Current VA guidelines, updated from one source.
What follows is VA’s own rulebook reduced to the handful of numbers that decide a file, pulled from Lendmire’s single guideline source and refreshed on this page whenever VA or the wholesale overlays move: leverage with full entitlement, the funding fee by use and down payment, the ratio guideline, and the residual-income table for this state’s VA region.
100% financing with full entitlement
The purchase leverage is 100% loan-to-value with full entitlement, which means 0% down on a home that appraises at the price; a price above the appraised value is paid in cash or renegotiated, and the guaranty covers the lender’s exposure.
No monthly premium, no upfront premium
There is no monthly mortgage insurance and no upfront premium on a VA loan at any leverage; the guaranty does the work that private mortgage insurance or FHA’s premiums do elsewhere, and the funding fee is the only program charge.
First use; 3.3% after first use; exempt for many disabled veterans
VA charges a funding fee instead of mortgage insurance: 2.15% on a first-use purchase, 3.3% on a subsequent use, less with a down payment of five percent or more, and nothing for the exempt groups. The ladder below shows every tier, including the cash-out and rate-reduction refinance fees.
Residual income decides the file
The ratio guideline is 41%; the deciding figure is residual income, VA’s measure of what the household keeps each month after the housing payment, debts, taxes, and maintenance. The West table below applies to Washington, and the calculator estimates a rough residual from the income you enter.
| Loan type | Use | Down payment | Fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Purchase or construction | First use | less than 5% down | 2.15% |
| Purchase or construction | First use | 5% to 9.99% down | 1.5% |
| Purchase or construction | First use | 10% or more down | 1.25% |
| Purchase or construction | After first use | less than 5% down | 3.3% |
| Purchase or construction | After first use | 5% to 9.99% down | 1.5% |
| Purchase or construction | After first use | 10% or more down | 1.25% |
| Cash-out refinance | First use | Any | 2.15% |
| Cash-out refinance | After first use | Any | 3.3% |
| IRRRL | Any | Any | 0.5% |
| Manufactured home (not permanently affixed) | Any | Any | 1% |
| Loan assumption | Any | Any | 0.5% |
| Vendee loan | Any | Any | 2.25% |
| Family size | Residual income |
|---|---|
| 1 | $491 |
| 2 | $823 |
| 3 | $990 |
| 4 | $1,117 |
| 5 | $1,158 |
| Each additional member, up to seven | + $80 |
Exempt from the funding fee: veterans receiving VA compensation for a service-connected disability, those eligible for it but receiving retirement or active-duty pay instead, surviving spouses receiving Dependency and Indemnity Compensation, service members with a pre-discharge claim rating, and active-duty service members who have received the Purple Heart. VA sets no minimum credit score; the wholesale programs behind these pages start at a 580 decision score and serve loan amounts up to $4,000,000, including loans above the conforming limit with full entitlement.
Refinances: cash-out to 100% loan-to-value after seasoning of 210 days and six payments with a net tangible benefit; rate-reduction refinances of an existing VA loan at a 0.5% fee without a VA appraisal. Current VA snapshot · updated October 1, 2026 · owner-occupied principal residences, one to four units · no VA loan limit with full entitlement · loans are assumable · no prepayment penalty · Lendmire is not affiliated with the Department of Veterans Affairs.
For informational purposes only. This is not a commitment to lend or extend credit, an offer, or a quote. Program parameters shown are VA guidelines and wholesale lender overlays, are subject to change without notice, and every figure depends on the borrower, the entitlement, the property, the selected program, and full underwriting. Lendmire is a mortgage broker, not a lender, and is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Department of Veterans Affairs. Licensed in sixteen states for consumer mortgages. NMLS #2371349.
What a VA loan is — and how the file is qualified.
To follow an East Wenatchee VA file, follow four things in order: the guaranty, the eligibility and entitlement that unlock it, the funding fee that funds it, and the residual-income standard that qualifies it. Each rule below comes with the reason behind it.
For the program overview, see Lendmire’s VA loan program, or the statewide guide at VA Loans in Washington; to request a Certificate of Eligibility, see VA.gov.
