VA mortgage loans help veterans buy their own homes

Determining your eligibility for a VA home loan before shopping for homes or mortgages can help with establishing an affordable range of homes and determining how much you can qualify to borrow for buying a home. Here are some tips for obtaining your VA eligibility certificate, along with some basics about shopping mortgage rates and mortgage loans.

Mortgage lenders can assist with VA Certificate of Eligibility

VA-approved mortgage lenders can typically obtain your Certificate of Eligibility through the VA home loan LGY system. If your military service records are unavailable through the LGY system, you can request a Certificate of Eligibility by filing VA form 26-1880 Request for Certificate of Eligibility along with proof of military service to the VA Eligibility Center.

Buying a home is a big decision and a long term responsibility for most. Take time for researching how much you'll need for a down payment and closing costs, how much you can afford to spend for a home, and how current mortgage rates can impact your monthly payment and home affordability. Using free online mortgage calculator tools is helpful for comparing potential mortgages and their terms. If you need help with determining affordability, using an affordability calculator assists with estimating how much you can spend for a home according to traditional mortgage approval guidelines.

The home purchase process requires title work, an appraisal of the home you're buying, escrow or attorney's fees, and lender fees and charges. Collectively called closing costs, these expenses are paid at the time your mortgage loan closes and title to the home you're buying transfers to you. Estimating these costs before home shopping helps prevent last minute surprises; having some idea of how much closing costs will be is an important part of budgeting for buying a home. Our closing costs calculator can help with estimating potential closing costs, but it's important to know that closing costs vary according to individual factors and circumstances that can arise during the home purchase process. Mortgage calculation tools provide general estimates, but cannot account for changing circumstances or variances in mortgage loan costs and fees.

Once you've obtained your VA Certificate of Eligibility, requesting and comparing mortgage quotes and using a mortgage comparison calculator can help with finding your best deal on a VA home loan.