Forgotten Your Password?

Need to Register?

Question Icon

When to apply for a VA loan

My husband is active duty USMC and maybe medical retired at some point this year. We are waiting on the med board decision. He would be out of the service as of August 2012 if he is not discharged medically. I just checked my credit score which is 600, his is around 700. How do we start the process of a VA loan? Does my credit score affect anything? And when is the best time to apply, before or after he is out? by one5st_892_780 from Orange, California. Jan 27th 2012 Reply


Hans Bruhner (Hans Bruhner)
#132 ranked lender in California - 125 contributions

The answer is you need to wait for two things. First, we would need to wait and see what your husbands income is after the medical board decision. If by being medical retired means he gets a paycheck for that then we need to wait unti after. if he has no income from the military either when he is out or medically retired then we need to wait and see what his job and income will be so we can qualify him. The other thing is that I need a minimum 620 credit score. You need to also be careful what scoring model you are getting your score from. The mortgage industry uses a model that goes to 850 and there is a consumer model that goes to 990 so if you are a 600 out of 990 then you may be lower on our scoring system. Give me a call at (866) 385-1650, I am in CA.

Jan 27th 2012
1
0
Cindy MacDonell (Cindy Wright)
#148 ranked lender in California - 21 contributions

Hello,The best time to apply is as soon as possible if you are looking to purchase in the near future. We then can make sure you are pre-approved and ready to go when the decision comes in. If you do not intend to be on the loan, then your credit score is not used, although, you credit report will be pulled to determine there are no judgements, leins, or collections. Judgements and leins would be required to be paid off if they would compromise first lein position. If I can be of any help, please do not hesitate to contact me at 707-583-8117. Cindy MacDonell at Bay Equity Home Loans.

Jan 27th 2012
0
0
Bert Carpenter (BertCarpenter)
#37 ranked lender in Arizona - 2,431 contributions

Clearly the best time to apply is as soon as possible. One of the things an underwriter will be looking for is income to pay your debts. Your husband's impending change could impact this, meaning you may need to wait until after the decision is made for underwriting approval. Regarding your score. If you intend to be on the loan, a minimum middle score needed is 620. It should be pretty easy to get your score up, depending on the factors in your report. Contact a local Mortgage Banker/Broker, rather than one of the big banks. Unlike a bank employee, who is most likely just an order taker, a Mortgage Broker/Banker is Trained, Tested and Licensed in all aspects of Mortgage Origination. He/She will have access to loan products of many lenders, not just those of one bank, and can properly guide you. But more importantly, He/She is trained to take a look at the various different options available to you and guide you into the one that makes the best sense for your situation. Don't forget to check out your selected Mortgage Originator at the National Mortgage Licensing System at www.NMLSConsumerAccess.org ~ Bert Carpenter, The LoansA2z team of NOVA Home Loans ~ NMLS 40586 ~ www.LoansA2z.com

Jan 27th 2012
0
0
William J Acres (William_Acres)
#74 ranked lender in Arizona - 8,728 contributions

You can apply at any time however you do need income.. so you might have to wait until the decision has been made regarding his medical condition. Also, if he does qualify for VA disability, he might not have to pay a VA funding Fee. Unless there a home out there you need to move quickly on, you might want to wait.. However I would suggest getting with a local mortgage broker, not a bank, and start the application process. Your score is a bit low, but the mortgage broker can show you what you need to do to improve your score to open up all available financing options. With the lower credit scores, you limited to very few lenders, and pricing and rates can be higher. WilliamAcres.com

Jan 27th 2012
0
0
Chris Brengelman (chrisbrengelman)
#46 ranked lender in Ohio - 28 contributions

Hello,Many people are going to tell you to apply as soon as possible. What you want to do is get PRE-QUALIFIED as soon as possible.Call one of the people on this website or go to a local institution and ask if a VA loan is even the best option for you.This isn't going to make alot of sense in the beginning of the process but depending on the % of your husbands disability, the VA loan will tack a pretty sizable fee on the loan. Your husband may qualify for a better loan with a better payment. The VA loan is definately a viable option, but you will want to provide your loan officer with all the information on your and your husbands work history, pull credit, and determine if you want to put any money down on a new home, what type of payment you can afford etc.An experienced loan officer can tell you everything to get together and send them. From there they can give you a detailed explanation on all your options. I am a phone call/email away! I lend in 49 States!

Jan 28th 2012
0
0

Hello, Almost every realtors rushes to pull your credit as soon as the word "loan" come out of your mouth, do not let them pull your credit until you are ready to buy the home you are looking for. There are so many things to consider prior to letting these guys pull your credit and slash 3-5 points off your credit score. I'm a wounded Soldier who is going through medical board as well, I'm in phase four (4/6) I have 2 phases to go, depending on outcome of the 5th phase I could stack in the military for another 120-252 days, this did not stop me from looking for my next home, I am working with lenders and agents at this time, they all understand my situation and still must follow the VA guidelines and their company's regulations, when it comes to wounded soldiers almost every American business want to help but not all of them, some of them are here to rip us off, be careful who you are dealing with. The time your husband have left in the USMC have a key to your approval for VA home loan, if you are going to move to different location after his medical board VA will not approve you for home loan till he is fully cleared out of service. If he can prove his rating (Disability Percentage) VA will guarantee his loan however only if you guys are staying at the location where you are residing now, I guess VA requires at least 50% occupation of your new home, they are trying to avoid financial problem that occurs duty occupying two different homes (Your current apartment & Your new home). As for your credit score, do all your best to repair it and raise it to at least 620, if you guys are applying together, your 600 will potentially hurt his 700, repairing your credit is a key to be approved for VA loan, you can settle your debts for a lot less than what you owe if you have any debt. Collection companies are more than willing to work with someone who want to give them some cash, usually they can settle for 2-5% of what you owe, but this will not remove the scar from your credit history, if they are over 7 years old I wouldn't bother to call collection companies, they will go away at their own time, the other main thing is you can build positive credit against your negative credit, that's exactly what I did to raise my credit score from 560 to 740 in less than 36 months, you can siply secure $300.00 in CD account and get credit card against it, this will potentially raise your credit for up to 5% apply for Military Star Card, AAFES store card and use it and pay it off on time, Please DO NOT allow creditors pull your credit for something that doesn't worth it. To get better answer on the VA loan the best place to call is the regional VA Benefit office, it may take long waiting on the phone but they will answer your question. Don't forget there is always acceptation to policy no matter where you go. I hope this will help

Jul 17th 2012
0
0
Subscribe to our news feed.