VA Loans for Home Purchase:
Since 1944, when home loan guarantees were part of the original GI Bill, the Department of Veterans Affairs has guaranteed more than 18 million home loans worth over $911 billion. 180,000 veterans, active duty service members, and survivors of veterans received VA home loan valued at about $36 billion in 2008. More than 90 percent of those VA loans required no-down payment.

VA loans are home loans that are insured by the Department of Veterans Affairs. VA loans are available to veterans, active service members, reservists and members of the Public Health Service. The VA Home Loan program allows veterans with qualifying income and credit to purchase a primary residence without putting any money down, as long as that sale price of the home does not exceed the appraised value of the home. Veterans do need money towards closing costs as well as earnest money, which the seller generally requires when a sales contract is signed. Closing costs may be paid by the seller, which can be negotiated when the sale price of the home is set.

VA Refinance Loans:
Use a VA refinance loan to lower your monthly mortgage payment or tap into your home's equity. There are many options available for refinancing your VA home loan. With today's low interest rate, you can save thousands over the life of your home loan by simply refinancing your VA home loan. There are two different options available for your VA loan refinance.

VA Loans for Home Equity Refinancing:
If you need extra money to pay off credit card debt, pay for your child's college tuition, or to make home improvements, Pacific One Lending can find a way to get you the money you need through a refinance. With a VA "Cash Out" refinance, you can refinance for up to 90% of the appraised value of your home as long as you have built sufficient equity in your home.

VA Streamline Refinance:
The Department of Veterans Affairs has created a program called the Streamline Refinance to provide a way for current VA homeowners to lower their interest rate with little to no out-of-pocket costs. The closing time for these loans is also much faster, because it requires less documentation than a typical loan.

An Interest Rate Reduction Loan or Streamline Refinance allows you to refinance your current mortgage interest rate to a lower rate than you are currently paying. This is only available to veterans who are refinancing their original VA mortgage.

A "No Cost" Streamline refinance will let you refinance your mortgage with no out-of-pocket expenses. You can achieve "No Cost" by letting your lender pay the costs in exchange for a higher interest rate. Another option would be rolling the closing costs into the new loan, which will allow you to reach market interest rates.

The Basics of a VA Streamline Refinance:

• No assumptions allowed
• The borrower cannot receive any cash back
• VA does not require an appraisal, any income or employment verifications, no credit report and no termite report, yet the mortgage must have been paid as agreed for the last twelve (12) months and must be up to date at the time of refinancing. Any other liens must be subordinated to the VA loan
• This loan can be done with no out of pocket costs by including all costs in the new loan or by making the new loan at an interest rate high enough to enable the lender to pay the costs

For more information about VA loans, visit the Department of Veterans Affairs. If you would like to talk with one of our Orange County VA loan experts to determine your eligibility, call 888-733-4224 or apply online.