VA Home Loans in Virginia
Virginia has the second-highest concentration of veterans per capita in the country and the largest naval base on earth. If any state should be easy to get a VA loan in, it is this one. It is not. Local lenders here still stack a 620 score rule on top of the VA handbook, still treat Northern Virginia prices as a jumbo problem, and still write preapprovals in Hampton Roads without checking the flood zone. We underwrite from the VA handbook. No credit score overlay, manual underwriting when automated findings refer, and no loan limit on full entitlement whether you are buying in Norfolk or Loudoun County.
Start Your VA Pre-Approval
Find out what you actually qualify for, with the real flood and tax numbers for the address you are buying.
Soft credit pull. No SSN to start.
Who You’re Actually Working With
J.D. Peck — NMLS #314883. 25+ years originating. 3,100+ closed loans. Scotsman Guide Top Originator, 2026. Based in Colorado Springs, in one of the densest military markets in the country. VA files are not a sideline here. They are the practice.
In the Press
“When the underwriting is done correctly, VA loans are one of the most powerful lending solutions for military borrowers.”
— J.D. Peck, quoted in Chrisman Commentary, August 12, 2026, on PRMG’s recognition as a Top VA Lender in Scotsman Guide’s 2026 rankings.
What Virginia Veterans Should Know Before Using VA Entitlement
Virginia is a deed of trust state. Foreclosure runs through a trustee under a power of sale rather than through the courts, which makes it one of the faster processes in the country. That is a reason to size the payment around what your income carries rather than the ceiling a calculator prints.
Two things make Virginia unusual for VA buyers, and they pull in opposite directions. On the good side, Virginia has one of the most generous disabled veteran property tax exemptions in the nation: a full exemption at 100 percent permanent and total, with no income test, and a surviving spouse who can carry it to a different house. On the harder side, Virginia is really two housing markets. Northern Virginia is a designated high-cost area where the price forces large loan amounts, and Hampton Roads sits at sea level where the flood zone determines the payment as much as the rate does.
What Is a Virginia VA Loan?
A Virginia VA loan is a mortgage guaranteed by the Department of Veterans Affairs and originated by a private lender. VA guarantees a portion of the loan instead of lending the money. That guarantee is what lets a service member reporting into Hampton Roads or Northern Virginia buy with nothing down, carry no monthly mortgage insurance, and qualify on credit terms conventional financing would reject.
Every VA lender works from the same handbook. The difference between them is how many of their own rules they stack on top. Those extra rules are overlays, and in a state this dense with veterans, they are the single most common reason a Virginia file gets denied.
Virginia VA Loan Rules and Veteran Tax Benefits
No State-Specific VA Overlay
Virginia adds no state-level restriction to VA purchase financing. Federal rules apply as written.
Full Property Tax Exemption at 100 Percent Permanent and Total
Virginia Code 58.1-3219.5 exempts the entire assessed value of the principal residence for a veteran with a 100 percent service-connected permanent and total disability rating. Not a dollar cap. Not a percentage. The whole thing, plus the land it sits on up to one acre.
No Income Limit
Virginia does not means-test this exemption. That is a meaningful difference from states like California, where the larger exemption is capped by household income.
More Than One Acre in Some Localities
If your county, city, or town grants a larger acreage allowance to other exemption categories, disabled veterans get the same allowance. Ask your commissioner of the revenue rather than assuming one acre.
Manufactured Homes Are Covered
The statute protects a manufactured home used as the principal residence even where the veteran does not own the land underneath it.
Surviving Spouse Keeps It, and Can Move
A surviving spouse retains the exemption if the veteran died on or after January 1, 2011 and the spouse has not remarried. Unusual part: the exemption follows the spouse to a different principal residence. Most states lock the benefit to the original house.
Partial Ratings Do Not Qualify
Virginia requires 100 percent permanent and total. There is no tiered benefit at 10, 30, or 70 percent the way Texas and Florida provide. Know that before you build it into your budget.
File With the Locality, Not With VA
The exemption is administered by your city or county commissioner of the revenue. We will tell you it exists and point you at the form. Filing and deadlines are on you.
