Purchase
VA loans
The strongest program in American lending, if you have the entitlement.
What a VA loan actually is
A VA loan requires no down payment, charges no monthly mortgage insurance, and caps the fees a lender may pass to the veteran. With full entitlement there is no county loan limit at all. For an eligible borrower it is almost always the correct answer, and we will say so even when another program would pay us more.
VA underwrites differently from every other agency. Alongside the debt-to-income ratio there is a residual income test: after the mortgage, all debts, taxes, insurance and a maintenance and utilities factor, a specific dollar amount must remain each month based on family size and region. Philadelphia sits in the Northeast region, where a family of four must retain $1,025 (sample figure). That test is why VA approvals sometimes clear at a 55% ratio and sometimes fail at 38%.
Best suited to
- Veterans, active duty service members and eligible surviving spouses
- Buyers with strong income but little saved for a down payment
- Borrowers whose disability rating exempts them from the funding fee
- Anyone comparing a zero-down VA against a 3.5% FHA with permanent MIP
What comes with the loan
- Certificate of Eligibility pulled directly through the VA portal, usually within the hour
- Residual income worksheet completed before you make an offer, not after
- Funding fee exemption verified against your disability award letter
- Tidewater notification handling if the appraisal is heading below contract price
- Full explanation of entitlement restoration if you already own a VA-financed home
- Interest Rate Reduction Refinance Loan pre-planning for a future rate cycle
How a file moves
- 01
Entitlement check
We pull the Certificate of Eligibility first. It tells us whether entitlement is full, partial or tied up in an existing VA loan, which changes everything downstream.
- 02
Residual income review
We run the Northeast region residual table for your family size before you write an offer, so your maximum price is real.
- 03
Offer support
Listing agents in this market sometimes still believe VA offers are weak. We provide a letter to the listing agent explaining the appraisal and timeline facts.
- 04
VA appraisal
Assigned through the VA portal, not chosen by us. If the value is coming in low, the Tidewater process gives us two days to submit comparable sales. We use them.
- 05
Closing
The veteran may not pay certain fees, including the lender's attorney and any commission. We reconcile the settlement statement against the VA fee schedule line by line.
Why borrowers choose it
No down payment
With full entitlement, 100% financing on a primary residence with no county cap.
No monthly MI
There is no recurring mortgage insurance at any loan-to-value, which is worth roughly $200 a month on a $400,000 loan.
Funding fee waiver
Veterans receiving VA compensation for a service-connected disability are exempt from the funding fee entirely.
Assumable and reusable
VA loans are assumable, and entitlement can be restored on sale or a one-time restoration while keeping the property.
What to watch out for
- VA requires the property to be your primary residence; occupancy is certified at closing.
- Partial entitlement, usually because you still hold a VA loan, reintroduces a county-based limit and a down payment.
- The funding fee is financed into the loan, so a zero-down purchase starts above 100% of value.
VA questions we get asked
Still unclear? Call (215) 555-0145 and ask for the originator covering your county.
All questionsWith full entitlement, correct. VA removed county loan limits for borrowers at full entitlement, so the constraint is your income, the residual income test and the appraised value rather than a published cap. Partial entitlement is different and does reintroduce a limit.
After the proposed mortgage payment, all monthly debts, income tax, and an estimated maintenance and utilities figure based on square footage, a set dollar amount must remain. For a family of four in the Northeast region on a loan above $80,000 that figure is $1,025 (sample). Exceeding it by 20% or more also allows a higher debt ratio.
Yes. Entitlement is restored when you sell the home and pay off the loan. There is also a one-time restoration available if you pay the loan off but keep the property. You can hold two VA loans at once using remaining entitlement, subject to a limit.
Some listing agents still believe old stories about VA appraisals and timelines. Our median VA purchase closes in 24 calendar days (sample figure), and we send a letter to the listing agent with those facts attached to your offer.
Programs worth comparing
Conventional
Conforming loans to $832,750 with cancellable PMI
FHA and VA streamline
No appraisal, no income documents in most files
First-time buyer
PHFA pairing, grant stacking and the 3% down route
Find out if VA fits
Fifteen minutes, a soft credit pull, and a straight answer about which program actually suits your file.
No application fee. Soft credit pull at pre-qualification. Flat $1,095 origination at closing.