Moving to Heidelberg

I am not sure if you are active duty or rank, so the advice is thin..When we moved here you could not live off post.Every situation is different, but Rohrbach area from what I hear is not as bad as others..If you let me know your situation I could probably help you..Let me know S. A

I think it really depends on your situation. If you are military then you will have to stay on post. If your are dod civilian then there are lots of areas that are very close. Hockenheim is about 5 min, Eppelheim is about 2 min, Schwetzigen is about 10 min. from PHV which is the main housing area. We have friends in Hockenheim and Eppelheim and they all say it is reasonable to live there. If you'd like you can send me a message with more info and I can help you more.

Are you civilian or Active Duty? Because since 2007 everybody has to move on post regardless of rank. If civilian then rent in Heidelberg will be higher than in Ramstein.

HI M. S, My name is N., & we live in Mannheim which is about 15-20 mins from Heidelberg. I just got done reading the advice offered to you from the others & I really felt the need to tell you that SOME OF IT WAS CORRECT & some of it misplaced.
What I mean is this: "It doesn't matter" if you are ACTIVE DUTY or DoD you can live off base either way. It's your choice. We have lot's of (I'm going to say "families") that live off base & in Heidelberg that work somewhere right here on the base here in Mannheim. I don't believe that rank really applies to you as the others keep saying because in your question you state "WE MAY BE MOVING" & NOT just YOU. If it were just you as a single person or a single soldier as it were then rank would apply in certain cases about whether you lived on the base or off.
As far as the cost of living in Heidelberg goes, if your active duty the Military does in fact help you pay for these things. Since I see that nobody else has given it to you, then I will, Heidelberg's Housing office phone # is:
06221/4380-3302 or 06221/4380-3316 this is bldg #3980, there office hours are: Mon-Wed 0800-1600 & Thur 1000-1600 &
Fri 0800-1400. Then there is another # for Government Leased Housing, there # is: 06221/4380-3294, I am assuming the hours are the same, because it's right under the housing office # with nothing further then that.
I sure hope that this helps you out. If I can help you any further, please feel free to ask with a PM (pers., Msg.)
N.