Why Virginia Veterans Choose The JD.Mortgage Team
No Minimum Credit Score Overlay
VA publishes no score floor. Most Virginia lenders impose one anyway. We do not. A refer from automated underwriting starts a manual underwrite. It does not end the file.
Northern Virginia Prices Are Not a Jumbo Problem
With full entitlement there is no VA loan limit in Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun, or Prince William. Most lenders treat anything above the conforming number as a VA jumbo and bolt on their own rules. We do not.
Hampton Roads Flood Zones Priced Before the Offer
In Norfolk, Portsmouth, Virginia Beach, and Chesapeake, the flood determination changes the payment more than a quarter point of rate does. We run it in week one, not at the closing table.
Clearance and Contractor Income Handled Correctly
Separating into a federal contractor role is the most common Virginia file we see. VA allows qualifying on an offer letter with a start date inside a defined window. Most lenders either do not know the rule or will not use it, and they make you wait months you do not have to wait.
$0 Down, No Monthly Mortgage Insurance
With full entitlement there is no down payment requirement and no monthly MI, ever. On a Northern Virginia loan amount, dropping mortgage insurance is worth hundreds of dollars a month against conventional.
Manual Underwriting Is Routine Here
Bankruptcy, foreclosure, collections, a rough stretch after separation. We run manual underwrites regularly using the compensating factors VA actually recognizes.
Virginia VA Loan Rates and the Funding Fee
VA rates move with the market. The funding fee does not — it is a fixed, one-time cost that keeps the program self-sustaining, and it can be financed into the loan.
Purchase, First-Time Use
2.15% with less than 5% down. 1.5% with 5% or more down. 1.25% with 10% or more down.
Purchase, Subsequent Use
3.3% with less than 5% down. 1.5% with 5% or more down. 1.25% with 10% or more down.
VA IRRRL Streamline Refinance
0.5% flat, regardless of prior use.
Exempt Entirely
Veterans receiving VA disability compensation at any rating, veterans entitled to compensation who take retirement pay instead, surviving spouses receiving DIC, and Purple Heart recipients on active duty. It shows on your COE and we verify before you pay anything.
These rates took effect April 7, 2023. Percentages can change — confirm at closing.
Seller Concessions: The 4% Rule Almost Everyone Gets Wrong
This is the most misunderstood rule in VA lending, and on a Northern Virginia purchase price it is worth more than almost anywhere else. Most buyers — and plenty of agents and loan officers — think the seller is capped at 4%. That is wrong.
Bucket 1: Your Closing Costs — No VA Cap
The seller can pay all of your normal allowable closing costs. Origination, appraisal, title, recording, credit report, prepaid taxes and insurance at customary levels. No VA percentage ceiling. Market-rate discount points for a permanent buydown also sit here, uncapped.
Bucket 2: Concessions — Capped at 4% of Reasonable Value
Anything of value beyond normal closing costs is a concession, capped at 4% of the VA reasonable value — and stacked on top of Bucket 1, not instead of it.
What Actually Counts Toward the 4%
Paying Off Your Debt
The seller can retire your credit cards, collections, judgments, or an auto loan, and it counts against the 4%. Eliminating a $450 monthly payment can move a debt-to-income ratio from declined to approved without touching your savings. The single most powerful tool in VA structuring, and almost nobody uses it.
Breaking a Lease So You Can Buy Now
This is the one that changes timelines. You are renting and the right home appears six months before your lease ends. Early termination is commonly two months’ rent, and paying that on top of moving costs is what makes most renters wait another year. They do not have to wait. The seller can cover the lease-break penalty inside the 4%. We have structured this hundreds of times.
Prepaying Your Mortgage Payments
A seller can prepay your actual mortgage payments — the full PITI, not just escrows. Inside the 4% that can be several months covered before your first payment out of pocket. In Virginia, where the insurance portion of that payment is heavy, the runway matters more than it does elsewhere.
The VA Funding Fee and Temporary Buydowns
At 2.15% on a first-use purchase the funding fee eats a real share of the 4%. A 2-1 buydown escrow also counts. Both are commonly seller-funded.
In a Virginia market where inventory has loosened and sellers are negotiating again, a concession package is often easier to win than a price cut — and it does more for your approval than the price cut would. We run the structure before you write the offer. Full breakdown of the 4% rule
Debt or a lease standing between you and a house?
