Discover the qualifying requirements for a VA direct or VA-backed loan. Learn how to file for a Certificate of Eligibility to demonstrate to your lender that you are eligible based on your military experience and duty status. Keep in mind that to acquire financing for a VA-backed house loan, you must also fulfill your lender’s credit and income lending standards. The VA home loan credit score 550 in Virginia is offered to all active serving military, national guardsmen, veterans, surviving spouses, and in certain cases civilians who meet certain criteria.
National Guard
National Guardsmen are not automatically eligible for a VA home loan, but they will be if they complete particular service time requirements. This equates to a total of six years of National Guard duty. Those discharged due to a service-related disability have the right to have this requirement waived.
The service member had to be:
1) honourably dismissed;
2) put on the retired list;
3) moved to the Standby Reserves or Ready Reserves, or
4) is currently serving in the Selected Reserves. Furthermore, the member must have been a member of an active unit during that time and have participated in the requisite weekend drills and 2-week active duty for training.
After 90 days of continuous service, National Guardsmen summoned to active duty are eligible.
Military Soldiers on Active Duty
Active service personnel is eligible for the VA home loan guarantee benefit after serving 181 days of continuous regular duty or 90 days during wartime. This condition is waived for active duty individuals who have been dismissed from past service due to a hardship discharge, as long as the borrower meets other qualifying criteria.
Regular duty does not include training duty. Time spent on training duty may not be counted towards the active duty requirement. An Honorable Discharge is essential; dismissal under less than honorable circumstances may necessitate additional inquiry by the VA home loan underwriter before approval.
Veterans
The following are the service time qualification conditions for veterans of earlier wars:
If you spent 90 days of active, regular service within the following periods:
- World War II dates range from 16 September 1940 to 25 July 1947,
- or Korean War dates range from June 1950 to 31 January 1955,
- or Vietnam War dates range from August 1964 to 7 May 1975,
- or Gulf War dates range from August 1990 to the present.
There are no minimum credit score criteria set by the VA. Instead, it necessitates that lenders examine the complete loan profile. Mortgage lenders, on the other hand, can set their own underwriting standards, and many want to see a credit score of 620 or higher. The VA has income requirements that underwriters must follow to ensure that the borrower’s income is reliable and sufficient to support the loan payment, obligations, and other living expenditures.
