Anyone ever buy a house with a VA loan?

Jennifer - posted on 01/17/2011

Once a bank accepts a VA loan offer they have to by law give you the price that it appraises for. They cannot cancel out at that point. It is to protect us from overpaying an overrated price for the house. Talk to AFRC or Housing for information on home buying. We have been at multiple bases that have classes on it and packets with the information.

Courtney - posted on 01/17/2011

We bought a house with a VA loan last May. It was a pretty easy process. The only money you really have to come up with is for escrow (It may only be a California thing) but your realtor can give you more information on that. You do not have to worry about a down payment because VA does not accept houses that require one. The only thing annoying is that the VA will not accept a house if it has anything costly that needs to be fixed. (such as mold or water damage, etc. ) That is one thing that can get annoying. Also, if you can not get the house for the price that the appraiser appraises the house for then they will not accept the house either. This happened to our first house. We offered 180k and they accepted. The appraiser went in (he was new and obviously didn't know his stuff well) and appraised the house at 160! of course the bank that owned the home said now, they would not drop the house by 20k ... so we did not get to buy the house =(
Good luck!

Jennifer - posted on 01/10/2011

Hi, we did this about a year and half ago in Cali. Be aware how long loans take to settle. VA loans in Dallas, TX take under 2 weeks and most under a week. VA loans in Cali take a minimum of 30 days. Also make sure the person helping you knows about VA loans. We had a broker helping us and he had never done a VA loan. We had to stay on top of him. Set up check on dates with whoever is handling your loan closing so you can be on top of any forms they need. This will speed up process so much. Hope this helps!

Leigha - posted on 01/10/2011

We bought last year with a VA loan, it was simple. We did a pre-approval before we started looking so we were ready to make an offer when we fond the one. Find a good loan officer and they'll make it super easy for you.

Tina - posted on 01/10/2011

We have bought 2 homes on the VA loan and it was a breeze! also, if you have USAA (if you don't I would HIGHLY recommend them) call their mortgage dept. You can get financing directly through them. They also have a program called movers advantage. They find you a realtor who has gone through their rigourous training program. You do not have to sign a contract with the realtor either (BONUS) and they actually PAY YOU to use the program. Why, I do not know but we were given a $1200 check about 2 weeks after closing, just for going through USAA movers advantage program. They took care of all the VA stuff for us. We only had to provide the eligibility certificate! Very easy process

Kristi - posted on 01/06/2011

Someone just told me that a VA Loan is not really a loan. They said you still have to get a loan, like through a bank. And that the VA loan is only a loan that covers 25% of your loan to the bank if you default. Is this true? We are about to start looking into buying a house when we move to Virginia.

Victoria - posted on 01/06/2011

We just bought our home with a VA loan...it was as easy as getting a loan could be I guess. But the whole process is a huge pain. I had the best lender. He went above and beyond to make sure I had everything I needed. I was on WA, my husband was in GA and we were buying a home in CT. It was tough but Matt was the best ever. I still keep in touch with him! Just make sure the house you buy is not in disrepair. VA loans won't cover those kinds of homes. Also, once you use your va loan, there are stipulations as to whether you can use one again. Look for Matt Wildy at Mortgage Lenders of America. MLOA!!

Nykee - posted on 01/05/2011

We bought one in PA with the VA loan this past August. There's a lot of paperwork (I think I had a little extra because I bought it while my husband was deployed), but it's worth it. My suggestion would be to find a good broker who can walk you through everything.

Amberly - posted on 01/01/2011

Its really easy, but the VA inspector is VERY picky with the house inspections.. well ours was anyway.. I wasn't able to get my dream house, thankfully, because he suspected a mold issue. come to find out there was black mold EVERYWHERE! and pay off all your credit cards and DON'T touch them until after you have your house.. :)

Cassie - posted on 01/01/2011

I bought our last house with a VA loan while my husband was on deployment. It was a fairly easy process for me. Between the realtor and lawyers there may be stuff you don't understand so ask someone who has bought a house before ( I asked my mom). Before you buy it though definitely make sure your going to be in it for awhile (at least 5 yrs is normal consensus) If you have to short sell or foreclose then you can't use the loan again until it's paid back in full. Good luck!!

Candi - posted on 12/31/2010

Most of the rules are basically the same, but like I said, some of the ispectors are tough. They can turn down the house for something as smple as a rip in the carpet (personal experience). In SC we decided on a house then the realtor said, "Oh I hope its stick built. I forgot to mention that." Luckily it was. When we moved to TX, we asked if it had to be stick built and the realtor said "nope!". Not that it was an issue there either. As far as hurricanes, I grew up in SC and the only hurricane to come that far inland was Hurricane Hugo. I'm sure the rules have changed. Our SC home was bought in 2000 and the TX home was bought in 2004

Callie - posted on 12/31/2010

Candi I believe the rules are the same every where but some of the rules are only applicable in certain situations. Stick built just means it has to be built on the property (ie not a modular or mobile home). In SC you probably have to have a stick built because of hurricane weather.