Send us the debts, the lease terms, and the purchase price. We will show you exactly what a seller can legally cover, what it does to your ratios, and how to write it so it survives underwriting.
Soft credit pull. No SSN to start.
Virginia Markets We Serve
Where you buy changes the payment more than most people expect. Here is the short version by market.
Hampton Roads
Norfolk, Oceana, Little Creek, and Yorktown. Norfolk, Virginia Beach, Chesapeake, Portsmouth, and Suffolk. Flood zone is the first thing we check.
Peninsula
Langley-Eustis. Hampton, Newport News, Yorktown, Poquoson, and Williamsburg.
Northern Virginia
Fort Belvoir, Quantico, and the Pentagon. Arlington, Alexandria, Fairfax, Woodbridge, Ashburn, and Leesburg. High-cost, which is where full entitlement earns its keep.
Fredericksburg and the I-95 Corridor
Stafford County, Spotsylvania, and King George. Where a lot of Quantico and Pentagon families trade commute for square footage.
Richmond and Tri-Cities
Fort Lee. Colonial Heights, Hopewell, Petersburg, Chester, and Midlothian. A fraction of Northern Virginia pricing.
Southside and the Eastern Shore
Fort Pickett, Fort A.P. Hill, and Wallops. Blackstone, Bowling Green, and Accomack County. Small markets, low prices, thin lender competition.
How a Virginia VA Loan Works
The loan is federal. The rules come from VA, not Richmond. What changes in Virginia is which of the two markets you are buying in. Here is the order we work in.
1. Pull your Certificate of Eligibility
We pull it electronically and most come back in seconds. If yours needs manual review because of a discharge upgrade, a Guard or Reserve record, or a prior VA loan never restored, we file the paperwork and follow it.
2. Calculate entitlement, not a loan limit
With full entitlement there is no VA loan limit anywhere in Virginia. If you already have a VA loan open, we compute remaining entitlement using the 2026 county figures and give you the exact zero-down ceiling.
3. Run the flood determination early
Anywhere in Hampton Roads or along the Chesapeake, this is the number that decides your payment. We run it before you write an offer instead of finding out in week four.
4. Run residual income against the South region table
Virginia is scored on the South region residual income table. State income tax comes off the qualifying take-home. This is the number VA weighs hardest and the one lenders run carelessly.
5. Underwrite it, manually if the file needs it
If automated underwriting refers, that is not a denial. VA allows a manual underwrite and we do them. Most Virginia retail lenders will not, which is why you got told no somewhere else.
6. Close and handle the funding fee
Financed into the loan by default and waived entirely with a service-connected disability rating. If your rating came through after a prior VA closing, you may be owed a refund on a fee you already paid.
Virginia VA Loan Eligibility At A Glance
These are our rules, not a restatement of the handbook. VA sets the floor. Most lenders build on top of it. We do not.
Credit score
No minimum. VA does not publish one. We have closed VA loans in the 500s. If a Virginia lender quoted you 620 or 680, that was their rule.
Down payment
Zero with full entitlement, in Loudoun County the same as in Petersburg. Not a low down payment. Zero.
Mortgage insurance
None, ever. On a Northern Virginia loan size that alone is worth several hundred dollars a month against a conventional structure.
Debt-to-income ratio
No hard cap. VA uses residual income instead. We have closed well past 50 percent DTI when the residual math supported it.
Bankruptcy, foreclosure, short sale
Chapter 7 at two years. Chapter 13 can work mid-plan with trustee approval and twelve months of on-time payments. Foreclosure and short sale at two years, shorter with documented extenuating circumstances.
Property types
Single family, VA-approved condo, townhome, PUD, manufactured on a permanent foundation, and two to four units if you occupy one. Townhomes and condos are most of the Northern Virginia inventory a VA buyer can actually reach.
Northern Virginia: High-Cost Does Not Mean You Need a Down Payment
This is the most valuable correction on this page for anyone buying inside the Beltway.
Northern Virginia counties in the Washington DC metro carry a high-cost designation, and the 2026 one-unit conforming ceiling there is $1,249,125 against a national baseline of $832,750. Here is what almost every buyer gets wrong: with full entitlement, neither number caps you. VA does not set a maximum loan amount for a veteran with full entitlement anywhere in the country.
