Improving the VA Home Loan Program for Veterans

The men and women who put on the uniform to defend the United States have earned every resource our country has to offer that can help them achieve the American Dream of homeownership. For decades, the VA Home Loan Program has helped countless service members and veterans afford a home by providing loans with competitive interest rates and no down payment required.

Now, I’m helping lead a bill to make this program even better by updating outdated rules, cutting the red tape that can cause unnecessary delays in the loan process, and get veterans into homes faster.

Specifically, the VA Home Loan Affordability Act (H.R. XXXX) would modernize the program by:

• Lowering fees and capping the veteran’s share of closing costs.
• Expediting loan approval by making it easier for appraisers to earn their VA certification, addressing a shortage of VA-approved appraisers that has led to closing delays.
• Removing unnecessary paperwork by eliminating a burdensome mandate requiring veterans to provide a third party with documentation detailing the fees they paid to their lender. 
• Updating VA standards and modernizing the IT system to better serve veterans.
• Giving veterans more options by simplifying the separate and overly complicated process for approving home loans for condos. 

The bottom line is that these reforms will help veterans buy homes more easily and affordably so they can put down roots and raise their families in our communities. The bill is just one part of my plan to Revive the American Dream and help more Americans — service members and civilians — afford to buy a home.

To learn more about my work to lower housing costs and the rest of my Blueprint for a Better America, visit barrett.house.gov/reform.