STEPS TO GETTING A VA MORTGAGE IN FLORIDA

STEP TWO - Online Application

Step 2 is to start the online VA Mortgage application.

You can use the “Secure Application Link” on our website, or we can email you the application link after we run your COE.

The application should take about 20 minutes, and if you need to leave anything blank we can fill that in over the phone, after we take a look at your application.

We just need to get a more complete picture of your finances, and we will not pull a credit report without your permission.

We do not run credit until we know you are able to qualify, because credit is just one part of VA eligibility, and the VA is very flexible on credit requirements.

STEP THREE - Income documentation

After we look at your application, we will send you’re a document request, with secure upload links, so you can upload any income docs such as your LES (if active duty), or pay stubs and W-2’s (if working a civilian job) .

If you are married, your spouse’s income can be used to qualify.

If you receive VA disability income, that income will show up on your COE, and we will usually not need any more proof of that income.

If you are self-employed, we will need your last two years tax returns. If you have been self employed for less than 2 years, we can still get you a VA mortgage, we just need to divide your your self-employed income over 24 months and that’s what we will use.

If in doubt, always apply and see what we can do, we often have income scenarios that don’t fit the VA guidelines exactly, but still get approved.

Our VA underwriters have decades of experience with the VA mortgage program, and we communicate with them daily, they will always try to get you an approval whenever possible.

STEP FOUR - Pre-approval letter

Once the application for your VA mortgage is completed and you have sent income documentation, , we review everything and can send you a pre-approval letter so you can give it to your real estate agent.

We do not need all your income documents to get you a pre-approval letter, just give us a much as possible. We can usually get your pre-approval letter to you within one hour of your application, and faster if you’re in a rush – just ask!

At this point, we will know how much you are approved for, so we can give you your estimated monthly payment, and a closing cost worksheet.

These figures are estimated, because at this point, we do not know some costs, such as your future property taxes, homeowner’s insurance, and association dues, if any.

But we can give you’re a fairly close estimate of your payment and closing costs on this worksheet. Once you have a pre-approval letter, it’s on to step four, finding a real estate agent and shopping for your new home!

STEP FIVE - Find an agent and look for a home

Once you have a signed contract for your new home, it’s on to step four, finding a real estate agent and shopping for your new home!

You can use any licensed real estate agent, but if you want a recommendation we often have agents near our branch offices that we have dealt with in the past.

Ideally, you want an agent that has some experience with the VA loan program, and will present you offers correctly.

*IMPORTANT*

If you want to buy a home for truly zero down, make sure to have your agent ask for the seller to pay the closing costs.

VA mortgages are zero down payment, meaning you can get a loan for the entire amount of the purchase price, but you will still have closing costs on top of the price, that you need to pay.

If you offer the seller the full list price, you can ask for them to pay up to 4% of the sales price towards your closing costs, instead of offering less than list price.

Here’s the language you need the agent to insert in the contract:

“Seller agrees to pay 4% of the sales price towards buyer’s closing costs and prepaid items”

Generally, 4% of the sales price will be enough to cover all your closing costs, plus pay for your first year of homeowner’s insurance. (insurance is a “prepaid item” in the example above)

We have routinely had VA clients that get their entire earnest money deposit refunded at closing, because the seller paid all the closing costs.

This does not happen all the time, but if done correctly, you can buy a home with zero down payment.
If there is any money left over, meaning closing costs were less than 4% total, the VA allows you to pay off credit cards or anything else you direct the funds to go to.

After the seller accepts your offer, you will need to give an earnest money deposit, that is normally completely refundable during your inspection period.

STEP SIX – SIGN YOUR VA MORTGAGE DISCLOSURES

The next step after you get a signed contract for you new home, is the VA mortgage disclosures.

These documents will be sent to your email and will need to be e-signed within 24 hours.

These documents will have your estimated monthly payment, the interest rate, and total closing costs.

There are also a number of VA disclosures that need to be reviewed and signed.

You are signing these to move your file into underwriting, these disclosures are only preliminary and are non-binding on you. You are not signing closing documents at this point, only disclosures and cost estimates, the binding documents will be signed at the closing.

