United States Department of Veterans Affairs

Loan Limits

 

Loan Limits

 

VA does not set a cap on how much you can borrow to finance your home. However, there are limits on the amount of liability VA can assume, which usually affects the amount of money an institution will lend you. The loan limits are the amount a qualified Veteran with full entitlement may be able to borrow without making a downpayment. These loan limits vary by county, since the value of a house depends in part on its location.

The basic entitlement available to each eligible Veteran is $36,000. Lenders will generally loan up to 4 times a Veteran's available entitlement without a down payment, provided the Veteran is income and credit qualified and the property appraises for the asking price.

Interest rates are subject to change due to market fluctuations. VA evaluates these market trends and determines if interest rate reductions or increases are warranted. As of 9/24/12, the current Native American Direct Loan program rate is 3.50%. The last rate change was on 1/17/2012.

VA county loan limit:

Remaining Entitlement

Veterans who had a VA loan before may still have "remaining entitlement" to use for another VA loan. Most lenders require that a combination of the guaranty entitlement and any cash down payment must equal at least 25 percent of the reasonable value or sales price of the property, whichever is less. Thus, for example, $23,500 remaining entitlement would probably meet a lender's minimum guaranty requirement for a no-down payment loan to buy a property valued at and selling for $94,000. You could also combine a down payment with the remaining entitlement for a larger loan amount.

FAQs