Getting a VA loan can be a complicated process, and there are a lot of resources out there giving advice on what you should do to simplify the process. But what about the things you shouldn’t do?

During the process of buying a home using the VA benefit, there are many pitfalls that are relatively easy to avoid if you know what you’re looking for. Here are a few things you shouldn’t do.

Use your typical lender

Using your typical lender is one of the major pitfalls that cause a lot of headache for many Veterans buying a home using the VA loan program.

We have helped numerous Veterans who had issues working with lenders whose main focus are conventional loans. The buyer usually hits some type of a roadblock and the inexperienced lender doesn’t know how to handle it and so they get denied. An experienced VA focused lender can quickly overcome such challenges.

Use your typical real estate agent

The VA loan has guidelines and rules that can cause some issues if the realtor is not experienced with the VA loan program. For example there are Minimum Property Requirements or MPRs. If your real estate agent is familiar with these standards, he/she can spot them before you try to make an offer.

There are also rules about closing costs that can save you tons of money, but if your realtor is not aware of these rules, your loan could be declined by the VA.

Buy whatever house you’d like

While it would be nice to buy whatever house makes you feel good, the VA has the Minimum Property Requirements as mentioned above. Things like type of paint, driveway material, and pests can cause a VA loan to get declined.

Make sure that you work closely with your experienced VA lender to make sure that you don’t have any MPR problems.

As a Veteran focussed mortgage company, we’ve experienced many of these problems firsthand and can guide you through the process of buying a home using the VA home loan program. We typically close VA loans in about 25 days and have the experience to make the process go as smoothly as possible.

Creekside Mortgage, Inc is the Pacific Northwest lender of choice for the military community. Call us today at 1.800.920.5420