First and foremost, Thank You For Your Dedication and Service! We have friends and family that have served in the armed forces, and we understand and salute the commitment and sacrifice that you have made for our country and its citizens.
Catalano & Associates Realty has helped many veterans and service members purchase homes. We have worked directly with veterans from many branches of the military, including SF and Reserves. Christina Catalano is familiar with the lending process and the unique requirements of active duty personnel. Working with active duty service members has challenges, and our team can work within your requirements. We can schedule off hour calls if you are overseas, close with a Power of Attorney while you are deployed, send mobile notaries to a Starbucks near base, conduct video showings if you cannot be here to see a listing, and work with your flight schedule. Our past clients have used every one of these accommodations, and others. Let us thank you for your service with our exceptional level of service and commitment to you.
Veterans, active duty, and surviving spouses of service members that have met the Veteran’s Administration service requirements are eligible for a mortgage loan backed by the VA. VA Home Loans are provided by private lenders, such as banks and mortgage companies. VA guarantees a portion of the loan, enabling the lender to provide you with more favorable terms. The VA offers several types of loan products that are summarized below.
Veterans with Disability Rating may be eligible for a waiver of the VA funding fee.
Purchase Mortgage
Helps you purchase a home at a competitive interest rate, often without requiring a down payment or private mortgage insurance. Cash Out Refinance loans allow you to take cash out of your home equity to take care of concerns like paying off debt, funding school, or making home improvements. Requires a valid COE.
Native American Direct Loan
The NADL program helps Native American Veterans purchase, construct, improve, or re-finance a home located on Native American trust lands. Your tribal organization must participate in the VA direct loan program. You must also have a valid Certificate of Eligibility (COE).
Interest Rate Reduction Refinance
Also called the Streamline Refinance Loan, the IRRL can help you obtain a lower interest rate by refinancing your existing VA loan. This loan is available to eligible veterans and service members that currently have a VA loan and allows them to take advantage of declining interest rates to reduce their monthly payment obligations.
Adapted Housing Grants
Grants that help Veterans with a permanent and total service-connected disability purchase or build an adapted home or to modify an existing home to account for their disability. Veterans with certain total and permanent disabilities related to your military service can obtain suitable housing with either a Specially Adapted Housing (SAH) or Special Housing Adaptation (SHA) grant.
Steps to Purchase a Home Using a VA Loan:
Research your eligibility for the VA Home Loan benefit based on service and discharge requirements.
Your COE will be required by your lender and verifies that you are eligible for a VA Guaranteed Loan. You can obtain your COE online via the eBenefits portal, or your lender can request it on your behalf.
We can provide you information on VA lenders we have worked with in the past, or work with the lender of your choice. It is important to work with a lender to get pre-approved and discuss your monthly payments and purchase price range.
Schedule a time with Catalano & Associates Realty to discuss search criteria. Review homes online from your custom home search, see photos, virtual tours, and location maps. Then we will work around your schedule to view your possibilities and find the home that is best for you!
Once you find a home, we will write an offer that meets your needs and price requirements, negotiate with the seller to reach a workable agreement, and walk you through the steps of the purchase. During this time, you will continue to work with the lender to provide them required documents and complete the loan process.
Most lenders require an appraisal to ensure the property is valued at or above the agreed purchase price. The Veterans Administrations requires a VA approved appraiser to conduct the appraisal.
The last step is closing. If you are unable to be in the area for closing, we can arrange a mobile notary to come to your location, or arrange for you to sign at a title company near you. If it is necessary to use a Power of Attorney to sign your closing documents (in the case of deployments), we will work with the title company and lender prior to closing to make sure the proper documentation is in place and approved, and coordinate with your designated signer on a convenient place and time to sign on your behalf.
If you are thinking: There must be more steps than this to buying a home! You are absolutely right. A complete list of steps would make your head spin and your eyes cross from reading so much, but that’s where we come in. Catalano & Associates Realty is experienced and tested in this process and we promise to take the stress and detail away from you and shoulder that ourselves. It’s the least we can do for our service members and veterans!