VA Loan Calculator

Estimate the house payment and funding fee on a VA loan

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How to use our VA mortgage calculator

LendingTree’s VA loan calculator can estimate your VA mortgage payment — including property taxes and homeowners insurance, as well as your VA funding fee amount. Your results are based on a few simple questions and can be further customized by expanding and filling in the advanced options fields.

Basic options

Loan purpose
Choose between a purchase or refinance. If you’re refinancing, have your mortgage statement handy to provide your current loan balance.
Property location
Interest rates vary based on where you live. If you’re buying, choose the ZIP code for a neighborhood you’d like to live in.
Down payment
In most cases you’ll enter $0 in this field, since VA loans don’t require a down payment. However, you can save money on your funding fee if you put down at least 10% (we’ll explain this in more detail below).
Home type
You can choose from single-family homes, townhomes, condos, multifamily homes and co-ops. In most cases, VA loans can only be used to buy your primary home.
First time using VA loan benefits
The VA gives first-time VA mortgage borrowers a discount on the VA funding fee. The funding fee is usually added to your loan amount.

Credit score
Although VA mortgage requirements don’t set a minimum credit score, most lenders prefer at least a 620 score.
Home price
If you’ve picked out a home, enter the purchase price here. For a refinance, try our home value estimator to get an idea of how much your home is worth.
Military experience
You’ll need to prove you served in the regular military, Reserves or National Guard long enough to be eligible for a VA loan. Surviving spouses may also be eligible.
Disability status
Veterans with disabilities related to their military service may be exempt from the VA funding fee, which is charged to offset the cost of the VA home loan program to taxpayers.

Read more about getting a VA loan with bad credit.

Advanced options

To get the most accurate VA loan payment calculations, add the following information to the “Advanced Options” fields:

Loan term
Most borrowers prefer a 30-year term to get the lowest monthly payment. However, you can use a 15-year mortgage if you want to pay off your balance faster and don’t mind the higher monthly payment.
Mortgage rate
Check out VA mortgage rates to get an idea of what percentage to enter here.
Homeowners insurance
If you’ve shopped for homeowners insurance already, enter the premium here. Otherwise, the calculator will estimate a figure for you.

Property taxes
You’ll pay local property taxes based on rates set by your city or county. The annual bill is usually divided into 12 equal installments and added to your monthly mortgage payment. You can look up your effective tax rate using this map from ATTOM, a real estate data company.
HOA fees
If your home is governed by a homeowners association (HOA), you may have a monthly association fee, which is paid separately from your regular mortgage payment.

What the VA mortgage calculator tells you

You’ll see your total monthly payment amount to the right of the calculator results, including principal, interest, taxes and insurance (PITI), as well as a breakdown of how much each element will cost you.

Principal and interest: This is the amount you’ll pay each month based on the loan term and interest rate you choose. The payment is based on the “total loan amount,” which includes the financed VA funding fee.

Property taxes: Lenders typically collect one-twelfth of your annual property tax bill and make the payments from an escrow account when the tax bill is due.

Homeowners insurance: Like your property taxes, lenders will divide your premium by 12 and collect it monthly, so that the bill is paid when the policy renews each year.

VA funding fee: This amount will range between 1.40% and 3.60% of your loan amount. It’ll also depend on your down payment and whether you’ve used your VA loan benefits before.

You’ll also see a breakdown of how your total amount was calculated:

VA base loan amount: If you’re not making a down payment, the base loan amount will match your sales price.

Total loan amount: If you’re not exempt from paying the VA funding fee, it will be added to the base loan amount to calculate your total loan amount. Your principal and interest payment is based on this number

What is a VA loan?

A VA loan is a mortgage exclusively for military borrowers to buy and refinance homes. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) guarantees the loans, which allows lenders to offer zero-down-payment mortgages that don’t require the costly mortgage insurance you’d typically pay with a low-down-payment conventional or FHA loan.