The guaranty replaces the down payment
The guaranty is a promise from VA to the lender, not a loan from VA. On an East Wenatchee file it covers a share of any loss, so the lender can lend the full purchase price, up to the appraised value, without a down payment and without charging for mortgage insurance; the funding fee is what the borrower pays for that promise.
Eligibility, entitlement, and the COE
The Certificate of Eligibility is the document that opens the file. It states the entitlement available, whether the funding fee is waived, and any prior use of the benefit. An East Wenatchee lender can usually pull it within the VA system from a DD-214 or a statement of service, and VA.gov issues it directly as well.
The funding fee, and who is exempt
The funding fee is VA’s one-time charge for the guaranty, set as a share of the loan by whether the benefit has been used before and by the down payment. An East Wenatchee buyer can finance it into the loan or pay it at closing, and the seller can pay it as part of concessions; the ladder in the snapshot shows every tier, and veterans compensated for a service-connected disability are exempt.
Residual income over ratios
The ratio VA names is a guideline; the residual-income table is the standard. An East Wenatchee file above the ratio can be approved when residual income clears the table by a fifth or more, and a file below the ratio can still be declined when residual income falls short, which is the reverse of how FHA and conventional loans read a budget.
A lender runs exactly this math on an East Wenatchee file, with one refinement the page cannot make: underwriting also subtracts taxes, maintenance, and utilities before measuring residual income, so the rough residual here will read higher than the lender’s. The price, the fee tier, and the locked rate are the moving parts.
Where East Wenatchee’s veterans and service members buy — and how VA fits.
Start with the market, then the file. These East Wenatchee figures from the Census set the backdrop for a VA purchase: who owns, what homes are worth on the latest estimate, and what households earn, which together decide what a nothing-down loan and its payment look like locally.
Citywide figures provide general market context, not an appraisal or an income calculation. Two veterans with identical entitlement can see different files here: one buying at the median clears the residual-income table with room, another stretching above it needs the ratio justified. The market sets the spread.
Data sources: U.S. Census Bureau — ACS 5-Year (2024) housing and population estimates, including tenure, home values, gross rents, and household income.
Distinct East Wenatchee neighborhoods, distinct VA files.
An East Wenatchee condominium, a half-century-old family home, and a new subdivision house are three different VA files: different project approvals, different property findings, different funding fees in dollars. The six submarkets below show the range.
Newer infill and recent construction
On recent construction in East Wenatchee the appraisal rarely raises findings and the arithmetic is the issue: does residual income clear VA’s table once the funding fee is financed into a larger loan, and does the certificate show full entitlement at that amount. The median owner-occupied home value in East Wenatchee runs near $429,200 on the latest Census estimate.
Higher-value homes
On East Wenatchee’s higher-value homes the VA loan’s reach shows: with full entitlement there is no down payment above the conforming limit, up to the maximum loan amount shown in the guidelines above. The credit floor is the lender overlay, and the file is qualified on residual income. Median household income in East Wenatchee sits near $77,558 on the latest Census estimate.
Condominiums and townhomes
Close-in East Wenatchee condominiums suit the benefit well: nothing down, no insurance line, and a project review that runs through VA’s approved-project list. The dues go into the residual-income math, and the appraisal covers the project along with the unit. About 41% of East Wenatchee’s households rent — roughly 2,162 renter households on the latest Census estimate.
Established close-in neighborhoods
An older East Wenatchee house is a fine VA purchase; the property requirements are the hurdle, not the age. Buyers who expect a repair list write the contract with room for it, and a wood-destroying insect inspection is ordered where VA calls for one. On a home at East Wenatchee’s median value, a VA purchase with full entitlement needs no down payment at all — the funding fee on the full $429,200 is the program’s cost, and it can be financed.
Service members and the occupancy rule
Where East Wenatchee neighborhoods serve an installation, VA purchases appear on every street, often by service members who will move again. The program is built for that: nothing down, a loan that can be assumed, and entitlement restored when the home is sold and the loan repaid. East Wenatchee is home to about 14K people and sits within the Wenatchee-East Wenatchee, WA area.