What lenders do instead
They call anything over the conforming number a VA jumbo and add a 680 or 700 score minimum, reserve requirements, or a down payment. None of that is a VA rule. It comes from whoever they sell the loan to.
What the county number actually controls
If you already have a VA loan open somewhere, the county limit is used to compute how much entitlement is left, which sets your zero-down ceiling. That is the only job it has.
Condos and townhomes in Arlington and Alexandria
Condo projects need VA approval. We check the VA list before you write, because in Northern Virginia condos are a large share of what a VA buyer can realistically afford.
Two to four units
VA allows two to four units with owner occupancy and zero down on full entitlement. Rental income from the other units can help you qualify, which is one of the few ways to make Northern Virginia math work.
Hampton Roads: Flood Zone Is Part of the Approval
You can be perfectly qualified and still lose the house over an insurance number nobody checked. In Hampton Roads that number is flood.
Flood determination runs on every file anyway
We just do it in week one. If the property is in a FEMA special flood hazard area, typically a zone starting with A or V, flood insurance is required and it goes straight into your debt-to-income calculation.
Norfolk, Portsmouth, Virginia Beach, and Chesapeake are low
Large parts of these cities sit at or near sea level with recurring tidal flooding. Two houses on the same street can sit in different zones. We price the actual address.
An elevation certificate can cut the premium
If the structure sits higher than the flood map assumes, an elevation certificate can lower the premium substantially. Most buyers never hear about this until after closing.
A preapproval without flood priced in is a guess
If the letter you are carrying used a generic insurance estimate, your buying power will move at underwriting, usually downward, usually after you are already under contract.
Common Virginia VA Scenarios We Handle
PCS to Norfolk, Oceana, Langley-Eustis, or Quantico
You have orders and a report date and you may not have arrived. VA allows closing before you physically occupy, with a reasonable window to move in. We build the timeline around your report date.
Separating into a federal contractor job
The most common Northern Virginia file there is. VA allows qualifying on an offer letter with a start date inside a defined window, so you do not have to wait for pay stubs. Most lenders will not use the rule. We do.
Buying in Northern Virginia above the conforming limit
Full entitlement, high-cost county, zero down. Other lenders call it a VA jumbo and add overlays. We call it a VA loan.
You already used entitlement at your last duty station
Keep the other house as a rental. We calculate remaining entitlement and give you the exact zero-down ceiling in the Virginia county you are buying in.
You retired in Virginia and your income changed
Retirement pay, VA disability compensation, and part-time work qualify differently than salary. VA disability compensation is not taxable, so it gets grossed up. Lenders miss this constantly.
You want an investment property in Hampton Roads
VA occupancy rules require you to live in the home. For a pure rental, we use DSCR loans that qualify on the property’s rent instead of your personal income.
Virginia Files We Closed That Other Lenders Turned Down
This is the part that actually separates us. Specific file types that get declined elsewhere and close here.
541 credit score, zero down
A retail lender declined it at a 620 overlay. VA publishes no score minimum. The file went manual, residual income cleared with room, and it closed. Full write-up on VA loans with a 541 credit score.
Separating service member with only an offer letter
Contractor job starting in six weeks, no pay stubs yet. VA allows it. Two other lenders told the buyer to come back after 30 days of employment, which would have cost him the house.
Zero down above the conforming limit in Loudoun County
Full entitlement, high-cost county, no down payment, no VA jumbo overlay. The buyer had been told he needed 10 percent down. VA does not say that.
Chapter 13 still in repayment
Twelve months of on-time trustee payments plus written trustee approval. VA allows it. Most lenders will not touch it.
Buyer needed out of a lease to buy now
Seller paid the early lease termination penalty on the rental as a concession. That is an allowable VA seller concession and it is how a buyer stops paying rent and closes this month. Details on the VA seller concessions page.
Debt paid off by the seller at closing
A seller can retire a buyer’s credit cards or auto loan as a concession, which drops DTI and can turn a denial into an approval on the same contract at the same price. Almost nobody in Virginia structures deals this way.