Candi - posted on 12/31/2010

we have bought 2 houses using a VA loan. It all depends on the state. In SC the rules were crazy. The house had to be stick built and pass inspection with a VA home inspector. They were strict! The house buying in TX was simple. I guess they don't care there b/c we had no issues. Good Luck

Corinne - posted on 12/31/2010

we own our home with a va loan! its no more difficult than a standard loan really! there are certain rules that the realitors should be informed about and they will do all of the work!

Ashley - posted on 12/31/2010

My husband and I just used the VA loan to buy our house last month. We were pre approved within a few minutes, found our house a week later, and our VA loan paperwork was all ready within 2 weeks. I was terrified at first, but they walk you thru EVERYTHING!

Lorie - posted on 12/30/2010

We were going to use the VA loan, however Navy Federal had better interest rates than the VA loan. If you belong to a credit union check it out first. The loan was simple, we had no down payment.

Elizabeth - posted on 12/30/2010

We did 2.5 years ago. We were first time home buyers and the process was a lot less intimidating than I thought it was going to be. The biggest difference is VA requires a lot of paperwork but your realtor/lender will walk you through what is needed.

Jenny - posted on 12/30/2010

My husband and I just bought our house this past summer with a VA loan. We didn't get pre-approved since we were expecting to renew the lease on the house we were renting when we were told the landlord was coming back earlier than we were originally told. The VA process itself was not very stressful, we had a wonderful loan person at USAA to work with, and we moved into our home just 8 weeks after finding out we had to move out of our rental. USAA helped us by letting us know how much money we would have to come up with for closing so we were able to pull that together while we looked for a house and the rest of the process was happening. The point about whether or not you will be moving every two years still is one to seriously consider in today's real estate market. You may have to later pay your mortgage in one place and your new station after you PCS. We bought after being at our current station for one year because we knew we'd still have 3 years left here. Talk to your mortgage loan person about length in the home too when getting information.

Brandy - posted on 12/30/2010

Doing a VA loan is no different than doing a conventional loan. The only difference being, obviously, you need to be VA eligible. Depending on where you live VA may require a Well or Septic inspection, things like that. But those inspections are in your best interest and you should request those yourself if doing a conventional loan. A lot of people will tell you VA will make you jump through hoops, and it isn't true. It is a painless process.

I am a Mortgage Loan Officer at Navy Federal Credit Union and deal with VA loans on a daily basis. The Veterans Choice loan that Autumn mentioned is a program no longer exists.

Good Luck!

Autumn - posted on 12/30/2010

We bought a house at our last duty station. We did a lot of research into loans. We were going to go with the VA loan but found out that Navy Federal Credit Union (they work with all branches of the military now, not just the Navy) had a Veteran's Choice loan that works exactly the same way as a VA loan except it closes faster than VA (VA can take 2 months. Ours closed in 3 weeks) and the funding fee is cheaper. It was super easy. That was about 4 years ago so things may have changed. But it is something to look into.

Victoria - posted on 12/30/2010

We bought our house with a VA loan. It isn't that much different. The seller obviously knows in advance and there is usually a more thorough inspection to meet the VA standards. There are a few other stipulations but nothing out of the ordinary, especially for the buyer. When you go to sell, you'll have a few of thoe extras to do, too. It was a painless process and not much more involved than a regular sale! Good luck@

Elizabeth - posted on 12/30/2010

We bought our home with a va loan last year. It was really easy. The only thing we had to do was pay off a credit card. We also got pre approved before we started looking. The people at USAA were really helpful with the whole process. The only problem we had was with the first house we put a bid on. We didn't get it because the va wouldn't approve an as is sale.

Callie - posted on 12/30/2010

We bought our house 1 1/2 years ago with the VA loan. It was incredibly simple. What speeds up the proccess is getting your loan approved before you find a house. Decide where you want to get a loan through and go talk to them. They can pre-approve you for a loan so you know exactly what you can spend and be approved. Then once you find a house all you have to do is get the house inspected by the VA (so that it meets their requirements) and you should be set. We looked at our house and bid on it on Sat. our offer was accepted on Sun. and we had the keys and were moving in on Fri. Also there should be a rep. in your area that can explain the VA loan to you.
Do you know how long you'll be at your next duty station? If you're moving every couple of years it might be worth waiting. It can sometimes be difficult to sell, especially with the economy right now. Good Luck!

Rachel - posted on 12/30/2010

We bought our home last year with a va loan. It was a relatively easy process. The only issue we had was that about 10 years ago my husband bought a different house with a va loan but then sold it 2 years later. The va were saying that the previous loan hadn't been paid off even though we knew it had. However our paperwork was in a shipping container on its way over from our last base in England. It just took a bit if digging around to contact the people who had the paperwork saying it had been paid off. We should have closed on our house on the fri but ended up not closing till the mon waiting for a copy of the paperwork to arrive. We also bought a new build which I believe made the process a lot easier. Overall we were very satisfied with the process and were happy with our fixed mortgage rate we got too.