Each day of military service builds your VA loan entitlement, which is the dollar amount the VA pays if you default on a VA loan and the lender has to foreclose. You can typically borrow up to four times your VA entitlement without needing to put any money down.

Looking for a VA loan entitlement calculator?

You don’t need a special calculator to figure out how much VA loan entitlement you have — just check out our step-by-step guide to calculating your VA entitlement. It helps you determine:

How much VA loan entitlement you have left
Your zero-down VA loan limit (based on your remaining entitlement)
How much of a down payment you need for a second VA home loan

Who is eligible for a VA loan?

You meet the minimum service requirements for a VA loan if you’re an active-duty service member and have served 90 continuous days of active duty, according to the VA. The military will issue a certificate of eligibility (COE) that lists how much entitlement you currently have.

→ If you’re a veteran, National Guard or Reserves member, your eligibility requirements depend on the dates you served. You can look up the rules that apply to you on the VA’s eligibility requirements page.

→ If you’re the surviving spouse of a service member, you may also be eligible. Usually this is only possible if your spouse died while serving, went missing in the line of duty or died from a service-connected disability.

VA loan requirements

VA loans give military borrowers access to the most flexible underwriting guidelines of any standard loan program. Here are some of the highlights that are unique to VA loan requirements:

Loan feature	How it’s unique
No down payment	Most loan programs (such as conventional and FHA loans) require a minimum 3% to 3.5% down payment. You may be able to buy more than one home without putting any money down.
No mortgage insurance	Conventional and FHA loans require you to pay for mortgage insurance, which protects the lender in case you default.
No minimum credit score requirements	Conventional mortgage guidelines require at least a 620 credit score. FHA guidelines require at least a 580 score for borrowers making the minimum down payment.
No loan limits	Conventional conforming and FHA loan limits change annually, and restrict the amount you can borrow. As long as you have full entitlement, you don’t have to worry about loan limits.
Residual income vs. DTI ratio	The VA calculates how much residual income (or “free cash”) you have each month, based on your after-tax income and your debt-to-income (DTI) ratio. If you meet the residual income guidelines based on your home and family size, you may be approved with a higher DTI ratio than other programs allow.
Owner occupancy	You can only buy a primary residence you intend to live in. Conventional loans allow you to buy vacation or rental homes.

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How much are VA closing costs?

You’ll usually pay 2% to 6% of your loan amount toward VA closing costs, which is on par with how much you’ll pay with other common loan types. However, there are some fees and rules about closing costs that only apply to VA loans:

VA funding fees. You’ll pay a funding fee between 1.40% and 3.60%, depending on your down payment and previous VA loan use.
VA appraisals. The VA requires a special VA-approved home appraisal and sets the fee based on where you live. They’re typically more expensive than FHA or conventional appraisals by around $400 to $700.
VA inspection fees. Depending on where you live, the VA may require specialized inspections, such as termite or septic tank analysis, to ensure your home is safe and habitable.

Special VA closing cost rules

The VA takes extra care to make sure military borrowers can afford to buy a home. Here are a few rules worth knowing:

Maximum closing cost rule. To prevent mortgage companies from overcharging military borrowers, lenders can’t charge origination fees that are more than 1% of your loan amount.
Total seller-paid costs rule. VA guidelines allow a seller to pay up to 4% of the purchase price to cover closing costs, including your VA funding fee.
VA funding fee exemption. The VA will waive the funding fee for veterans with a verified disability related to military service. If you’re eligible, this information should appear on your certificate of eligibility, which you can request online.

Should I get a VA loan?

If you’re eligible to take advantage of your VA loan entitlement, you should seriously consider a VA loan. They’re a great deal, particularly for borrowers who:

→ Don’t have the cash to make a down payment
→ Need to borrow more than conforming loan limits allow
→ Want to pay off a loan that requires mortgage insurance
→ Want to refinance an existing VA loan, but don’t have a lot of home equity

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