NewDay USA serves Veterans at each stage of homeownership by:
- Helping to confirm VA loan eligibility
- Pre-approving credit and income before Veterans shop
- Connecting Veterans with real estate agents experienced in VA loans
- Offering a personal loan for closing costs
- Offering supportthrough an online loan portal after closing
- Helping turn home equity into cash through a VA cash-out refinance when needed
NewDay USA has helped more than 100,000 Veteran families buy homes, refinance, and tap their home equity.
The VA sets the same rules for its home loan benefit at every VA-approved lender. Where you see a difference is in the service a lender provides around that benefit, from the first eligibility question to the choice to buy again.
Stage One: Confirming Eligibility
Every VA home purchase starts with a Certificate of Eligibility (COE), the document the VA issues so a lender can confirm that a Veteran qualifies for the VA home loan benefit. Service requirements depend on when and how someone served, and VA lists them by service period on its home loan eligibility page.
Three Ways to Get a COE
VA accepts COE requests in three ways:
- Online through VA.gov
- Through a lender, who may be able to pull the COE electronically with VA's Web LGY system
- By mail, using VA Form 26-1880, which VA notes can take longer than the other two options
Veterans who start with NewDay USA can ask their loan officer about the lender option. To prepare, Veterans need a copy of their DD214, while active-duty service members need a statement of service signed by their commander, adjutant, or personnel officer.
Stage Two: Pre-Approval and the Home Search
With a pre-approval in hand, a Veteran can shop with a firm budget, and sellers can see that the buyer has financing lined up. NewDay USA offers the Cash Buyer Certificate, a credit and income pre-approval that a NewDay USA underwriter completes before the Veteran starts looking at homes, so the Veteran can make offers with the confidence of a cash buyer.
Agents Who Know VA Loans
Through NewDay Home, NewDay USA connects homebuyers with Admiral-Certified Real Estate Agents, hand-selected by NewDay for their experience with the VA home loan program. Each agent teams up with a NewDay VA Home Loan Expert during the purchase.
Strengthening the Offer With Deposit Boost
Veterans buying in competitive markets can use NewDay Home's Deposit Boost for Veterans to increase their earnest money deposit at 0% interest for 90 days, which lets them present an offer that stands out the way a cash buyer would. Buyers must work with an Admiral-Certified Real Estate Agent to qualify.
After a seller accepts the offer, a VA-approved appraiser checks that the home meets the VA's minimum property requirements and gives an opinion of value. VA also strongly recommends a separate home inspection to check for major defects, since VA treats an appraisal and an inspection as two different things.
Stage Three: Closing Costs and Closing Day
Lenders can offer Veterans a purchase loan with no down payment and no monthly mortgage insurance. Closing costs still apply, and VA spells out who can pay them and which ones a buyer can finance.
What Veterans Pay at Closing
The VA Funding Fee
The funding fee is a one-time charge that VA calculates as a percentage of the loan amount. A first-time user who puts less than 5% down pays 2.15%, and Veterans who receive VA compensation for a service-connected disability don't pay the fee at all. Buyers can roll the funding fee into the loan, and on a purchase loan it's the only closing cost VA allows them to finance.
Lender and Third-Party Fees
VA reports that many lenders charge Veterans a flat 1% loan origination fee, and other closing costs include the VA appraisal fee, title insurance, and recording fees. A buyer and seller can negotiate who pays each of these. VA places no limit on seller credits for closing costs, though it caps seller concessions at 4% of the home's reasonable value.
The lender must send the Veteran a Closing Disclosure at least three business days before closing, so the buyer has time to compare the final terms against the Loan Estimate. The CFPB also warns that scammers target homebuyers in the days before closing and outlines simple steps buyers can take to protect their savings.
Covering Closing Costs With the NewDay Home Advantage Loan
For Veterans who would rather not drain their savings at the closing table, NewDay USA offers another option. The NewDay Home Advantage Loan is a short-term personal loan that can be used to cover closing costs. Veterans who use it can hold on to their savings for moving expenses, furniture, or an emergency fund.
Stage Four: Life After Closing
Once the keys change hands, NewDay USA borrowers can manage their mortgage through an online portal where they make payments, set up automatic drafts, and view monthly statements. NewDay USA customer care representatives can also assist borrowers with questions about an existing NewDay USA mortgage.
