The VA Loan, Explained by a Raider Who Uses It
Marc Arrington spent a career in the Marine Corps before he started closing home loans, and he explains the VA benefit the way he wishes someone had explained it to him as a young Marine. This guide walks through how the loan actually works, from your Certificate of Eligibility to reusing the benefit on your third or fourth house. Read it, then call Marc with whatever is still unclear. He answers his own phone.
No. 01
Who Qualifies and How the COE Works
Eligibility comes from your service, not your bank account. Active duty Marines, veterans with qualifying service, and many surviving spouses can use the benefit. The paperwork proof is your Certificate of Eligibility, a document the VA issues that tells a lender you have earned the loan. You do not need to chase it down yourself before calling. Marc can pull most COEs electronically in minutes, and if yours has a snag from a break in service or an old discharge issue, he has worked through those before.
No. 02
Zero Down and No Monthly Mortgage Insurance
Two things make this loan different from everything a civilian lender will pitch you. First, qualified buyers can purchase with no down payment at all, which matters when your savings went to a wedding, a car, or just surviving lance corporal pay. Second, there is no monthly private mortgage insurance, the extra charge conventional buyers pay when they put little down. The VA backs a portion of the loan instead, so the lender does not need that insurance. That combination is why the VA loan is usually the strongest tool a Marine has for buying a home.
No. 03
The Funding Fee and Who Skips It
Most VA loans include a one time funding fee that keeps the program running without taxpayer subsidy. The VA sets the fee based on things like whether you have used the benefit before and whether you put anything down, and it can roll into the loan so you do not pay it at the table. Here is the part too many Marines miss. Veterans receiving VA disability compensation are exempt from the fee entirely, and certain surviving spouses are too. Marc will quote your exact figure and check your exemption status before you sign anything.
No. 04
Entitlement, and Why the Benefit Is Not One and Done
Your entitlement is the amount the VA is willing to stand behind on your loan. It is not a punch card you use once. When you sell a home and pay off the VA loan, you can restore the entitlement and use it again. In some situations you can even carry two VA loans at once using remaining bonus entitlement, which comes up when orders move you before the old house sells. The math on remaining entitlement gets specific to your situation, so let Marc run it rather than guessing from a forum post.
No. 05
The VA Appraisal Is Looking Out for You
Every VA purchase gets a VA appraisal, which checks value and also checks the house against the VA's minimum property requirements. That means safe, sound, and sanitary. Working heat, solid roof, no exposed wiring, no peeling paint on older homes. Some sellers grumble about it, but the requirements exist so a Marine does not buy a problem. If the appraisal flags something, it is usually repairable, and Marc has walked plenty of deals through repairs and back to the closing table.
No. 06
Closing While the Corps Has Other Plans
Orders do not wait for escrow. Marc closed loans for years while working around deployments, schools, and PCS windows, and the process bends further than most people think. A spouse can sign with a power of attorney. Documents can move electronically from a duty station on the other side of the planet. The key is telling Marc your timeline early, even a rough one, so the loan is built around your report date instead of fighting it.
No. 07
Already Own? The IRRRL Is the Easy Button
If you already have a VA loan and rates have moved in your favor, the Interest Rate Reduction Refinance Loan lets you refinance with less paperwork than the original purchase, often with no new appraisal. The VA designed it to be simple on purpose. It is only worth doing when the numbers actually help you, and Marc will tell you straight if they do not. Raiders do not sell each other bad deals.
Questions we hear a lot
- Q.I have a VA disability rating. Does that change my loan?
- Yes, in your favor. Veterans receiving VA disability compensation are exempt from the funding fee, which is real money kept in your pocket. Tell Marc your status up front so he builds the loan correctly from day one.
- Q.I used my VA loan on a house years ago. Can I use it again?
- Almost certainly. Entitlement can be restored after you sell and pay off the prior VA loan, and there is a one time restoration option even if you kept the old house. Marc can pull your entitlement record and tell you exactly where you stand.
- Q.My credit took hits during my enlistment. Am I out?
- Not automatically. The VA program is more forgiving than conventional lending, and lenders look at the whole picture, not one number. Marc has helped Marines rebuild a file and close. The only wrong move is assuming no before anyone has looked.
- Q.What happens if the house fails the VA appraisal?
- Usually the seller repairs the flagged items and the deal moves forward. Sometimes you renegotiate, and occasionally you walk, which is the appraisal doing its job. Marc will lay out your options the day the report comes back.
VA funding fee
The one-time fee that replaces monthly PMI. Most borrowers roll it into the loan, and many veterans with a service-connected disability rating pay nothing.
Estimate only, based on the current VA funding fee schedule for purchase loans. Exemption generally applies to veterans receiving (or eligible to receive) VA disability compensation, eligible surviving spouses, and Purple Heart recipients on active duty; the VA makes the final determination. Not a loan offer or commitment to lend.
Can you buy again without selling?
If you already used your VA loan and are keeping that home, this estimates what is left of your entitlement and what you could buy at the next duty station.
Onslow County, NC · 2026 conforming loan limit $832,750
Most you can buy with $0 down
$582,750
Entitlement left: $145,688 of $208,188
At $350,000 you would need nothing down.
Estimate only. Not a loan offer or a commitment to lend. Entitlement is charged at 25 percent of the original loan amount, and the guaranty available in a county is 25 percent of the 2026 conforming loan limit published by the Federal Housing Finance Agency. Your actual entitlement comes from your Certificate of Eligibility and can differ after a restoration, a substitution of entitlement, or a prior default. A veteran with full entitlement has no loan limit at all.
Loan programs
Other ways Marc can structure a purchase
Programs offered through RWM Home Loans. Terms and eligibility are shown in each one.
Official sources
Talk to Marc when you are ready
No pressure and no obligation. Call, text, book a time, or send a note and Marc will reach out.
Marc Arrington
MSgt. USMC Ret. | Branch Manager
RWM Home Loans · NMLS# 2114896
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