Army, then fourteen years at Renton PDLicensed in five states24/7
Serving, separated, retired
I used this benefit before I ever wrote one.
Five years in the Army. Two deployments to Iraq, twelve months each. I bought a house with the same benefit I now help other people use.
Any of this sound familiar?
Separated last yearStill in, moving in the springUsed the benefit once alreadyDisability rating just came throughBuying near the next duty stationSeparated last yearStill in, moving in the springUsed the benefit once alreadyDisability rating just came throughBuying near the next duty station
Guard, one weekend a monthA spouse who has moved six timesTwenty years and a pensionHousing allowance covering most of itGetting out and not sure where to landGuard, one weekend a monthA spouse who has moved six timesTwenty years and a pensionHousing allowance covering most of itGetting out and not sure where to land
§What they tell you
6 things somebody has probably already said to you.
“You can only use the VA loan once.”
Generally not true. Ask me about subsequent use.
“Everybody pays the funding fee.”
Not everybody. Some people are exempt and are never told.
“VA loans take forever to close.”
Not in my experience, and the reasons they used to are mostly gone.
“Sellers will not look at a VA offer.”
Some have been told stories. That is a conversation your agent can have.
“You need perfect credit for it.”
The program itself does not set the bar people think it does.
“It is only for people who retired from service.”
Eligibility is about service, not about how you left.
§Why I get it
I was on the other side of this before I did this.
5Years in the Army
2Deployments
14Years at Renton PD
5States licensed
A man called me recently and spent a while talking about where he had been stationed and who he had worked with, all of it in acronyms, and then stopped himself and asked whether I had been in the Army. I told him I was tracking.
The conversation changed completely after that. Not because anything about his loan changed, but because he could stop explaining himself.
Somebody who has only ever processed one of these is working from a manual. I have been the borrower on it and the loan officer on it, which are different jobs.
§What is here
3 pieces that started from your week.
Open one for what it is about and the single sentence it ends on, which you can take away even if you read nothing else.
2026-10-01 · Market Reality
Nobody is enjoying this one
What is actually on my desk in October 2026. Not where I think anything is going, because I do not do that.
The people who move in a bad month are the people who got ready in a quiet one.
