Texas Vet and Texas Veteran Home Loans - Low Rate Mortgage Loans for qualified Texas Veterans and active duty military personnel.

The Texas Veterans Housing Assistance program is sponsored and administered by the Texas Veterans Land Board. It provides Texas Veteran's home loans at special interest rates. Available for veterans and active military personnel who meet certain Texas residence requirements. Texas Vet loans are underwritten as either a VA loan or as a conventional loan. Approval from TVLB is required in addition to the lenders normal approval. The standard VA Funding Fee applies to loans using VA guidelines (loans with less than 5% down must go VA). The chart below compares the differences between a VA and Texas Vet loan.

VA vs. Texas Vet Loan Comparison Chart
Descriptions	VA Loans	Texas Vet Loans
Eligibility	Veterans in good standing with sufficient VA entitlement to insure loan	Same as VA, plus, must be resident of Texas at time of application & meet Texas Vet residence requirements
Closing Costs	Lower closing costs. Rates with lender paid rebates for lower closing costs to you	Usually higher closing costs. No lender rebates
Maximum Loan Amount	$1,500,000, including financed VA Funding Fee	$325,000, including financed VA Funding Fee
New Construction	No additional requirements	Must be Energy Star labeled & certified
Rates	Better than Texas Vet base rate Many different rates with different amounts of lender rebate Rates change daily	Base rate Not as good as VA... Disability Rate Better than VA Rates change weekly
VA Funding Fee	Yes	Yes

Eligibility

To be eligible to participate in the Texas Veterans Loan Programs, an applicant must have:

Served no fewer than 90 cumulative days on active duty or active duty training in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard or United States Public Health Service (unless discharged sooner due to service-connected cause), OR completed all initial active duty training required as a condition of service in the National Guard or reserve component of one of the listed branches of service, OR have completed 20 years in a reserve component so as to be eligible for retirement, OR served in the Armed Forces of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) between February 28, 1961 and May 7, 1975 (ARVN - Housing Assistance Program or Home Improvement Program only, no service era discount allowed).
Served after September 16, 1940. (For housing or home improvement loans, certain interest rate incentives may be available to Texas veterans who served on active duty prior to January 1, 1977, and who have been discharged from active duty less than 30 years.)
Not been dishonorably discharged. A person who has been discharged from the branch of the service in which the person served or from the National Guard is considered not to have been dishonorably discharged if the person: (1) received an honorable discharge; (2) received a discharge under honorable conditions; or (3) received a discharge and provides evidence from the Veterans Administration, its successor, or other competent authority that indicates that the character of the person's discharge has been determined to be other than dishonorable.
Listed Texas as the home of record at the time of entry into the military OR must have been a legal resident of Texas for at least twelve consecutive months immediately prior to filing an application OR be on active military duty, stationed in Texas and have change his/her state of legal residence to Texas. The applicant must also be a bona fide resident of Texas at the time the application is made. (A "bona fide resident" is someone who is living in Texas with the intent to remain in Texas). This may include a Texas Resident currently serving on active military duty outside of Texas. Presence in Texas due solely to military service may not establish bona fide residency.
Successfully repaid any previous Texas Veterans Land Board (VLB) loan. A loan is considered repaid when the account has been paid in full by the original veteran purchaser or last approved assignee. Any other active VLB loans in programs other than the one for which application is being made must be in good standing. Veterans are entitled to have only one loan in each VLB program at the same time.

Note: The unmarried, surviving spouse of a Texas veteran who is missing in action, or who died in the line of duty, or died from a service-connected cause may be eligible to participate in the programs. The veteran's home of record must have been Texas at the time of entry into the military, OR the veteran must have been a legal resident of Texas at the time of death. Qualified unmarried, surviving spouses may be eligible for interest rate discounts.

All VLB loans are subject to credit approval.