Two-to-four-unit homes
The small multi-unit East Wenatchee purchase is where VA’s leverage goes furthest: no down payment on two to four units, the buyer living in one, and the documented rent from the others helping the ratios and the residual income. Roughly 3,116 East Wenatchee households own their homes on the latest Census estimate — 59% of all households, the pool a VA purchase joins.
Neighborhood sets the price and the property type; VA sets the rest. The guaranty, the funding fee, the ratio guideline, and the residual-income table apply identically on every East Wenatchee file, and full entitlement carries no loan limit anywhere in the county.
Four ways East Wenatchee veterans put the VA benefit to work.
Because VA backs part of every loan, it fits the East Wenatchee veteran who has the income for the payment but would rather keep the savings than spend them on a down payment and insurance. Four examples follow.
Buy a small multi-unit home and live in one unit
An East Wenatchee duplex, triplex, or fourplex becomes a VA purchase the moment the buyer commits to occupying one unit. The guaranty covers the loan the same way it covers a house, and the other units’ rent is documented toward the ratios and residual income the way VA permits.
Buy above the conforming limit
A higher-priced East Wenatchee home is still a VA purchase: the guaranty backs a quarter of the whole loan with full entitlement, so a lender can waive the down payment on the whole amount. The county conforming figure only matters when entitlement is partly in use.
Buy a first home with nothing down
For a first purchase in East Wenatchee, VA pairs no down payment with no mortgage insurance and a residual-income test that reads the whole household budget; the file closes on the certificate, the appraisal, the income, and the funding fee tier.
Buy a condominium in an approved project
One extra step separates an East Wenatchee condominium file from a house file: the project review against VA’s list. Once the project clears, the leverage, the fee, and the absence of mortgage insurance are exactly what they would be on a house.
Estimate the VA payment on an East Wenatchee price before requesting a quote.
Before you ask for a quote, size the payment yourself: the East Wenatchee price, the fee tier, the term, the benchmark rate, and the escrows go in, and the funding fee table and the residual-income figures come from the same guideline source as the block above. The result is an estimate, and the rate is a published market average, not an offer.
East Wenatchee VA payment estimate
Use the East Wenatchee defaults as a starting point and change the price, the down payment, the fee tier, the term, and the escrows to fit.
Editable benchmark: 7.28% as of October 1, 2026 · Freddie Mac 30-year average via FRED®. A conventional market reference, not a VA loan quote.
Illustrative starting assumptions: a $430,000 price near East Wenatchee’s median owner-occupied home value, no down payment with full entitlement, a first-use funding fee financed into the loan, a thirty-year term at the current Freddie Mac benchmark, property taxes and insurance estimated for Washington (U.S. Census Bureau). Every field is editable.
Illustrative estimate only — not a Loan Estimate, approval, quote, or commitment to lend. The rate field carries the weekly Freddie Mac thirty-year conventional benchmark, a market reference and not a VA loan quote; your rate is set by the lender at lock. The funding fee follows VA’s published table for the use and down payment entered; the residual-income figure is VA’s guideline for the region and family size, and the rough residual shown subtracts only the housing payment and the debts entered, while VA also deducts taxes, maintenance and utilities. Taxes, insurance and dues are editable estimates; closing costs are not included. Licensed in sixteen states for consumer mortgages. Lendmire is not affiliated with or acting on behalf of the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Same veteran, three very different closings.
Choosing among VA, FHA, and conventional in East Wenatchee is really choosing an insurance structure and a down payment at the same time. Each is laid out below with the buyer it fits.
VA, FHA, or conventional.
VA fits nearly every East Wenatchee buyer who holds eligibility: the leverage is complete, there is no insurance line in the payment, and the fee is paid once. Partial entitlement, a property that fails VA’s standards, or a fee tier that outweighs a short hold are the cases where another program competes.
Where VA charges a one-time fee, FHA charges a premium every month and an upfront premium at closing. FHA fits the buyer with no entitlement or a property VA will not approve; it rarely wins for an East Wenatchee buyer who holds a COE. See Lendmire’s FHA loan program.
Conventional is the comparison for a veteran with savings: with twenty percent down there is no mortgage insurance and no funding fee, and the payment can beat VA with a financed fee. Below that down payment, VA usually wins for an East Wenatchee buyer. See Lendmire’s conventional loan program.
