VA Loan Eligibility
To be eligible for a VA Home Loan, military service members must meet basic service requirements mandated by the Federal Government.
VA has the final word on Veteran eligibility, but if you meet one or more of the following guidelines you may be eligible for a VA Home Loan:
- You have served 90 consecutive days of active service during war time
- You have served 181 days of active service during peacetime,
- You have more than 6 years of service in the National Guard or Reserves
- You are the spouse of a service member who has died in the line of duty or as a result of a service-related disability.
Don’t meet these guidelines? You may still be eligible for a home loan. To find out more about whether you qualify call one of our VA Home Loan Specialists at (208) 388-0500 or get started online by using the buttons to the right.
How to Apply for a VA Loan Certificate of Eligibility (COE)
Your Certificate of Eligibility verifies the length and character of your service. Both of which impact your VA Home Loan benefits.
You don’t need to have a certificate of eligibility in hand to start the VA pre-approval process. In fact, the easiest way to obtain your COE is through a VA Approved Lender who had direct access to the VA portal. In fact, you can ask us to obtain the COE on your behalf and we are happy to do so.
There are three ways to obtain your Certificate of Eligibility:
- Apply through any approved VA Lender, such as Benchmark Mortgage. (208) 388-0500
- Apply online through the VA eBenefits portal
- Apply by mail using the VA Form 26-1880 which can be obtained by contacting the Veterans Administration.
To apply for your certificate of eligibility and find out more about whether you qualify call one of our VA Home Loan Specialists at (208) 388-0500 or get started online by using the buttons to the right.
VA Home Loan Income Requirements
The Veterans Administration sets forth income guidelines for qualifying for a VA home loan which include having stable income that is expected to continue and is sufficient to cover monthly expenses including their new mortgage payment.
Additionally, the VA requires a certain amount of money “left over” each month after all major expenses are paid. This is known as “residual income” and is meant to cover living expense such as food, transportation miscellaneous needs.
Residual income guidelines are unique to the VA Home Loan program help set the Veteran up for success in home ownership by ensuring they have extra money available to cover rainy-day expenses.
To find out if your income meets VA guidelines call one of our VA Home Loan Specialists at (208) 388-0500 or get started online by using the buttons to the right.
How to Apply for a VA Home Loan
While every buyer’s situation is different, it typically takes 25-30 days to close on a VA Home Loan at Benchmark Mortgage. Making application does not obligate you in any way to a particular lender or even to complete a purchase. Because of this, it’s always best to talk to a lender before you go home shopping just to make sure your ducks are in a row.
There are 3 simple steps to starting a VA Loan Application:
- Contact a VA approved lender like Benchmark Mortgage and start the VA Loan application.
- Finalize your loan application by providing the paperwork required by the Veteran’s Administration including basic documents such as:
- Current LES or Paystubs for the last 30 days
- W2s and Tax Returns for the last 2 years
- Account Statements for the last 2 months (all assets, all pages)
- DD214 or Statement of Service
- Drivers License and Social Security Card