If Money Gets Tight
Any household can hit a rough stretch after a job change, a large medical bill, or a family emergency. The VA lists several options a servicer and borrower can explore together:
- A repayment plan, in which the borrower resumes regular payments and pays an extra amount each month until the missed payments are caught up
- Special forbearance, under which the servicer gives the borrower extra time to repay missed payments
- A loan modification, in which the servicer adds the missed payments to the loan balance and sets a new payment schedule
- A VA partial claim, in which VA works with the servicer to bring the loan current and the borrower repays that amount when they sell the home or pay off the loan
Veterans can also call a VA loan technician for free counseling, and VA automatically assigns a technician to review any VA-guaranteed loan that reaches 61 days past due.
Stage Five: Using Home Equity With a VA Cash-Out Refinance
As Veterans pay down their mortgage, and as home values rise, they build equity they can borrow against later. With a VA cash-out refinance, a Veteran replaces the current mortgage with a new, larger VA-backed loan and receives the difference in cash. VA lists paying off debt, paying for school, and making home improvements among the common uses, and Veterans can also use this refinance to move from a non-VA mortgage into a VA-backed one.
The NewDay 100 VA Cash Out Loan
NewDay USA offers this refinance as the NewDay 100 VA Cash Out Loan. NewDay USA sets each borrower's maximum loan-to-value based on their credit profile, and every loan requires a new appraisal. To qualify, a Veteran must have a COE, meet VA's and the lender's credit and income standards, and live in the home being refinanced.
Weighing the Trade-Offs
With a cash-out refinance, a Veteran takes on a larger loan balance and may spend more years repaying the mortgage. Unless they're exempt, Veterans pay a funding fee of 2.15% of the loan amount the first time they use the benefit and 3.3% after that, and VA reminds borrowers that refinance closing costs can add up to thousands of dollars. Before signing, a Veteran can compare the new monthly payment and the total cost of the loan against their plans for the cash.
Stage Six: Buying the Next Home
Veterans can use the VA home loan benefit more than once, so families who relocate for a new job, retire somewhere new, or need more space can buy again with it. VA lets Veterans restore the entitlement they used on a prior loan when at least one of these applies:
- They sold the home and paid off the loan in full
- A qualified Veteran-transferee assumes the loan and substitutes their own entitlement
- They paid off the loan but kept the home, an option VA allows only once
Veterans who don't meet any of these conditions may still have remaining entitlement for another purchase. In that case, a lender looks at the entitlement already charged on the COE and the county loan limit to work out how much it can lend without a down payment. Veterans who take a VA cash-out refinance also use entitlement, so those who plan to buy again should factor that in before tapping their equity.
Veterans can request a COE with entitlement restoration online, through their lender, or by mail with VA Form 26-1880.
Put Your VA Benefit to Work
With your VA home loan benefit, you can buy your first home, refinance later, and buy again when your family's needs change. When you're ready to buy, explore NewDay Home to meet the Admiral-Certified Real Estate Agents and NewDay VA Home Loan Experts who work with Veterans, and learn how you can cover closing costs with the NewDay Home Advantage Loan and keep your savings for life in your new home.
FAQs
Is there a minimum credit score for a VA loan?
VA doesn't set a minimum credit score, though individual lenders can set their own. Lenders review credit history, income, debts, and assets to decide how large a loan a Veteran can afford.
Can I use a VA loan while I'm still on active duty?
Yes. Service members meet VA's minimum service requirement after 90 continuous days of active duty. Instead of a DD214, they need a statement of service signed by their commander, adjutant, or personnel officer to request a COE.
Is there a limit on how much I can borrow with a VA loan?
Veterans with full entitlement have no VA loan limit, as long as the lender approves the loan amount and the appraiser values the home at or above the purchase price. VA caps the loan on any single property at the appraised value or the purchase price, whichever is lower.
Can a surviving spouse get a VA home loan?
A surviving spouse may qualify for a COE if they receive or are eligible for certain types of Dependency and Indemnity Compensation, or if their spouse is an active-duty service member who is missing in action or being held as a prisoner of war.
Is the NewDay Home Advantage Loan a VA loan?
No. The NewDay Home Advantage Loan is a short-term personal loan that can be used to cover closing costs, and NewDay USA offers it separately from the VA home loan program.