Guidelines

Texas Vet Guidelines Summary
Purpose	Occupy	Loan Type	Units⁽¹⁾	Max. LTV/ CLTV	Max. Loan Amount
Purchase Loans Only	Primary Residence Only	VA	1-4	100%/NA	$325,000 ⁽²⁾
		Conventional	1-2	95%/90%	$325,000
		Conventional	3-4	80%/80%	$325,000
1) 2-4 units must be at least 5 years old. 2) Including the VA Funding Fee, if financed.

Property Type - Single family, 1 unit homes, townhomes, approved Condos and PUDs. Also, 2-4 unit multi-family properties that were constructed at least five years prior to the closing date of your loan.
Loan Terms - 15, 20, 25 or 30 year fixed rate loans.
New construction homes - Must be ENERGY STAR® labeled & certified. <Details>
Note: If your sales contract is signed and dated prior to the home receiving its Certificate of Occupancy, the home must meet the Energy Star requirements. If your sales contract is signed and dated after the home receives its Certificate of Occupancy, the home may not have to meet the Energy Star requirements.
Zero Down Loans - Must use VA underwriting.
VA Funding Fee is required unless veteran is exempt.
Conventional Underwritten Loans - Minimum of 5% down payment required.
Mortgage insurance required on loans over 80% LTV.
80/10/10 loans are allowed. No 80/15/5 loans.

80/10/10 Texas Vet Loan using Conventional Underwriting

Maximum Sales price = $406,250
Maximum Texas Vet loan = $325,000
Maximum 2nd lien loan = $40,625

Benefits:

No mortgage insurance required
Lower monthly payment
Option to waive escrows
Greater tax deduction since 2nd lien interest is tax deductible
Can pay off 2nd lien early to reduce your payment

Occupancy - The veteran is required to occupy the home within 60 days after closing. The home must remain the veteran's primary residence for a period of at least three years. (You can't convert the home to a rental or 2nd home, but you can sell it)
Closing costs can be higher on Texas Vet loans vs. VA loans since no premium pricing is available on Texas Vet rates. Up to a 1% origination fee and up to a 1% participation fee can be charged on Texas Vet loans, depending on your loan amount.
Escrow Waiver
VA guaranteed loans - Taxes and insurance must be escrowed with the lender. Conventional Underwriting - You can choose to pay your own taxes and insurance if your loan to value is 80% or less. This includes 80/10/10 loans. An escrow waiver fee will be added to your closing costs.
Manufactured Homes - Single-wide and Double-wide manufactured homes are not eligible.

Note:
Guidelines subject to change without notice. Additional guidelines and restrictions may apply. Submit your loan application for approval.

Rates

The current Texas Vet rate is 6.13%. The Texas Vet program provides lower rates to qualified borrowers with verified VA Disabilities rated at 50% or higher.

Veterans with Disabilities Discount - Texas Veterans with a compensable service-related disability of 50% or greater as verified by an Award Letter from the Department of Veterans Affairs. The current rate with this discount is 5.78%.
** This program discount is changing September 12th, 2008.

** The Service Era Discount and the 15 year Discount programs are no longer offered. Additional changes to the Texas Vet loan program will be announced in September..

Note: All discounts summarized in these notes are subject to detailed qualification guidelines found in the complete program description. A complete description for Veterans with Disabilities qualification guidelines is available on the Veterans with Disabilities web page.

Base Rate & Discount Programs 30 day lock.	Rate Discount	Actual Rate	APR
Texas Vet Purchase Loan Rates Rates based on $150,000 Loans
Base Rate - 15, 20, 25 & 30 year loans	0%	6.13%	6.519%
Disabled Veterans Discount (Qualified Veterans with 50% ** Disabilities)	-0.35%	5.78%	6.169%

NOTES:
* The Service Era discount & 15 year discount were eliminated on August 15th, 2008.
** The Disabled Veterans discount changes September 12th, 2008.
Other program changes will also be announced in September.
Complete this form for a Good Faith Estimate.