*IMPORTANT NOTE*

Cost and fees on these documents

At this point, the closing costs and payment will be close to the numbers you will see at closing, but they are still estimated.

This is because there are still unknown figures, such as your homeowner’s insurance cost, the exact amount of title company closing fees, the exact cost of your termite inspection (varies by area and inspector), the exact amount of the appraisal fee, and a number of other items.

Because some fees are simply unknown, and we only have 72 hours after you are “in contract” to get your disclosures out to you, we must estimate some costs and fees.

We will OVERESTIMATE the fees if they are unknown, because if we estimate fees too low, we will have to pay the difference for you.

So, we estimate high, and it is very common to see fees that are higher, that will get adjusted as we move closer to closing. Just be aware of this, and know that you will receiving multiple cost estimates as we move through the process, and each one will get progressively better, and closer to the actual numbers you will see at the closing table.

Any overages on these fees must be corrected before the closing, and these costs are audited by the lender and title company before your closing, so any overages will not be kept by any party to the transaction.

There are also VA specific documents, that you need to review and sign, and we are available by phone to go over these as you are e-singing them.

The VA will request your nearest living relative’s name, address and phone number for one of the documents, so please have this ready beforehand so you can complete this information.

The VA needs an alternate contact person in case they cannot contact you directly.

STEP SEVEN – CONTRACT AND INSPECTIONS

The next step is your property inspections. You will need to order the following inspections, from an inspector of your choice. Your real estate agent may be able to refer an inspection company to you, but ultimately it is your choice of inspector.

Here are the inspections needed:

4-point inspection



The four-point inspection is required by insurance companies, and covers 4 points, the roof, electrical, plumbing and HVAC system.

This is the most important of all the inspections, and it assures you that the home is basically in good condition, and can be mortgaged and insured.

The 4-point inspection is required, because without it, you can’t get insurance, and the VA will require insurance, like any other mortgage lender requires insurance.

Termite inspection or “WDO”

The termite or WDO inspection, is looking for Wood-Destroying-Organisms such as termites, carpenter ants, and mold/fungus.

VA requires a termite/WDO inspection, so make sure to order this one.

Full home inspection

The full home inspection will cover the items in the 4-point, plus every other item that is visible and testable by the inspector.

So, this will be anything the inspector can see, plus items that can be tested, such as the water pressure or electrical outlets and appliances.

The full home inspection is not required by the VA, but highly recommended. A trained home inspector can often tell you items that should be repaired, but don’t affect your ability to get insurance like the items on the 4-point inspection.

The inspectors usually offer a bundle of inspections that are all done at the same time, so if you are having the 4-point and termite done, you should schedule the full home inspection at the same time.

At Florida’s VA Mortgage Enter, we recommend you get ALL the inspections done, so you will not have any costly surprises later on.

All inspections currently will run under $1000 and very likely closer to $500 to $600 for all, depending on the inspector, the area you’re are buying in, and the size of the home.

STEP EIGHT – VA APPRAISAL IS ORDERED

The next step after your inspections have passed is the VA appraisal order, which is done by us through the VA portal.

Cost for a VA appraisal is currently $650 to $850, depending on the property and location.

Generally, we are seeing $650 as the cost, and higher if it is a manufactured home or on acreage.

You are responsible for the cost of the appraisal, but we can charge it at closing and you do not have to pay for it upfront. If the appraisal comes in at or above the sales price, we proceed to the next step.

If the value comes in below your sales price, then you can negotiate the price lower with the seller.

If the seller will not lower the price, the VA allows you to walk away and cancel the transaction at no cost to you.

STEP NINE – SUBMITTING YOUR LOAN TO UNDERWRITING

The next step is to submit your VA loan application for underwriter approval.

The VA underwriter is the decision maker to approve or decline the loan and we work with them closely to get your application approved.

Underwriting is the process where the specially trained Va underwriter checks your application and documents and makes sure everything is in order for the VA guidelines.