Told No by Another Virginia Lender?
Send me the denial. I will tell you within a day whether it was a real VA rule or that lender’s own overlay. No cost, no obligation, no credit pull to find out.
25 years, 3,100+ closed loans, no lender overlays.
Virginia VA Loan vs Conventional vs FHA
Run the same Virginia purchase price through all three and VA usually wins by a wide margin, and the gap widens as you move north.
Down payment
VA: zero with full entitlement, at any Virginia price point. Conventional: 3 to 5 percent minimum, more on high-balance. FHA: 3.5 percent.
Mortgage insurance
VA: none, ever. Conventional: PMI until 20 percent equity. FHA: upfront premium plus a monthly premium that usually runs the life of the loan.
Loan amount ceiling
VA: none with full entitlement. Conventional: high-balance caps at $1,249,125 in the DC metro, then true jumbo rules apply. FHA: capped at the county limit.
Credit score floor
VA: no published minimum. Conventional: generally 620, with real pricing pain under 700. FHA: 580 for 3.5 percent down.
One-time fee
VA: the funding fee, financed into the loan, waived entirely with a service-connected disability rating. Conventional: none, but PMI monthly instead. FHA: 1.75 percent upfront plus the monthly.
Seller-paid costs
VA allows unlimited seller-paid closing costs plus up to 4 percent in concessions, and the concession bucket can pay off your debt. Conventional caps at 3 to 9 percent by down payment and has no debt-payoff allowance like VA’s.
Refinancing later
VA: the IRRRL streamline needs no appraisal and no income documentation in most cases. Conventional and FHA require a full refinance. See VA IRRRL.
Virginia VA Loan Myths, Corrected
Myth: There is a VA loan limit in Northern Virginia
There is not, with full entitlement. The $1,249,125 figure is the conventional high-balance ceiling. It only matters to a VA buyer who already has a VA loan open.
Myth: You need 10 percent down above the conforming limit
A lender overlay, not a VA rule. Full entitlement means zero down above the conforming baseline.
Myth: Virginia sellers will not take VA offers
This is a listing-agent habit, not a rule, and it is worse in Northern Virginia than anywhere. A clean VA offer with a real preapproval competes fine. Weak preapprovals from lenders who never priced flood or taxes are what created the reputation.
Myth: A partial disability rating gets you the Virginia property tax exemption
It does not. Virginia requires 100 percent permanent and total. There is no tiered benefit at lower ratings the way Texas and Florida provide.
Myth: You have to wait until you start the new job
Not in most cases. VA allows qualifying on an offer letter with a start date inside a defined window, which is exactly the separating-to-contractor path most Northern Virginia buyers are on.
Myth: The VA appraisal will kill the deal
A VA appraisal enforces minimum property requirements, most of them safety items. In Hampton Roads the thing that actually ends deals is a flood premium nobody priced.
Myth: You can only use your VA loan once
Entitlement is reusable and restorable. A lot of the Virginia buyers we work with are on their third or fourth VA loan because they PCS so often.
Virginia VA Loan Frequently Asked Questions
Is there a minimum credit score for a VA loan in Virginia?
No. VA publishes no minimum credit score. Lenders add their own, usually 620 and often higher in Northern Virginia because the loan amounts are larger. The JD.Mortgage Team does not add one. If automated underwriting refers your file, we run a manual underwrite using the compensating factors VA recognizes: residual income, housing payment history, reserves, and documented explanations for past credit events.
Is there a VA loan limit in Virginia?
No, if you have full entitlement. That includes Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun, and Prince William counties. County limits only matter for calculating remaining entitlement when you already have a VA loan open somewhere.
What is the 2026 loan limit in Northern Virginia?
The Washington DC metro is a designated high-cost area with a 2026 one-unit conforming ceiling of $1,249,125, against a national baseline of $832,750. Neither number caps a VA buyer with full entitlement. They matter only for conventional financing or for computing remaining entitlement.
Do disabled veterans pay property tax in Virginia?
Not on their principal residence at 100 percent. Virginia Code 58.1-3219.5 exempts the full assessed value of the home and up to one acre of land for a veteran with a 100 percent service-connected permanent and total disability rating. There is no income limit.
