VA loans in San Jose.
This guide covers property inside the City of San José. The county figure on this page is Santa Clara County's 2026 FHFA value, shown as a county reference — confirm the property's county before using it.
Santa Clara County reference value. County reference, not an address-based lookup. Confirm the county of the property before using this value; city and metro boundaries can cross counties.
Source: FHFA Full County Loan Limit List for 2026 (HERA-based, final). One-unit limit; applies to mortgages acquired in calendar year 2026. Source checked 2026-09-16. · Santa Clara County (FIPS 06085)
County reference, not an address-based lookup. Confirm the county of the property before using this value; city and metro boundaries can cross counties. Look the property's county up at FHFA.
What the county figure means here.
A borrower with full VA entitlement does not have a VA loan limit, subject to lender approval, ability to repay, and the appraised value or purchase price. The FHFA one-unit county conforming loan limit matters primarily when calculating remaining bonus entitlement for a borrower who does not have full entitlement, and it may affect whether a down payment is required.
Santa Clara County carries a $1,249,125 one-unit conforming loan limit value for 2026, and that is the county figure we reference for San Jose. County reference, not an address-based lookup. Confirm the county of the property before using this value; city and metro boundaries can cross counties. Whichever county your property is in, the value is used in remaining-entitlement calculations — including on a 2–4 unit property — and is not a cap on what a fully-entitled buyer can finance.
Planning around BAH? Rates vary by pay grade, dependency status, and ZIP-based Military Housing Area — verify yours on the official DoD BAH calculator.
This site does not publish current rates or APRs. Your rate and terms depend on your credit profile, income and assets, the property, market conditions, lock timing, points or lender credits, underwriting, and final lender approval. Request a personalized quote from Bolt Home Loans LLC.
Estimate a payment with your own rate assumptionGetting San José plans and documents that are not online — and why the seller's signature matters
San José's Department of Planning, Building and Code Enforcement uses a written request form for copies of plans or documents that are not available online. Its imaging staff review the request, prepare a quote and contact you, and fees are paid in advance with no refunds. The form states that most document requests take 2–10 days, while regular plan duplication can take 30–40 days because of research and legal authorization requirements.
The key buyer detail: for copies of plans, the current property owner must sign the form's affidavit page, and for a completed project the requester needs written permission from the current owner (or the governing association in a common interest development). Under the state Health and Safety Code provision the form cites, the Building Division also notifies the professional who signed the plans. Practical step: while you are still the buyer, ask the seller to sign early in escrow if you want plans — otherwise the 30–40 day window can outlast your contingency period.
Santa Clara County Homeowners' Exemption: new owners must file their own claim
The Santa Clara County Assessor's claim form for the Homeowners' Property Tax Exemption (BOE-266) states that a new owner must file a claim even if the property is already receiving the exemption, and that one claim can be used for both the regular assessment roll and the supplemental assessment roll.
The form's deadline is on or before February 15, or on or before the 30th day after the date of a notice of supplemental assessment, whichever comes first. Practical step: once you close and occupy the home as your principal residence, watch for the supplemental assessment notice and file the claim promptly rather than assuming the seller's exemption carries over.
- FHFA — Conforming loan limit values
- City of San José Planning, Building and Code Enforcement — Document and plan copy request form
- Santa Clara County Assessor — Claim for Homeowners' Property Tax Exemption
- VA — Home loan entitlement and limits
Sources checked 2026-09-23. Educational information only, not legal, tax or underwriting advice.
VA loan programs available in CA.
$0 down in San Jose. No PMI.
Lower your rate. Minimal paperwork.
Up to 100% LTV — conventional caps at 80%.
$0 down above conforming.
Finance repairs into your purchase.
Roll energy upgrades into the loan.
Widows and widowers of CA veterans qualify.
Zero down, no PMI, and a 100% funding-fee waiver on a home in San Jose, subject to eligibility verification and Certificate of Eligibility issuance.
Surviving spouse guideDisabled veteran? Stack the SAH grant on your San Jose purchase.
Up to $126,526 in FY 2026 toward a VA-approved plan to acquire, construct, or adapt a suitable home. VA approves eligibility and use; the grant is separate from your VA home loan.
SAH grant guideVA loans in San Jose — answered.
FHFA sets conforming loan limit values by county, not by city, and there is no single published figure for a city as such. The county we reference for San Jose is Santa Clara County (FIPS 06085), whose official 2026 one-unit value is $1,249,125 per the FHFA Full County Loan Limit List. County reference, not an address-based lookup. Confirm the county of the property before using this value; city and metro boundaries can cross counties. The figure only matters for remaining-entitlement calculations — with full entitlement there is no VA loan limit, subject to lender approval, ability to repay and appraised value.
BAH varies by pay grade, dependency status, and ZIP-based Military Housing Area, and DoD updates rates annually. Check your exact rate on the official DoD BAH calculator. Lenders may count BAH as qualifying income, subject to underwriting.
A VA-eligible borrower with full entitlement may be able to pursue a primary-residence purchase in San Jose with no down payment and no monthly PMI. Eligibility, credit, income, the VA appraisal, and final lender approval all apply, and closing costs and prepaids are still due.
An unremarried surviving spouse of a veteran who died in service or from a service-connected disability may qualify for the full VA benefit in San Jose — zero down, no PMI, and a 100% funding-fee waiver, subject to eligibility verification.