SAN ANTONIO – San Antonio is home to thousands of our men and women in uniform, and now there is a new website to help them when they have to move.
In the military, service members are given PCS orders when it's time relocate. PCS stands for permanent change of (duty) station. Most service members will tell you, PCSing is stressful.
That's why Todd Ernst and Tony Straw, who both have military backgrounds, created PCSGrades.com which is described as an "Angies List" for those in the armed forces.
"I got a background in the military. Fourteen years active duty, and now another eight years in the reserves myself," said Ernst. "So, I've PCSed a lot, just like the community we're trying to help. So, the problems we're trying to solve are the problems I was trying to solve for myself and my family."
PCSGrades.com is a ratings and review website, but for members of the military it's more than that. It helps them find a home, service providers and schools at their new station.
"Our designers, our developers PR agencies are truly people and entities that we've met through Geekdom," said Straw.
The site officially launched on June 8, just in time for the busiest PCS season, and so far they have seen a lot of traffic.
"We've already had over 10,000 page views. We've had several hundred folks sign up and actually contribute and use our site, both contributing ratings and reviews," said Straw. "We've already gained a lot traction providing service for military folks, both here in San Antonio and folks that are moving around different parts of the country."
Real estate agent, and military spouse, Erin Cestero said she wishes the site had been around when her family was PCSing, but that it is still a great resource for her and other military families.
"We're moving quickly. We have unique lending options through the VA loans," said Cestero. "Sometimes our spouses aren't there to sign documents and this website tailors to finding individuals who understand those criterias to our situations."