Does Virginia give a partial property tax break at a lower rating?
No. Virginia requires a 100 percent permanent and total rating. Unlike Texas and Florida, there is no tiered benefit at 10, 30, 50, or 70 percent. Some localities offer separate elderly or disabled relief programs, so ask your commissioner of the revenue.
Can a surviving spouse keep the Virginia veteran property tax exemption?
Yes, if the veteran died on or after January 1, 2011 and the spouse has not remarried. Virginia is unusual here: the exemption follows the surviving spouse to a different principal residence rather than staying locked to the original house.
Do I need flood insurance for a VA loan in Hampton Roads?
Only if the property sits in a FEMA special flood hazard area, typically a zone beginning with A or V, but large parts of Norfolk, Portsmouth, Virginia Beach, and Chesapeake do. A flood determination runs on every file. We run it in week one because the premium goes straight into your debt-to-income calculation.
Can an elevation certificate lower my flood insurance?
Often, yes. If the structure sits higher than the flood map assumes, an elevation certificate can reduce the premium substantially. Most buyers never hear about it until after they close, by which point the payment is already set.
Can I get a VA loan before I start my new job in Virginia?
Usually yes. VA allows qualifying on an offer letter with a start date inside a defined window, which is exactly the situation for a service member separating into a federal contractor role. Most lenders either do not know the rule or refuse to use it, and they tell you to wait for pay stubs.
Can I buy a condo in Northern Virginia with a VA loan?
Yes, as long as the condo project is on the VA approved list. VA approves the project, not the individual unit. We check approval status before you write an offer, which matters in Arlington and Alexandria where condos are a large share of what a VA buyer can reach.
Do I pay the VA funding fee in Virginia?
The funding fee is federal and identical in every state. It is waived entirely if you receive VA disability compensation or hold a service-connected disability rating. Otherwise it is financed into the loan rather than paid in cash. If your rating was granted after you closed, you may be owed a refund of a fee you already paid.
Can I buy a duplex or fourplex in Virginia with a VA loan?
Yes. VA allows two to four units as long as you occupy one, with zero down on full entitlement, and rental income from the other units can help you qualify. In Northern Virginia this is one of the few structures that makes the math work.
Can a seller pay off my debt at closing on a Virginia VA loan?
Yes. VA allows a seller to pay off your credit cards, auto loan, or other debt as part of the 4 percent concession allowance, stacked on top of unlimited seller-paid closing costs. Retiring a high monthly payment lowers your debt-to-income ratio and can turn a denial into an approval on the same contract.
Can a seller pay to break my lease so I can buy now?
Yes. Paying an early lease termination penalty on a rental or on-post housing is an allowable VA seller concession. It is how a buyer stops paying rent and closes now instead of waiting for a lease to run out. We have structured this many times.
Can I get a VA loan in Virginia after bankruptcy or foreclosure?
Yes. Chapter 7 is generally two years from discharge. Chapter 13 can work while you are still in the repayment plan with twelve months of on-time payments and trustee approval. Foreclosure and short sale are generally two years, and shorter is possible with documented extenuating circumstances.
Can I use a VA loan in Virginia if I already have one at my last duty station?
Yes. You do not have to sell the other home. We calculate your remaining entitlement and give you the exact zero-down ceiling in the Virginia county you are buying in. Many service members keep the prior home as a rental.
How long does a VA loan take to close in Virginia?
The same as a conventional loan. VA is not the delay. In Virginia the two things that slow a file are the flood determination in Hampton Roads and the condo association questionnaire in Northern Virginia, both of which we order in the first week.
Get a Real Virginia VA Preapproval
Built on the actual flood, tax, and county numbers for the address you are buying, so your offer holds up when the listing agent checks it.
Lending in 49 states. VA, Non-QM, and manual underwriting.
Related Virginia Resources
More on the topics that come up most on Virginia VA files: VA loans overview, VA seller concessions, VA loan manual underwriting, VA residual income, VA IRRRL streamline refinance, VA loans after foreclosure or short sale, jumbo loans, VA loan FAQ, and Virginia HELOC.
Buying in another state? See VA loans in Texas, VA loans in Florida, VA loans in California, VA loans in Colorado, and VA loans in Tennessee.