Veteran Home Loan Benefits – VA Home Loans

As a start this post, I would be terribly remiss if I didn’t say THANK YOU for your service to all of us! I am personally truly grateful for the protection and service you provide to us as a nation. Your sacrifices and your family sacrifices as Veterans is nothing short of amazing. Thank you hardly seems sufficient.

I have a family full of Veterans aging back to my maternal grandparents, who both served our country, up to present day as my three brothers serve, two still currently serving and one who is a Desert Storm Vet. My children have also been impacted by service as their dad continues to serve in the Army and has completed two overseas tours of duty in the past 10 years. I explain this simply to give you background about why I have a passion for serving veterans. I truly seek to understand and appreciate your situations, your family needs and the challenges that you may have encountered throughout the years as a Veteran.

What I have found in my years of providing home loans to Veterans is that it appears there is a lack of education surrounding the benefits to VA Home Loans. VA Home Loans provide a number of benefits to the Veteran and Veteran’s spouses that you may not realize. The largest benefit in today’s home loan market is that VA Home Loans still allow for zero down home loans. The second is no mortgage insurance. Depending on your status; whether you have served overseas or on active duty, the length of your service in the Reserves or Guard, whether you have a VA Disability and whether this is your first home, you will be charged a Funding Fee. The fee scale varies based on the above items and a few others. The amount of the Funding Fee is rolled into your loan amount and you are charged no monthly mortgage insurance. This makes a substantial difference in monthly payment and is a huge benefit for Veterans. For comparison sake, if we look at a $200,000 First Home loan using a VA Home Loan vs. a $200,000 First Home FHA Loan, the payment difference in mortgage insurance vs. a Funding Fee is over $170 per month. The monthly payment savings of $170 can equate to buying $35,000 more house for the same amount of money, or simply carrying a much smaller monthly payment by product of being a Veteran and using a VA Home Loan. In addition, don’t forget that you didn’t have to put 3.5% down as you would be required on an FHA loan. VA Home Loans allow you to put zero down on your home loan.

So, in the above scenario, because you put zero down, you saved OVER $7,000 in down payment and over $170.00 in monthly payment by using your Veterans Benefits and financing your home with a VA Home Loan. In addition to the above, very tangible benefits of Zero Down Payment and No Monthly Mortgage Insurance, VA tends to be more lenient with regard to qualifying standards for VA Home Loans vs. FHA Loan or Conventional home loan guidelines. They understand where you’ve been and they make exceptions based on that understanding. Now, understandably you still need to have decent credit and earn money, but they are definitely more flexible in terms of qualifying ability. For example, if you’ve had a prior short sale or some prior credit challenges and you qualify for a VA Home Loan, you may be able to finance again earlier than you would be able to on an FHA Loan or a Conventional Loan. Whether you’re a Veteran looking for your first home or, looking to finance your next home, you need to work with a VA Home Loan expert to help you decide whether using your VA Benefits makes sense for you.

In addition to the above, if you are using your VA Benefits to buy your first home, you may be eligible to purchase in conjunction with many of the First Time Home Buyer Programs we offer through the Minnesota Housing Finance Agency, Dakota County, or City Living Programs through the cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul that may assist you with closing cost assistance and reduced 30-year fixed interest rates! Click here to view program information for these programs. If you’re interested in finding out if you qualify for a VA Home Loan – Click Here to complete my online pre-qualification worksheet, e-mail me directly at carrieg@houseloan.com or give me a call directly at 952-808-2810. We thank you again for serving us and we look forward to serving you!

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