The underwriter works for the lender, and verifies the loan can be funded and guaranteed by the VA.

This is where Our Team at Florida’s VA Mortgage Center really shines, because we only focus on VA mortgages.

Because of this, we tend to know the underwriters really well, because we deal with them on daily business, and we know what they want to see.

We prepare your VA application so that it can be easily approved with minimal conditions, which means a lot less hassle for you, and a fast closing (usually under 30 days from start-to-finish).

The loan package is electronically submitted along with your supporting documents, and reviewed by the VA underwriter. We will typically hear the underwriting results, and receive a conditional VA loan approval, that will list any further information or documentation needed.

We will then send you a list of what is needed, and a secure upload link.

In addition to your application and documents, the underwriter will also review the appraisal and title search results, to make sure the loan collateral (the home you are buying) is acceptable to the VA.

STEP TEN – FINAL Loan Approval and Clear to Close

The next step is the Final Approval and Clear to Close.

When the VA underwriter as completed the file review, and is satisfied that the loan request has met the qualifications for the VA Mortgage Guarantee, your file will now move to Clear to Close status.

The VA underwriter will hand the file off to the Closer, and we will call you to schedule the closing.

The loan processor from Florida’s VA Mortgage Center will work with the title company to balance the figures from your Loan Estimate, make any adjustments, and generate a Closing Disclosure, or “CD”.

The Closing Disclosure is the final cost breakdown, and this is the document that summarizes your monthly payment, and total closing costs.

You will receive a copy of the Closing Disclosure by email, and if you have any questions, now is the time to ask them.

The final CD is audited to check every fee, and to make sure any estimated costs on the Loan Estimate are edited to the correct amounts.

We believe there should be no surprises at closing, so we take great care to ensure you understand what you are signing and it’s accurate in every way.

If you have any questions, please ask, we are here to make the closing transparent and we want you to understand everything.

The amount you need to close will be emailed to you, along with wire instructions for the title company.

Funds to close MUST BE WIRED!

Title companies in Florida do not accept cashier’s checks, personal checks, EFT transfers, or anything except wire transfers. Your bank can assist with the wire transfer, and please confirm the wire instructions with the title company, before making the transfer.

(We have never had a loss related to a fraudulent wire transfer, but it does happen, so be very diligent in checking the wire instructions and confirming the funds are going to the correct account)

STEP ELEVEN - LOAN CLOSING

The next step is to close your loan.

Closing can be done at the title company, or remotely if you need a notary to come to you.

We recommend scheduling for a time slot after 10 am and before 3pm, as the documents will normally require some time for prep and review by the title company and the closer.

If you schedule too early, the documents may not be ready on time.

If you schedule after 3 pm, you can close, but you may not be able to get the keys that day, because the closing documents need to be reviewed prior to the keys being released to you.

Please allow about one hour for the closing.

We recommend you close at the title company if possible, as they are equipped to close and fund your loan quickly, and get you the keys to your new home immediately after the closing.

If you need to close remotely, please be aware that you may not get the keys the same day, as the original closing documents need to be returned to the title company before the keys are released.

You can schedule a time to visit the Title Company or a notary can come to your home to present the loan documents for your signature.

Be sure to bring your government issued ID with you to the closing, as the notary will need to make a copy.

After you sign all the closing documents, the title company will review them for accuracy, and then fund your loan.

You can get the keys at this point, and you have completed your VA home purchase.

STEP TWELVE - POST CLOSING

After closing, your first mortgage payment will be due the second month after closing.

So, if you close on May 17th, for example, your first payment will be due on July 1st.

After you have made SIX payments, VA allows a “streamline” refinance, to reduce your interest rate, if rates have gone down since you closed.

Because we already have all your documents, we can close a VA Streamline refinance in two weeks or less, and there is no out of pocket cost to you.

There is also no income documentation, appraisal, or anything needed from you, other than your most recent mortgage statement, showing your loan is current.

We will contact you if a streamline refinance makes sense for your situation, and we can generally do these if rates have dropped by 1% or more.

Thank you for choosing Florida’s VA Mortgage Center!