VA Cash-Out to 100% LTV: The Refi No Other Loan Can Match
Conventional caps cash-out at 80%. FHA caps at 80%. VA goes to 100% of appraised value — and most lenders won't tell you because their overlays choke it down to 90%.
The VA cash-out refinance is the only mortgage in the United States that permits a borrower to pull equity all the way to 100% of the appraised value of their home. Conventional cash-out is capped at 80%. FHA cash-out is capped at 80%. HELOCs typically top out at 85% combined LTV. VA stands alone.
The 30-second version
VA policy allows a cash-out refinance up to 100% LTV with no monthly PMI. Most lenders quietly apply an internal overlay that cuts the ceiling to 90% because loans above 90% price worse in the secondary market where lenders sell them. The veteran never hears 'we don't do that' — they just get a smaller quote and 'that's what you qualify for.'
What the overlay actually costs you
- $500k home, $280k current VA loan, disability-exempt funding fee, $6,500 closing costs
- At 90% LTV overlay: new loan $450k → $163,500 cash to borrower
- At 100% LTV (real VA max): new loan $500k → $213,500 cash to borrower
- Same file, same appraisal, same veteran — $50,000 more cash
Ask any loan officer, in writing: 'Do you write VA cash-out to 100% LTV, or do you overlay?' If they dodge, they overlay. If they answer 'yes, to 100%,' ask for pricing at 100%, 90%, and 80% side-by-side. A lender doing it right will give you three clean quotes.
When 100% is the right call — and when it isn't
The winning cases are debt consolidation (credit card interest at 24% collapsed into a first-lien at market rates), large home renovation, and funding a specific investment where deployed capital outperforms the mortgage rate. The losing cases are short holding periods, uncertain income, and softening local markets — pulling 100% today can leave you underwater in 18 months.
What to do next
Run your own numbers on our 100% LTV cash-out calculator, then read the full breakdown in our education library. When you show up to your next conversation knowing exactly what the VA program actually allows, the conversation changes.