Veteran Home Benefits Checklist

Before you shop

• Request your Certificate of Eligibility (COE) at VA.gov, or ask a lender to pull it. (VA.gov)
• Have your DD214 ready (veterans) or a statement of service (still serving).
• Check your COE for prior VA loans still charged to your entitlement.
• Full entitlement means no VA loan limit; your lender still decides how much you can borrow. (VA.gov)
• Some entitlement in use? Lenders use the 2026 one-unit county limit ($832,750 baseline) to figure what is left. Limits change each January.
• Used the benefit before? Entitlement can be restored after you sell and pay off, when a veteran assumes and substitutes entitlement, or once if you pay off and keep the home.
• Plan to live in the home. A VA loan is not for a vacation home or an investment-only purchase.

Questions for each lender

• Get official Loan Estimates from 2–3 VA lenders on the same day. Lenders, not the VA, set rates.
• What is my funding fee? Purchase with under 5% down: 2.15% first use, 3.3% after; 5% down: 1.5%; 10% down: 1.25%. (VA.gov)
• Am I exempt? Exempt: receiving or eligible for VA disability compensation; surviving spouses receiving DIC; a pre-discharge proposed or memorandum rating before closing; active duty with a Purple Heart on or before closing.
• Claim pending? Ask how a refund works if compensation is later awarded back to before closing.
• What minimum credit score do you require? (VA itself sets none.)
• Buying 2–4 units: will you count rent from the other units, and what reserves or landlord experience do you require?
• Is Florida Hometown Heroes available now, and do I qualify? (5% of the loan, $10,000–$35,000, a 0% deferred second mortgage repaid when you sell, refinance or move out; 640+ credit, county income limits, homebuyer class.)
• Condo? Is the project VA-approved?

Offer and closing

• Ask the seller to pay closing costs. VA puts no cap on seller-paid normal closing costs.
• Concessions on top (paying your funding fee, prepaid insurance, a debt payoff) are capped at 4% of the VA reasonable value.
• Only the funding fee can be added to the loan. Seller credits cover costs; they are not cash back.
• Low appraisal? Renegotiate, pay the difference, request a Reconsideration of Value, or use the VA escape clause and keep your deposit.
• Get a separate home inspection. The VA appraisal is not an inspection.
• Check the flood zone and get homeowners and flood insurance quotes early.
• Confirm wiring instructions by phone with the title company, at a number you look up yourself.

After closing: Florida property tax

• Own and live in the home on January 1, then apply with your county property appraiser by March 1. Bring your VA award letter. (Florida Dept. of Veterans’ Affairs)
• Homestead exemption for every owner-occupant.
• Veteran with a 10%+ service-connected disability: an extra $5,000 off assessed value (F.S. 196.24).
• Permanent and total service-connected disability: homestead fully exempt (F.S. 196.081).
• Age 65+ with a combat-related disability: discount equal to your disability percentage (F.S. 196.082).

Life events

• PCS orders: sell and pay off to restore entitlement, or keep and rent after you have truly lived there.
• Renting now? SCRA lets you end a lease without penalty on PCS orders, a 90+ day deployment, or separation. (DOJ)
• Selling: up to $250,000 ($500,000 married filing jointly) of profit can be tax-free after living there 2 of 5 years; on qualified extended duty the 5-year window can be suspended up to 10 years. Talk with a CPA. (IRS Pub. 523)
• Pre-service mortgage on active duty: 6% rate cap and foreclosure protection during service and 1 year after. (CFPB)
• Behind on a VA loan? Call your servicer early and ask about the VA Partial Claim Program. Stuck? Call VA at 877-827-3702.
• Severe service-connected disability? Ask VA about SAH and SHA adaptive housing grants before you buy or remodel.

General information only, not lending, tax or legal advice. Not affiliated with or endorsed by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs or any government agency. Program rules and amounts change; confirm with VA, your lender and a CPA. Equal Housing Opportunity.

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