Practical, in-depth guides to the VA home loan benefit — written to help veterans and military families buy with confidence.
A plain-English walkthrough of the VA home loan: who qualifies, what the VA guaranty gives you, the seven steps from Certificate of Eligibility to closing, the funding fee, and how to use the benefit more than once.
Read more →The Certificate of Eligibility is the paper, entitlement is the number printed on it, and the funding fee is a cost that depends on what the COE says and on your down payment. Here is how the three fit together in a VA purchase.
Read more →VA loan holders can refinance in two very different ways: a streamlined rate-and-term IRRRL, or a full-underwriting cash-out loan. Here's how eligibility, fees, and timing rules actually differ between them.
Read more →A qualified buyer can take over a VA loan through an assumption. Here is how the process, the costs, and the seller's entitlement and liability work.
Read more →Two rulebooks apply to every VA loan: VA's, which is published, and the lender's own, which can be stricter. Here is how to tell them apart, why two lenders can give different answers, and what to ask.
Read more →The VA home loan benefit is not a one-time deal. Here is how entitlement, restoration, and even holding two VA loans at once actually work for eligible veterans.
Read more →Gene Richter, MLO, NMLS #2806488 | PBT Bancorp, NMLS #257781. General information, not a commitment to lend. Not affiliated with or endorsed by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.