It's real easy to Get Pre-Approved. Just click here to submit your loan application and get started.

Lock your rate at 888-623-7083 or in Austin call 259-7788...
Rates are subject to change without notice until locked in.
Rates on this Page Last Updated:
08/22/08

Pre-Approval - Loan Application

Purchase Loan Application - This is a complete loan application and purchase questionnaire. It should take from 15 to 30 minutes to complete.

Click here for a general list of information needed to complete your application.
After reviewing your application and credit report, your loan will be submitted for Automated Underwriting prior to calling you to discuss your application unless additional information is needed from you.
The results will be emailed to you with a GFE for your review. Rates are subject to change until locked in. Please call our office to lock your rate.
Your complete loan application and disclosure forms will be overnighted to you for your review and signatures, along with copies for your records. A written list of the required documents needed and a return overnight envelope will also be included for you to return the documents to us.
The only upfront costs to you are the credit report/AUS fee($39) & the appraisal fee($350). These fees are listed on your Good Faith Estimate. Click here for more details on the loan process.

Note: If for some reason your loan cannot be approved through our Automated Underwriting Systems and traditional underwriting is required, some additional costs may be required and you will be advised in advance. More details on "Traditional Underwriting" can be found here.

Pre-Qualify

This is a short form that only takes a few minutes to complete.
It will give us the info we need to pre-qualify you according to your income, debts and funds available for down payment and closing costs.
The results will be emailed to you with a GFE for your review.
The Pre-Qualify form is primarily designed for borrowers with good credit since NO credit report will be pulled with this prequalification.

Email or call us if you need additional information.

FAQs

An unmarried surviving spouse is eligible if the veteran died as a result of a service connected disability or while on active duty or is missing in action. The veteran's home of record must have been Texas at time of entry into military or the veteran was a resident of Texas at the time of death. You may also be eligible for interest rate discounts.
Children are not eligible.

VA Underwriting - Since Texas is a common law state, the answer is MAYBE.
> If you are engaged and not living together as man and wife, the answer is NO. You must be married. The veteran can purchase in their name only using only their income and debts to qualify.
> If you are living together as man and wife and claim to be married under common law it is possible to get a VA loan. These are dealt with on a case by case basis. Please contact us for additional details.

Conventional Underwriting - YES. You can purchase the home together using both your incomes and debts to qualify. Remember, conventional underwriting requires a minimum of 5% down.

Yes, but the amount VA will guarantee remains the same. (25% of loan amount, up to the max. Texas Vet loan amount of $325,000)
** Most lenders are not able to do this type of loan because of system limitations. We do not offer this type of loan.

Yes, but the amount VA will guarantee remains the same - 25% of the loan amount, up to the maximum Texas Vet loan amount of $325,000.
** Most lenders are not able to do this type of loan because of system limitations. We do not offer this type of loan.

Veteran must certify that they will personally take occupancy within 60 days of closing on the loan.
12 months.

1) When you have sold your previous home and the Texas Vet/VA loan is paid in full, or
2) When you have sold your previous home to a veteran who substitutes his/her entitlement for yours, or
3) When you have paid off a Texas Vet/VA loan, but still own the property. VA will reinstate your entitlement for this purpose one-time only. After that you must sell your properties that have or had VA financing on them to use your entitlement again.

DIVORCED?
1) Your ex-spouse must refinance the home and/or pay off the Texas Vet/VA loan, or
2) Your ex-spouse is a veteran who agrees to substitute her entitlement for yours.

Private lenders make the loans.

You can only have one Texas Vet loan at a time.

You may, however, be eligible for a VA loan, but this depends on how much entitlement you have left for VA to insure the new home.
Example:
Maximum entitlement is $104,250. If your current VA loan used $20,000 of entitlement, you have $84,250 remaining. The maximum loan amount for the new home would be $337,000. ($84,250 divided by 0.25)