tucson's city limits, about 7 miles southeast of downtown (Military OneSource). If you have orders here, or expect them in the next two years, the base you arrive at will be in the middle of a change of mission. This guide sets out what the Air Force has decided, what is still a plan, and what homes have sold for in the parts of town around the base.
What has changed at Davis-Monthan
The A-10 era is over. The base's A-10s flew their final flight on July 29, 2026, ending nearly five decades of A-10 operations there (DVIDS), and three of the last four left for Moody Air Force Base in Georgia on August 5 (Air & Space Forces Magazine). On September 18, the A-10 units were inactivated and the base's last EC-130H Compass Call aircraft was retired. Its replacement, the EA-37B, is already flying from the base, with five aircraft there and more planned, and the 355th Wing is becoming a rescue hub built around the HH-60W helicopter and the HC-130J (Air & Space Forces Magazine; Stars and Stripes).
What is coming: the 492nd Special Operations Wing
The Air Force signed its decision to base the 492nd Special Operations Wing at Davis-Monthan on September 11, 2025 (Federal Register), and revised the plan that month to two squadrons of OA-1K light attack aircraft and one of CV-22 tiltrotors (Stars and Stripes). A detachment has been at the base since fall 2024. The wing's headquarters is planned to stand up in summer 2027, with the move complete in fiscal 2028, and more than 1,300 positions relocating (Air & Space Forces Magazine).
How many people that adds is less settled. The Final Environmental Impact Statement (March 2025) projected a net gain of 1,317 personnel and 1,380 dependents once the A-10s were gone and the wing arrived, but it modeled the earlier aircraft mix, before the September 2025 revision. Read it as the order of magnitude, not a count. Dates in a basing plan can move; the decision itself is final.
Gates, on-base housing and the housing allowance
As of November 2026, the Craycroft gate is open around the clock, while the Swan gate and the new South Wilmot gate (opened July 6, 2026) are open weekdays from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.; the old North Wilmot gate is closed (Military OneSource). Gate hours change, so check them before you choose a commute. On base, the privatized family housing is run by Soaring Heights Communities (Military OneSource); ask the base housing office about current wait times before you rule it in or out.
Your Basic Allowance for Housing is set for Davis-Monthan's military housing area, AZ015; look up your own rate on the Defense Travel Management Office's BAH calculator. If you are arriving in 2027, the new year's rates usually come out in mid-December: the 2026 rates were released on December 11, 2025 (MOAA).
The areas around the base
East and southeast of the base are Rita Ranch, Civano, Rincon Valley, Corona de Tucson and, farther out along Interstate 10, Vail. North and northwest, toward the University of Arizona and downtown, are Midtown and Sam Hughes. Here is what sold in each over the twelve months to November 1, 2026:
| Area | Median sold | Closed sales | Cash buyers | Sales with a seller concession | Median concession |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rita Ranch | $332,500 | 68 | 22% | 68% | $8,560 |
| Corona de Tucson | $377,175 | 245 | 11% | 75% | $8,075 |
| Civano | $393,000 | 37 | 17% | 68% | $7,000 |
| Vail | $399,990 | 1,004 | 11% | 77% | $8,700 |
| Rincon Valley | $410,000 | 637 | 12% | 76% | $8,702 |
| Midtown Tucson | $350,000 | 563 | 31% | 53% | $7,500 |
| Sam Hughes | $582,500 | 78 | 33% | 40% | $6,325 |
Two things stand out for a buyer using a loan. These are financed markets: only 11 to 22 percent of sales in the five southeast areas were cash, so you are mostly competing with other financed buyers. And a seller concession, money from the seller toward the buyer's costs, was part of about two-thirds or more of sales there, with medians of $7,000 to $8,702 where one was given. VA loans have their own limit on what a seller may contribute, explained in our post on seller concession limits by loan type. Each area's full report is on our market pages: Rita Ranch, Vail, Rincon Valley, Corona de Tucson and Civano.
Buying with a VA loan
If you have full VA entitlement, there is no VA loan limit; the lender decides how much it will lend (VA). VA charges a one-time funding fee, which veterans receiving VA compensation for a service-connected disability do not pay, nor do active-duty service members who have received the Purple Heart (VA).
You may also be able to take over a seller's existing VA loan. On October 22, 2026, 94 listings in the Tucson-area MLS said in their own description that the seller's VA loan could be assumed. Assumptions take longer than a new loan and the servicer has to approve the buyer; our VA loan assumption guide explains how it works and lists the homes, and Can a non-veteran assume a VA loan? covers who qualifies.
Arizona rules worth knowing
- Arizona does not tax pay received for active duty service in the armed forces, and military retirement pay has been fully excluded from Arizona income tax since tax year 2021 (Arizona Department of Revenue)
- Arizona widened its property tax exemption for disabled veterans in 2026 (Laws 2026, chapter 2); in Pima County it applies to a primary residence, is filed between the first Monday in January and March 1, and has income limits, so ask the Pima County Assessor what applies to you
- Down-payment help for buyers within income limits exists locally too; our post on the Pima Tucson Homebuyer's Solution explains one program
If you are on your way here, we can set up a search for the areas and price range you want and send you new listings as they come on the market, so you arrive knowing what your allowance buys. You can start with homes for sale in Rita Ranch or Vail.
