Determining Veterans Affairs loan limits is very easy in some cases, and in other instances can be a little tricky. It can depend on whether the home is located in a high-cost area, and if you have full entitlement or partial entitlement due to a previous Veterans Affairs mortgage. We have provided basic explanations below, but if you still have questions the best thing to do is fill out the short form to the right, and a specialist will contact you to help you determine the maximum loan amount for your specific scenario.
There is no loan limit for Veterans with full entitlement, however most lenders have implemented their own limits matching the 2023 conforming loan limit of $726,200 as set by the Federal Housing Finance Agency The majority of the counties in the US are not considered high cost, and thus the loan limit for those counties is the same as the conventional home loan limit of $726,200. This is also assuming that the Veteran has all of his/her available eligibility entitlement, which most do.
Certain areas are considered high cost based on the median home values in the designated county, as estimated by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA). These values are the basis for which the Department of Veterans Affairs calculates the maximum VA loan amount in these counties.
The following states have high-cost counties: AK, CA, CO, CT, DC, GU, HI, ID, MA, MD, NH, NJ, NY, PA, TN, UT, VA, VI, WAS, WV, WY. If the home is located in one of these states you can check the specific county loan limit at this link to the Federal Finance Housing Agency’s website.
Regardless of where the home you are financing is located, it is possible to borrow more than the limit for the area with what is known as high balance VA mortgage, aka a VA Jumbo Loan. However, in this scenario, 100% financing will not be available. A down payment will be required but it may be significantly less than what would be required for a conventional loan. Read more about VA Jumbo Loans.
In most cases, if you have had a previous VA mortgage and sold the home, the balance was paid off and your full entitlement was (or will be) restored. However, if you have kept the home (as a rental, second home, for a family member etc.) or had another situation where entitlement was not fully restored (short sale, foreclosure etc.) you may have a partial entitlement available which you can use for another VA Mortgage, however the amount you can borrow will likely be adjusted.
How much you can borrow is dependent on the sales price/value of the home being financed, how much entitlement is available, the county loan limit, and cash or equity available as a down payment. Explaining the calculation in writing can be confusing, so if you have a partial entitlement scenario we recommend you fill out the short form to the right and a VA Mortgage Specialist will contact you to help you determine how much you can borrow. If you really want to tackle it on your own we suggest you check out this page with examples on the Veteran Affairs website.
I just want to take this opportunity to express my appreciation for all the countless phone calls and hours of hard work that was required by my VA Loan Specialist in closing my loan application. Her patience and persistence in my unusual case was exemplary. She maintained a professional, yet lighthearted rapport with me and my various setbacks. She promised me two things which made me decide to use her as my loan officer (my Realtor said “I can’t believe you trusted someone from the Internet!”) She said “I guarantee the interest rate and I promise to close on time!” She was believable and I’m so glad I trusted her as I firmly believe no one else would have been so dedicated in seeing my loan become successful and close as it did!
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