Hi! My husband is getting out in 9 months. I am a full time college student (senior year starting in the fall, this is important bc I do not have any income currently because of this). He is doing a skillbridge followed by an electrical program for vets once he is on terminal, this program gives him entry into a union. So we are not worried about being able to pay for the home but more so the rules on what the lender will approve because he will be in transition. We want to use the VA loan but he has less than a year left on contract. Obviously he won’t get his VA rating before we purchase so we cannot use that income either.
Is there any way around all of this?
Renting does not make sense for us with 2 children and 2 large breed dogs we will be spending more to rent a space that will allow us all to be somewhat comfortable than we would spend on a mortgage. It just doesn’t make sense financially to rent.
If anyone has any insight on timing (should we buy sooner rather than later?)
Or how to make it so we will get approved that would be great. Finding out about this needing at least 12 months on contract rule is really freaking me out and would love the advice.
Thanks
Using VA loan with less than 1 year left.
byu/HopefulAverage9771 inMilitaryFinance
Posted by HopefulAverage9771
4 Comments
Looking at this quickly, it looks like your one option is to wait to buy a home until his employment settles out. Don’t count your disability chickens before they hatch.
I closed on a home 10 days before retiring.
The lender wanted future income data such as a finalized offer letter from my next employer. My retirement pay was trickier. If needed, Admin/Finance can provide that information.
One benefit of waiting until post seperation is no VA funding fee if disability rated. That can easily save thousands and offset cost of renting for months or year+.
Besides, renting gives flexibility to pursue best job or lifestyle opportunities after you graduate and he starts second career instead of prematurely locking selves into a specific location or neighborhood.
The lender won’t be able to use his current income OR the (potential) future income right now, so you’re stuck until he has an executed offer letter with employment starting no later than 60 days after your closing date. You’ll need to wait until you’re closer to his ETS date, and he has an employment offer in hand. It’s definitely doable – I help clients with this all the time – but the timeline is compressed and that can give some buyers anxiety.
I suggest getting started on this when he’s getting close to going on terminal leave. As soon as he has the executed offer in hand – even if it doesn’t start for another 30-45 days, get pre-approved from a GOOD lender (not Veterans United or another call center) that understands how to process a loan like this.