Homeownership

Question:

I was rated 100% for hearing loss in one ear. Does this qualify as service connection disability that waives VA home loan origination fee for refinancing of my current VA loan?

Jim's Reply:

I can't be sure as a 100% permanent rating for one ear is a bit unusual. If I had to guess I'd say yes, a 100% rating should make you eligible. You'll have paperwork and VA contact points for questions regarding your VA COE as your loan progresses and then is a good time to ask that and other questions.
 

During my last (and final!) home purchase I used a broker to find my financing and that was a real plus as they took care of a lot of details I'd have missed. The broker was methodical, crossed t's and dotted i's and put it all together in a way I couldn't have when presented to banks for a bid. That made the difference of almost 1/2 point in the rate and that seems even more important today.
 

Don't forget that in many states a vet with a 100% rating is exempt from state property taxes and sometimes the path to that benefit via the state can be convoluted...but worth the bother.
 

All the usual rules for taking out a loan in the first place are there when we refi the original note. If you've been rated at 100% since you originated the loan in the first place you'll probably have more hoops to jump through to maximize the benefit. Do shop around though...rates are through the roof today!
 

Good luck!

Question:

Hello, I'm a Navy veteran who lives in New Jersey with a 70% service connected disability. According to my VA letter that states my benefit information it says that I 1) have a disability evaluation of 70%, 2) I am being paid at the 100% rate because of being unemployable due to me service connected disability and 3) that I am also considered to be totally and permanently disabled due to me service connected disability. I also have no further evaluations in the future. I was told that I should qualify for a 100% property tax exemption.

When I filed my paper work and sent it to the tax assessor it was denied. The tax assessors returned a form stating it was denied because my application failed to satisfy the requirements because of, "Certification of 100% P&T from the US VA and because my VA letter benefit stated I was 70% according to my combined service connected evaluation. According to my ratings decision letter from the VA I am pretty much entitled to the same benefits as someone having a 100% evaluation. Including be eligibility to Chapter 35 from my children. So my question is... am I not entitled to a property tax exemption in NJ or am I entitled and there an error on the tax assessors past in denying my application? Thank you!

Jim's Reply:

This is a very common occurrence. The trick to getting past this is to print your own letter in eBenefits. If you don't have an eBenefits account you'll need to take the time to establish one and then give it time to update your data.
 

Once you've done that you can explore and find the section that allows you to print your own benefits letter. When you do you simply leave out the 70% part and keep the 100%...easily done since the letter was designed for this. Once you get into your account you'll get the idea of how to do this. 
 

VA Letters: Download and modify VA letters, including Civil Service Preferences, Commissary and Exchange Privileges, Service Benefit Verification, and Proof of Service Card.
 

It works, I've used this myself and each state has accepted the letter, no problems. Good luck!

Question:

I am a Veteran and I am waiting for the appraisal and closing to move into the home I want in Houston, Texas. I would like to know if that can be in days rather than 4-6 months I was told. Can it be in a week if needing a home?

Jim's Reply:

How long your closing takes isn't a function that VA is involved in. Your VA Certificate of Eligibility (COE) is issued to you almost as soon as you ask for it. The COE tells any lender you choose that you are a vet and you do not have to make a down payment along with a handful of other advantages to you.
 

The COE doesn't approve you to make a purchase. Once you have the COE you still must go through the usual loan approval process with the lender of your choice. How long that will take is up to that lender and their usual approval process. If you are creditworthy and you have all your financial and employment records ready and available for a lender to examine them, the usual lender approval process can be done in a day or less. 
 

Once you have a loan approved...you'll get a pre-approval letter with an amount from your lender...then is the time to start shopping for your home. Find a real estate agent or just go out on your own and find the house you want to buy. There will be mandatory inspections by the lender and the VA and that may take a few days to schedule, or it may be done very quickly. A lot of this will depend on where you are and the type of home you want to buy.
 

Once you've made an offer and the offer is accepted, closing the deal can happen very quickly. From this point on it's just a matter of crossing t's and dotting i's and getting signatures on documents. 
 

I think that if you make all the proper preparations to be prepared for the credit checks by a lender that once you have a letter of credit in hand that you could choose a property and close in a week. That's fairly aggressive and I'd say most folks would take a month or so. 
 

Good luck in your new home!