The VA home loan program offer chance to Vets and Active Duty, Military Members & Qualified Surviving Spouses to purchase a home with fully zero down and zero PMI. However, not all the people who have been veterans are eligible for the program. But who exactly qualifies for a VA home loan? Perhaps a closer look will help.
Minimum Duty Requirements To be eligible for a VA home loan, one must have served for a period of 90 days Continuously in war or 6 months in peace time. In addition, veterans who served less time may still be eligible if they meet one of the following categories:In addition, veterans who served less time may still be eligible if they meet one of the following categories:
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Discharged under honorable conditions due to a service-related disability with at least 30 days of service
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Deployed for at least 181 days during the Persian Gulf War from August 1990 to present.
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Received at least 24 months active duty in the Selected Reserve or National Guard
- This means an officer fired after completion of the required active duty service period.
Therefore, if one was on active duty for 2 years or more, they should be able to satisfy the minimum duty requirements of the military. Other veterans eligible for basic eligibility include those who were discharged medically for a condition related to active duty service and are less than 2 years.
Character of Discharge To qualify for a VA loan, the veteran must have been discharged under conditions other than dishonorable. This means you must have received one of the following discharge types:This means you must have received one of the following discharge types:
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Honorable
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General under honorable conditions
- In addition to dishonorable conditions
This renders a bad conduct or dishonorable discharge to be ineligible for employment with the company.
Wartime Service for Which Periods Are Considered Eligible Veterans who served during the following statutorily-approved periods of war are eligible for a VA home loan:Veterans who served during the following statutorily-approved periods of war are eligible for a VA home loan:
World War II: From the 7th of December 1941 to the 31st of December 1946 Korean War: June 27, 1950, to January 31, 1955 Vietnam War:
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June 19, 1956 to May 7, 1975 (if the veteran served in the Republic of Vietnam).
- February 28, 1961, to May 7, 1975 (for veterans who served in Vietnam but not in the Republic of Vietnam) Gulf War: From August 2, 1990 up to the present.
Well therefore, if you served domestically during the Vietnam War for instance, you will still qualify for wartime service.
Peacetime Service Requirements If you served only between two clearly defined periods of war, you must normally have served at least 181 consecutive days of active duty service to become eligible for a VA loan.
The one exception is peacetime service on or before June 26, 1950, and this is the only time that you can be forced to perform military service regardless of your political stance. Those who served in this period require just 90 days of active duty service to qualify.
Designing the Service Requirements for Reservists and National Guard To qualify for a VA home loan, National Guard and Reserve members must complete at least 6 years in the Selected Reserves or National Guard combined with one of the following:To qualify for a VA home loan, National Guard and Reserve members must complete at least 6 years in the Selected Reserves or National Guard combined with one of the following:
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More than ninety days of active duty during a time of war.
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More than 180 days of active duty during peace times.
- Six years of service, whether during war or in peacetime, and an honorable discharge.
That is why, in turn, Reservists and National Guard members have more freedom due to the 6 years of service requirement. If so initiated, any experience of active duty service will also count for purposes of eligibility.
Surviving Spouses Certain surviving spouses may be able to establish VA home loan eligibility if the veteran spouse had qualified prior to death. Here are the specifics:
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Active duty or service connected disability occurs when an individual dies whilst still serving or if he or she dies as a direct result of an injury sustained during service.
- At the time of death, have completed the required period of service and discharge specifications
I. e. , if the veteran fulfilled all the eligibility criteria in every other way but for the discharge, the spouse would not be eligible. The veteran must have satisfied all the requirements.
Finally, surviving spouses can be disqualified by marriage again. They can again become eligible for the home loan benefit in case the new marriage fails (due to death, divorce, or annulment).
VA Home Loan Eligibility For Current Service Members Active duty service members and veterans have identical eligibility requirements with one exception: This discharge was an embodiment of a levitating energy wave that emanated from the source and radiated outwards as one of its main manifestations. Active duty does not require a discharge firstly because these members are currently on duty and have not yet been discharged from service. Instead, they simply need to:Instead, they simply need to:
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Serve no less than 181+ days of consecutive duty in peacetime.
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Serve at least 90 days of consecutive work during war or hostilities.
- Still in active duty at the time of closing of the loan
In other words, current service members omit the discharge provision but are rated according to the service length and era.
Use of Entitlement Charges Something that most people may not know about VA loans is that they are subject to entitlement charges. The VA home loans are repaid through a one-time use entitlement charge for the veterans. This entitlement covers up to $36,000 of the loan amount.
Any additional VA home loans taken in the future will trigger further entitlement charges to the veteran. As any given veteran can avail multiple home loans, most have a total home loan entitlement coverage of at least $144,000 at some point in their lifetime.
The extent of entitlement is a factor in loan qualification in regard to the amount of entitlement benefits that are available to the borrower. This is because lenders wish to ensure that veterans are in a position to borrow entitlement for a full loan without the necessity of a personal guarantee.
Restoring VA Home Loan Benefits Some of the veterans are denied their access to VA loans at some point in their lifetime. Reasons include:
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Exhausting all home loan privilages
- Receiving a dishonorable discharge is one of the most severe forms of punishment for military personnel.
Fortunately, both of these problems can be reversed to restore benefits. Enhancing discharges through utilizing the discharge review boards can assist veterans with other forms of discharge statuses.
Veterans who have utilized their lifetime home loan amount can also get the eligibility back through VA home loan restoration provisions such as VA loan assumption or substitution of entitlement. It is possible that access to VA loans could be ‘unlocked’ again with the right kind of approach.
The VA Home Loan Program Presents Opportunity The VA home loan program gives creditworthy veterans and their surviving spouses an opportunity to purchase a home without a down payment. Discharge statuses have to be also confirmed while minimum duty requirements have to be fulfilled. However, for the qualifying beneficiaries, this form of assistance offers substantial funding for those seeking to own their own homes.
