VA Loans
A VA loan is a top benefit of military service for eligible veterans, service members and qualifying surviving spouses. It allows you to qualify for a low-cost mortgage when you’re looking to purchase or refinance, even if your credit isn’t perfect.
Clarity Home Lending takes pride in supporting the courageous men and women who have served or are currently serving our country. We offer a comprehensive range of VA loans and home financing solutions tailored for military personnel and their families. As an approved lender, Clarity works with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to provide VA loans, allowing you to purchase or refinance a home without a down payment.
Types of VA Loans
VA Purchase Loan
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No Down Payment
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No monthly private mortgage insurance (PMI)
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Competitive interest rates
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Flexible desktop or manual underwriting suited for your loan
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Finance your funding fee. Your funding fee can be rolled into the overall loan amount.
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Can be eligible for our HomeTown Heroes Credit
Why Clarity Home Lending?
No Mortgage Insurance
One of the major advantages of getting a VA loan is that it does not mandate mortgage insurance. The support from the Department of Veterans Affairs decreases the risk for VA-approved lenders, enabling private lenders such as Mortgage Brokers like Clarity Home Lending to provide loans without the need for mortgage insurance.
Competitive Rates
Clarity Home Lending operates as a Mortgage Broker, which means we compare various lenders to secure the best deal for you, taking into account interest rates, closing costs, and overall convenience for you as the borrower. As the saying goes, "If you see them on TV, they’re probably overpriced." We're committed to maintaining low overhead costs and transferring those savings directly to our clients.
Zero Down Payment
When you purchase a home with a VA loan, you get some important advantages — including no down payment requirement!
If you already have money set aside, you can put it towards points, closing
costs or maybe some home
improvements.
Customized Underwriting
Unlike other lenders who adopt a one-size-fits-all strategy for VA loans, we have the capability to manually underwrite loans. Although this might seem daunting to some, it enables us to assist borrowers with unique situations, such as those who are self-employed, have challenging credit histories, and more.
HomeTown Hero Credit
You may qualify for our exclusive HomeTown Hero Credit, offering up to $12,000 in closing costs. This credit is available for all first responders, active and retired military personnel, educators, and healthcare providers.
Reduced Closing Costs
At Clarity Home Lending, we take pride in offering some of the lowest closing costs in the industry. Our approach is centered around transparency and efficiency, ensuring that our clients understand each component of their closing costs without hidden fees. By leveraging our extensive network of lenders and streamlining our processes, we minimize overhead and pass these savings directly to you.
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0% Down
VA loans are one of the few loan options that don’t require a down payment. However, Clarity Home Lending may have specific requirements for a no-down-payment VA loan.
It’s important to keep in mind that “no down payment” doesn’t mean “zero cost.” In addition to VA loan closing costs, there are some other fees to be prepared for, even if you’re putting 0% down.
Private Mortgage Insurance
VA loans don’t require PMI. PMI is mortgage insurance on conventional and FHA loans that a lender may require you to pay if you don’t put 20% down. However, VA loans are exempt from PMI.
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Loan Size
The VA doesn’t limit how much you can borrow, except in the case of impacted entitlement. But when loan limits do apply to a VA loan, they're usually based on conventional loan limits, which as of 2023 sit at a minimum of $726,200 for contiguous U.S. states. Additionally, lenders often use the conventional loan limits as the lower bounds for VA jumbo loans.
Credit Score & DTI
VA loans allow you to qualify with a higher DTI than any mortgage program from one of the major mortgage investors. If you credit score is 620 or better, DTI to qualify can vary based on factors like credit score and down payment amount.
If your score is at least 580 but less than 620, your mortgage payment can't account for more than 38% of your gross monthly income. Additionally, your total DTI can be no higher than 45%.
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Thank You, for your service.
We would be honored to serve you.
Additional Benefits For Disabled Veterans
In addition to standard VA loan benefits, disabled veterans also have access to other benefits as well.
Exemption From Funding Fees
Disabled veterans are exempted from the VA funding fee, so they don’t have to pay the VA funding fee during closing. To qualify for the exemption, you must currently receive some form of disability benefits. Your level of disability is irrelevant.
This exemption can save veterans or their surviving spouse thousands of dollars. For example, if you buy a home worth $200,000, you might pay as much as $2,800 – $7,200 in VA funding fees when you close. Disabled veterans can avoid this fee.
How To Apply For A VA Loan: 6 Steps
Applying for a VA loan is a lot like applying for any other mortgage in many respects. Take these six steps into consideration when applying.
1. Secure A Certificate Of Eligibility (COE)
You’ll need this to be eligible for your VA loan. You’ll need to provide proof of your military service based on your status.
VA-approved lenders, like Clarity Home Lending, can help you get your VA certificate of eligibility quickly with proof of service.
Tell your Lender you need your certificate of eligibility early in the process so they can help you get it.
2. Apply For Approval
When buying a home, get preapproved early on. The approval will give you a baseline for determining how much you can afford. In addition, when you make an offer on a house, you’ll find sellers tend to take offers more seriously if a letter of preapproval is attached.
3. Shop For A House
Finding a house with a VA loan is like finding a house with any other loan option. Whatever property you buy must meet the VA’s Minimum Property Requirements, or MPRs. MPRs ensure the home is safe, structurally sound and sanitary. These requirements vary according to known risks in an area.
4. Make A Purchase Offer
Once you find a home you like in your price range, put in an offer to buy the home. The seller may accept your offer, reject the offer or counteroffer. Once you and the seller agree on a price, a real estate agent or attorney can help draw up a sales contract.
5. Undergo VA Appraisal And Underwriting
Underwriters from your lender assess your finances and make sure you qualify for a VA loan. The VA will also require an appraisal before they approve the loan. VA appraisals are stricter than conventional loans. During a VA appraisal, the appraiser will check that the home meets the VA’s MPRs and is sanitary, structurally sound and move-in ready with minimal repairs.
6. Close On Your New Home
Once the VA appraiser says your new home is safe and sound, it’s time for you to sign on your new home, get your loan and receive the keys to your new property.
Is A VA Loan Right For You?
A VA loan is an important benefit earned by our military. If you qualify, you can get a great interest rate with no money down, which means homeownership can be more affordable with a VA home loan.
As a benefit of your service, the Department of Veterans Affairs offers unique resources to help those with military experience purchase a home with a low or zero down payment. VA Loans offer flexible options as either Fixed Rate or Adjustable Rate mortgages.
VA loans are available and provide the buyer the chance to finance 100% of the purchase price of the home. This means no down payment is required. It is important to note that buyers will still need to qualify for the loan. This means that lenders will look at their credit and ability to pay the mortgage. If you are in a troubling financial position, a lender may want to see you pay down debt or save up money before they are willing to give you the loan.
You may also be responsible for closing costs, such as the survey to the property, HOA fees, recording of the title or paying outside parties such as Lawyers or Realtors. This is negotiable with the seller and something to discuss with your Realtor before making an offer on a home.