VA mortgage news, policy, and borrower strategy.
Weekly rate coverage, policy explainers, benefit deep-dives, and reporting on the moves that actually change what veterans pay for a home.
Divorce and Your VA Loan: The Equity Buyout Most Attorneys Don't Know About
Most divorce attorneys only know two options: sell the house or refinance it. A VA loan combined with an Owelty lien creates a third path that can keep a veteran in the home without qualifying for a massive new loan.
Latest stories
VA Energy Efficient Mortgage 2026: Finance Solar and Insulation With Zero Down
The VA EEM lets veterans add up to $6,000 in energy upgrades without an energy audit — and more than $6,000 with one. Here's how solar panels, insulation, HVAC, and heat pumps can be rolled into a VA purchase or refinance.
The VA Home Modification Grant Most Disabled Veterans Miss
The Specially Adapted Housing grant pays up to $126,526 for accessibility modifications — ramps, roll-in showers, widened doorways — and the money goes straight to you or your contractor. Most eligible veterans have never heard of it.
You May Qualify for a VA Loan and Not Know It: The Surviving Spouse Benefit
Roughly 600,000 unremarried surviving spouses of wartime veterans are alive in America today. A huge share qualify for a VA loan with zero down, no PMI, and no funding fee. Almost none are being told.
Zero Down on a Fourplex: The House Hack Almost No LO Pitches
VA lets you buy a duplex, triplex, or fourplex as a primary residence with zero down and no PMI. Rental income from the other units counts toward qualifying. Most loan officers never mention it.
The VA Loan Doesn't Cap at the Conforming Limit — and Hasn't Since 2020
The Blue Water Navy Act eliminated the VA loan limit for veterans with full entitlement on January 1, 2020. Six years later most veterans still don't know, and most loan officers haven't updated their pitch.
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 Gross-Up Most Loan Officers Miss — And How It Adds $60k+ to Your Pre-Approval
VA disability, BAH, BAS, combat pay, and tax-free pension income all get grossed up 25% for mortgage qualifying. Miss it and veterans buy less house than they've earned.
VA Rate Update — Week of July 6, 2026: 30-Year Holds Under 6%
Ten-year yields drifted lower on soft jobs data, keeping the 30-year VA fixed at 5.99% for eligible borrowers. What to watch this week.
VA Rate Update — Week of June 29, 2026: Rates Ease Ahead of Jobs Print
Rates ticked lower into month-end as bond markets positioned ahead of a potentially soft jobs report.
IRRRL vs. VA Cash-Out in 2026: Which Refi Actually Wins?
Both refis have their moment. Here's a plain-English framework for choosing between an IRRRL streamline and a VA cash-out — with real numbers.
2026 VA Loan Limits Explained (and Why They Don't Cap You)
The 2026 conforming limit is $806,500 in most counties and $1,209,750 in high-cost areas — but with full entitlement, there is no VA loan cap.
When Should You Lock Your VA Loan Rate?
Locking too early leaves gains on the table. Locking too late risks a bad print. Here's the framework we use with borrowers.
VA Funding Fee 2026: Rates, Waivers, and How to Pay It
The 2026 VA funding fee ranges from 0.5% (IRRRL) to 3.3% (subsequent use cash-out). Here's the full table and every way to reduce or waive it.
Long-form VA loan reference
Zero down, no PMI, and a lender's obligation to help you succeed. Here's how the VA loan program actually works.
The COE proves your VA loan entitlement. We pull it for you in most cases — here's what it says and why it matters.
One closing cost, one time, and often financeable. Here's exactly how the funding fee is calculated in 2026.
From pulling your credit to picking up the keys — the 12-week roadmap most veterans wish they'd had.
Sold the house? Paid it off? Foreclosed on it years ago? Your VA entitlement can almost always come back.
When the VA loan clearly wins, when conventional might edge it, and the surprisingly narrow band where it's actually close.
VA Home Mortgage Loan is a private company and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs or any government agency. Equal Housing Lender.