5F6B - you are sort of correct - 2 schemes, but the EDP access applies to those on AFPS 05 (so now) and then AFPS 15 for all. Impact for those of us on 75, for this element, in the short term is minimal. Additionally with the pay back for this sort of access, ie if you grab £10k now from your EDP, that will be a different amount when you actually leave, so you may have to pay back more. Doesn't seem too attractive if that happens to be the case
The aspect of the amounts being discussed and their usefulness to those lower down the rank range and in high cost housing areas is an interesting one. Basically it was explained that the council of mortgage lenders would view any amount above 50% of salary negatively against any mortgage, so in effect you wouldn't be assisting the individual because the amount of mortgage you could get would be reduced accordingly. Also the HPI is viewed as a contribution to a deposit - there is an expectation that the individual should also save some of their money - not entirely unfair.
Ascoteer - regards charges for SFA/SLA - this was brought up. Basically we should, in the main, expect them to go up (this has been in the AFPRB report for the last 10 years or so), however the key point is that any rise in charges will go hand in hand with accn upgrades to both condition and service!! Also it was explained that when they have been working on the market average rate, they have been using the charges for local authority housing, so when comparing sizes of properties they are comparable for airmans quarters (so not expecting much if any rates rises). However, officer quarters are comparably bigger so there may be a rise for the officer cadre. But again any charge rise must be endorsed by the AFPRB and go with improved standards. Also note that the assessment methodology is changing for housing condition, which will be more modern and beneficial for the service person. Overall, I cannot honestly see a significant if any rise in accn charges in the short term - this does look to be a long term project though - especially when you consider the standard of much of our housing stock.