Which program fits best depends on the borrower’s numbers once eligibility is known. VA can come out ahead with a COE and full entitlement, conventional can for a veteran with twenty percent down and no fee exemption, and FHA is the fallback where the benefit is unavailable. The comparison is run on the actual numbers, in writing.
What to prepare for an East Wenatchee scenario review.
What a lender reads on an East Wenatchee VA loan, and what you can have ready before anyone asks.
This is a general preparation guide, not a universal checklist. The selected lender may request additional information based on the transaction, the property, entitlement, and the income picture. Nothing here is legal or tax advice.
Local details that can change the loan.
When an East Wenatchee VA file surprises someone, the cause is usually one of these: entitlement partly in use, a higher fee tier than expected, required repairs from the appraisal, a condominium without VA approval, or residual income below the table.
Use these checks to keep the East Wenatchee file clean and fundable.
Before asking for a quote, know three answers: is entitlement full, does the fee apply and at what tier, and does the property fit VA’s standards at that price.
- Confirm the entitlement: entitlement is restored once the earlier loan is paid off and the home sold.
- Know the fee: the tier follows first or subsequent use and the down payment, as the funding fee table above shows.
- Mind the residual: residual income is measured against the regional table for the family size.
Full or remaining entitlement
Two veterans, two COEs, two different loans: one with full entitlement buys above the conforming limit with nothing down, the other with an earlier loan still open brings a down payment on the uncovered portion. An East Wenatchee loan officer reads the certificate before anything is sized.
The funding fee tier and the exemptions
Financed, the fee raises the loan balance and the payment; paid at closing, it raises the cash to close; paid by the seller, it counts toward the concessions cap. Which is best on an East Wenatchee file depends on the tier and on how long the home will be kept, and the loan officer shows all three ways side by side.
Residual income and the ratio guideline
Family size moves the figure, and so does the region. The snapshot shows the table for Washington’s VA region; the calculator estimates a rough residual before the lender’s deductions for taxes and upkeep, so an East Wenatchee scenario that barely clears the table here may not clear it in underwriting.
Condominium project approval
Many East Wenatchee projects already hold VA approval, and a condominium must be VA-approved for a VA loan to apply. You can check any project against VA’s list. VA looks at the association’s documents, the budget, the owner-occupancy mix, and any litigation, and that review can take a while.
Occupancy and the reasonable-time rule
A VA loan finances a principal residence: the veteran certifies an intent to occupy within a reasonable time after closing, which VA generally reads as a couple of months. The usual East Wenatchee exception is military life itself, where a spouse can occupy for a member on orders elsewhere.
From an East Wenatchee Certificate of Eligibility to keys in hand.
Underneath, the East Wenatchee process is any mortgage process; on top sit VA’s checks: the certificate, the property requirements, the project approval where it applies, and the residual-income test. Each step below says what happens and what the buyer does.
COE and pre-approval
The first conversation settles the shape: whether entitlement is full, whether the fee applies, what residual income supports, and whether VA is the right program next to FHA and conventional for the East Wenatchee purchase. The lender can pull the COE directly.
Contract and appraisal
The East Wenatchee contract sets the price and the concessions; the appraisal sets the value and the condition. Both feed the loan amount, and the lender confirms the project approval and the wood-destroying insect inspection where VA requires one for the state before underwriting begins.
Underwriting
An automated approval still runs the residual-income test; a manual file is read against the guideline and the table. Either way, the East Wenatchee underwriter verifies the income, the assets, the credit history, and the property, and issues the approval with its conditions.
Closing
Closing is where the fee becomes real: financed into the total loan or paid at the table, with the seller’s concessions applied and the fees a veteran may not pay removed from the sheet. The East Wenatchee buyer takes the keys and VA backs the lender.
A brokerage that puts the benefit to work.
Lendmire never lends. It reads an East Wenatchee file against VA, FHA, and conventional, matches the program to the profile, and keeps the funding fee and the residual-income test in front of the buyer before anything is signed.
Three programs, one set of numbers
Before any recommendation, VA, FHA, and conventional are run on the same East Wenatchee price, income, and down payment. The buyer sees the payment, the insurance or fee line, and the cash to close for each, and the choice follows the figures.
