- VA Home Loan
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Quick Facts About VA Home Financing
Note: The veteran may purchase a
property for more than $417,000 and still be able to put a
reduced amount down.
Applying for A VA Home Loan
You will need VA Form 26-1880/Certificate of Eligibility. A
veteran who does not have a certificate can obtain one easily by
completing VA Form 26-1880 (Click Here to get VA Form 26-1880) and
submitting it to the VA Eligibility Center. You must also submit
your Certificate of Release from Active Duty (DD214) if you are
already separated from military service or a Statement of
Service (SOS) if you are currently on active duty. Send the
completed VA Form 28-1880 and your DD214 or SOS to:
VA Loan Eligibility Center
PO Box 20729
Winston-Salem, NC 27120
*VA Funding Fee
Although there is not private mortgage insurance due there is a
"VA funding fee".
A basic funding fee of 2.0 percent must be paid to VA by all but
certain exempt veterans. A down payment of 5 percent or more
will reduce the fee to 1.5 percent and a 10 percent down payment
will reduce it to 1.25 percent.
A first-time buyer will pay a little over two percent for no
money down loan and a second time buyer's fee is just above
three percent.
The funding fee for loans to refinance an existing VA home loan
with a new VA home loan to lower the existing interest rate is
0.5 percent.
Veterans who are using entitlement for a second or subsequent
time who do not make a down payment of at least 5 percent are
charged a funding fee of 3 percent.
Some veterans are exempt from paying the VA funding fee. If you
are a veteran getting disability compensation for
service-related medical issues, or are entitled to get
compensation if you aren't drawing retirement pay, you are
exempt from the VA funding fee for your VA home loan. Also,
surviving spouses of those who died in the service, or from
service related disabilities are also exempt. It doesn't matter
in this case whether the spouse has any of their own
entitlements.
The funding fee may be included in the loan.
Requirements for VA Loan Approval
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The applicant must be an eligible veteran who has available entitlement
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The loan must be for an eligible purpose
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The veteran must occupy or intend to occupy the property
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The veteran must be a satisfactory credit risk
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The income of the veteran and spouse, if any, must be shown to be stable and sufficient to meet the mortgage payments,
cover the costs of owning a home, take care of other obligations and expenses, and have enough left over for family support
Closing Costs
The following items may be paid by the veteran purchaser, the seller or shared:
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VA appraisal
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Credit report
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Loan origination fee
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Discount points (if applicable)
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Title search and title insurance
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Recording fees
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State and/or local transfer taxes, if applicable
VA Refinancing
Options
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VA Cash-Out Refinance Loans
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Interest Rate Reduction Refinance Loan
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Streamline Refinance Loan
VA Cash-Out Refinance Loans are available for homes that are
your principal residence. The VA guidelines allow you to
refinance up to 90% of the appraised value of the home plus
allowing for many of the closing costs to be rolled into the
loan amount as long as the property meets the designated
loan-to-value ratio. There is no minimum amount of time that you
must have your existing loan or own your home.
If you only want to lower your existing interest rate then a
loan program called the Interest Rate Reduction Refinance Loan (IRRRL)
or Streamline Refinance may be the way to go. This loan provides
a way for current VA homeowners to reduce or lower their
interest rates with no out of pocket expenses and very little
documentation. This is only available to veterans who are
refinancing their original VA mortgage in which they have used
their VA eligibility.
For more info you may wish to visit the
VA website.
"Since 1986
my goal has been to offer only the highest quality professional
financing services."
Adrian Skiles, GML - Broker/President
"Personalized Mortgage Lending"
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