All Forum Posts by: Daniel Lehman

Once you gain some equity you can refinance the VA loan into a conventional and free up your VA eligibility for a new purchase. Congrats! Great job, and thanks for your service!

Semper Fi, 

Daniel 

If you don't have cash available, I think the way that I would go is to use my VA loan to occupy one unit of a multi-family property. Live in one, rent out the rest and you probably get pretty close to cash-flowing... When you gain some equity, you can refinance the VA loan into a conventional and go purchase a new owner occupied property using you VA benefit. If you have 10% or more service connected disability, your funding fee is waived, and it is the best deal in history.

Dont worry TOO much about condition, but yes, VA will require the seller fix things that are health and hazard issues.

D

In terms of RESIDENTIAL loans, it is really not super feasible... Too much due diligence required, so FHA and VA would probably be out. Typically at auctions you need the cash there for the most part to get it done... I have seen people go in with partners, buy the property cash, and then REFINANCE it with VA or FHA or Conventional loans and recoup the cash, but that would obviously require resources up front...

Daniel

Just to be clear - I am not advising you to say something that you dont mean, or commit any kind of loan fraud.  I am just saying that guidelines state that if you intend to reenlist you can write a letter and verify eligibility with your command.

Thanks!

OK, I can answer this for you...  In REALITY all your husband has to do is INTEND to reenlist, as long as he is able to if he wanted to.  Hypothetically, IF your husband DID intend to reenlist, to solve this issue you would just have to write a letter to the lender that said "I intend to reenlist" and you would also have to get a letter from his command that said he was eligible to reenlist.  In that case you wouldn't need a full year on the contract. 

Later, if intentions were to change, that is none of anyone's business, really.   Stuff happens that changes minds.  

People intend to reenlist and don't all the time.  That's about as specific as I can be on that topic.  

Technically, FHA and VA are ONLY for owner occupied purchases. So you would have to intend to occupy the residence that you purchase. That being said, VA all day in 99.99% of cases.

VA - 100% financing, no mortgage insurance, low rates. Possible funding fee waived if 10% or more service connected disability.

FHA - 3.5% down payment, 1.75% funding fee, .85% mortgage insurance which is PERMANENT.

VA all the way in most cases.

Daniel Lehman
San Diego, CA

You don't have to talk to your lender.  Your lender probably doesn't own your loan.  Its probably in Fannie Mae's hands.  If you have to move, move.  There is a guideline that says it has to be feasible and you have to intend to stay for 1 year, but it is hardly something that is enforceable.  You have to INTEND to occupy within 60 days, and INTEND to live there for 1 year.  I work with a lot of veterans.  Obviously deployments and PCS moves happen, so its just not feasible to GUARANTEE that you will be there for a year.  No real means for recourse if you have to go.  

Daniel

Great question...  It is important to shop, because even if lenders are in the same RANGE due to the market, there are differences in pricing depending on their margins.  That is, the money that they make on the loan.  BUT - that doesn't mean you go with the cheapest.  I am not the cheapest in San Diego, but we get loans done in a way that is SUPER high quality, high touch, etc.  It takes staff to do that.  There are cheaper options, but the guy down in the van by the river doing loans is not your best bet.  

THE BEST WAY TO SHOP is like this. DONT look at a good faith estimate. It will confuse you, and is easily manipulated. Same thing with APR. What you want to do is look at RATE and LENDER fees. Not third party fees, appraisals, etc, but LENDER fees. Some lenders may have a lower rate, but much higher lender fees. Some lenders have slightly higher rates but lower lender fees.

What you should do is stay away from the internet, etc, and find a friend or mentor who has purchased a home previously and has a 100% solid referral.  Find someone who had a great experience and ask for a referral.  All internet stuff (including Navy Fed and USAA) turns you into a "lead" and when you are a lead, it really doesn't matter if you are treated incredibly well, because there are always other "leads" inbound.  If you are REFERRED to someone who is 100% referral based, there is fire to their feet, because to be referral based you have to deserve and work for those referrals.  

My two cents... 

Daniel

VA loans by definition are owner occupied only. The only exception is doing an interest rate reduction refi on a property that you originally occupied but now rent out. Multi units you still have to occupy one of the units...

Second answer.  If you had APPLIED for disability before it was granted, and before you paid the funding fee, you could get a refund.  If you applied for disability after your refi, you are stuck.  But - the good news is that moving forward you are good to go.  Fee is waived forever with 10% or more disability...

Daniel

You can only use VA if you are going to owner occupy the property. So, if your new purchase is smaller, in a worse area, etc, you may have a hard time justifying owner occupancy. HOWEVER, another option (Depending on what your current home situation is) would be to REFINANCE your current VA loan into a conventional, which would re-charge your VA eligibility to 100%. Then you could go and buy a new property up to the county loan limit with zero down. Make sense?

Daniel