The fee and the entitlement explained before the offer
An East Wenatchee veteran should never discover at the closing table that the fee was the subsequent-use tier or that entitlement was partly in use. The loan officer reads the certificate aloud, so to speak: the tier, the leverage, and the conventional alternative on the same numbers.
Licensed, consumer-purpose, in writing
Lendmire is licensed in sixteen states for consumer mortgages, each loan is a consumer-purpose transaction with the full set of disclosures, and every figure an East Wenatchee buyer relies on, from the fee to the leverage to the final terms, comes in writing from a licensed loan officer.
Trusted by veterans & families alike.
East Wenatchee VA loan FAQs
The questions below come up on nearly every East Wenatchee VA conversation. The answers are general; the figures in the snapshot above are the program’s current parameters.
What is a VA loan, and who is it for?
A VA loan is a mortgage from a private lender with a partial guaranty from the Department of Veterans Affairs: VA backs a share of the loan, and in exchange the program allows no down payment with full entitlement, no monthly mortgage insurance, a residual-income test, and a cap on the fees a veteran can be charged. It is for veterans, service members, National Guard and Reserve members, and eligible surviving spouses buying a principal residence in East Wenatchee.
Who is eligible for a VA loan in East Wenatchee?
Active-duty service members after a minimum period, veterans with the required length of service for their era, Guard and Reserve members with qualifying active duty or six years of service, and eligible surviving spouses. The certificate settles it.
How do I get a Certificate of Eligibility?
Most East Wenatchee buyers let the lender pull it: with a DD-214 or a statement of service, the lender can often obtain the certificate from VA’s system during the first conversation. VA.gov issues it online as well, and VA Form 26-1880 by mail is the slowest route.
What is the VA funding fee, and do I have to pay it?
It depends on your status. Disabled veterans receiving compensation and the other exempt groups pay no fee; other borrowers pay the tier in the snapshot, which is lower on a first use and with a larger down payment. Most East Wenatchee buyers finance it rather than pay cash.
Is there a VA loan limit in East Wenatchee?
There is no VA loan limit for a veteran with full entitlement; the lender’s own maximum loan amount, shown in the snapshot, is the practical ceiling. An East Wenatchee buyer with remaining entitlement should ask a loan officer how the county figure affects the file.
What is residual income, and why does it matter?
Residual income is the monthly income left after the proposed housing payment, other debt payments, taxes, and VA’s allowance for maintenance and utilities, and VA requires it to meet a table that varies by region and family size. It is the test VA trusts most, because a household with real room in the budget weathers surprises; a ratio that looks fine can still fail it.
Do I need a down payment for a VA loan?
A VA purchase with full entitlement needs no down payment at all, and there is no mortgage insurance in exchange. The calculator shows the East Wenatchee payment both ways: nothing down at the base fee tier, or a down payment at the lower tier.
Is a VA loan assumable?
Yes, with the lender qualifying the assumptor. It is one of the program’s quieter advantages for an East Wenatchee owner who may sell into a higher-rate market, provided the release of liability and the entitlement are handled at the assumption.
Does a VA loan have mortgage insurance?
Not at any loan-to-value. FHA charges an upfront and an annual premium, conventional charges private mortgage insurance until equity grows, and VA charges neither; the funding fee is paid once.
What credit score do I need for a VA loan?
VA leaves the credit standard to the lender, and the lender overlay in the snapshot is the floor behind these pages. The file is read as a whole: two years of clean housing payments carry more weight than an old event that has seasoned.
Buy in East Wenatchee with nothing down and no mortgage insurance.
When you are ready, an East Wenatchee review sizes the loan, settles the program, and produces written terms. Nothing on this page commits anyone to lend.
This guide covers East Wenatchee — for the statewide guidelines, markets, and scenarios, see VA Loans in Washington, part of Lendmire’s VA loan program.
Nearby markets in Washington: Wenatchee · Leavenworth · Chelan · Yakima · Sammamish · Redmond · Bellevue · Renton
Related programs: Conventional Loans · FHA Loans · Jumbo Loans