Current VA guidelines, updated from one source.
One guideline source feeds every number in this block, and the block changes here when the source does. The terms shown are purchase terms; the refinance leverage, the seasoning rule, and the fee exemptions sit under the two tables.
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
The funding fee is a one-time charge of 2.15% on a first-use purchase with less than five percent down and 3.3% on later uses; it drops with a larger down payment, can be financed into the loan, and is waived for the exempt groups listed below.
Residual income decides the file
VA’s debt-to-income guideline is 41%, but it is a guideline, not a ceiling: a file above it can be approved when residual income exceeds the regional table by a fifth or more, and a file under it can still fall short on residual income. The table below shows the figures for the West region.
| 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.
This page describes program parameters, not an offer. The leverage, the funding fee, the ratio guideline, and the residual-income table are VA guidelines and lender overlays, subject to change without notice and to full underwriting; the certificate, the appraisal, the credit report, and the property decide every file. Lendmire is a broker, not a lender, and is not affiliated with 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.
A VA loan is an ordinary mortgage from a private lender wrapped in a federal promise: if the loan fails, VA covers part of the lender’s loss. That promise is what lets an Ocean Shores lender skip the down payment and the mortgage insurance, and the four cards below take the file apart piece by piece.
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
VA backs a quarter of the loan for a borrower with full entitlement, which gives the lender the same protection a sizable down payment would. That is why an Ocean Shores purchase can close with nothing down and no mortgage insurance, and why there is no VA loan limit when entitlement is full: the backing scales with the loan.
Eligibility, entitlement, and the COE
Eligibility comes from service: a minimum period of active duty, a qualifying period in the National Guard or Reserve, or status as an eligible surviving spouse, with a character of discharge VA accepts. VA confirms it on the Certificate of Eligibility, which an Ocean Shores buyer can request online, through the lender, or by mail.
The funding fee, and who is exempt
The fee scales with use and with the down payment: a first use with nothing down pays the base tier, a later use pays more, and five or ten percent down lowers either. Financed, it adds to the loan balance rather than the cash to close, which is the usual choice on an Ocean Shores purchase; a veteran receiving, or eligible to receive, compensation for a service-connected disability pays none of it.
Residual income over ratios
The ratio VA names is a guideline; the residual-income table is the standard. An Ocean Shores 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 Ocean Shores 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 Ocean Shores’ veterans and service members buy — and how VA fits.
Three Census figures frame every Ocean Shores VA file. Ownership says how much of the market the benefit can reach, the median value says what a nothing-down loan typically comes to, and household income says how much residual income is left after that payment.
These are context figures, not underwriting inputs. Higher values mean a larger loan and a larger funding fee in dollars; lower values mean a payment that leaves more residual income on the same salary. The percentages never move, only what they amount to.
Data sources: U.S. Census Bureau — ACS 5-Year (2024) housing and population estimates, including tenure, home values, gross rents, and household income.
Distinct Ocean Shores neighborhoods, distinct VA files.
The house decides the file as much as the borrower. These Ocean Shores submarkets differ in the property types VA accepts, the condition questions the appraisal raises, and the prices a typical buyer carries.
Condominium projects
Project approval is the deciding question on an Ocean Shores condominium file: owner-occupancy mix, association finances, and rental operations all bear on it, and a project that fails sends the buyer to a conventional loan. The median owner-occupied home value in Ocean Shores runs near $383,500 on the latest Census estimate.
Higher-value homes
A high-value Ocean Shores primary residence can be a VA jumbo: the guaranty scales with the loan, the lender waives the down payment with full entitlement, and the comparison with a conventional jumbo is worth running because the conventional loan asks for a large down payment and VA does not. Ocean Shores is home to about 7.3K people.
Second homes and vacation condominiums
VA does not finance an Ocean Shores vacation home, whatever the price, the entitlement, or the credit profile. The occupancy rule is the reason, and a conventional second-home loan is the route for that buyer. Roughly 3,192 Ocean Shores households own their homes on the latest Census estimate — 83% of all households, the pool a VA purchase joins.
Workforce neighborhoods
In Ocean Shores’ workforce neighborhoods the VA structure is at its most comfortable: a clean appraisal on a modest home, a funding fee that is small in dollars, and residual income that clears the table. On a home at Ocean Shores’ median value, a VA purchase with full entitlement needs no down payment at all — the funding fee on the full $383,500 is the program’s cost, and it can be financed.
Waterfront and view homes
Lakefront and beachfront Ocean Shores homes are eligible as principal residences; the appraisal, with its thinner set of comparable sales, and the flood determination are the two steps that take longer there. About 17% of Ocean Shores’ households rent — roughly 638 renter households on the latest Census estimate.
Year-round primary residences
VA finances principal residences only, so in Ocean Shores the benefit serves the year-round resident: the veteran who lives and works in the resort town and buys a home to occupy. Second homes and vacation rentals are outside the program. Median household income in Ocean Shores sits near $58,202 on the latest Census estimate.
What the program accepts is the same everywhere in Ocean Shores: houses, condominiums in VA-approved projects, planned developments, manufactured homes that meet VA’s rules, and owner-occupied homes of up to four units. What it declines is also the same: second homes and investment property.
Four ways Ocean Shores veterans put the VA benefit to work.
VA is more than a first-purchase program: it refinances, it takes cash out, it finances small multi-unit homes, it buys condominiums in approved projects, and it reaches above the conforming limit with full entitlement. The cards below take up the uses that bring Ocean Shores veterans to it most often.
Buy a condominium in an approved project
One extra step separates an Ocean Shores 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.
Buy a small multi-unit home and live in one unit
An Ocean Shores 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
With full entitlement, the VA sets no loan limit, so an Ocean Shores buyer can finance a home above the conforming limit with no down payment. A conventional jumbo loan would ask for a large one. The wholesale programs behind these pages serve loan amounts up to the ceiling shown in the snapshot on this page.
Buy a first home with nothing down
For a first purchase in Ocean Shores, 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.
Estimate the VA payment on an Ocean Shores price before requesting a quote.
The program’s own math on your Ocean Shores inputs: price less any down payment, plus the financed fee, amortized at the benchmark, with escrows added and nothing for mortgage insurance. The actual rate, payment, and costs come in writing from a licensed loan officer.
Ocean Shores VA payment estimate
Use the Ocean Shores 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 $385,000 price near Ocean Shores’ 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.
Eligibility, entitlement, the cash available, and the expected length of the loan decide which program wins. Here are the three, one next to the other.
VA, FHA, or conventional.
VA fits nearly every Ocean Shores 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.
FHA’s leverage is high and its credit standard is forgiving, but its insurance never comes off a full-leverage thirty-year loan. An Ocean Shores veteran comparing the two sees the premium line in the FHA payment and nothing in that line on VA. See Lendmire’s FHA loan program.
Conventional financing asks for a down payment and a higher score, in exchange for insurance that cancels and no funding fee. An Ocean Shores veteran with a large down payment, where the funding fee falls to its lowest tier and conventional insurance falls away, should see both programs run on the same numbers. 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 Ocean Shores scenario review.
What a lender reads on an Ocean Shores 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 Ocean Shores 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 Ocean Shores file clean and fundable.
The list is short because the program is: entitlement, the fee, and the property decide most Ocean Shores files before income is even opened.
- Confirm the entitlement: the COE states the entitlement available; full entitlement carries no loan limit.
- Know the fee: the tier follows first or subsequent use and the down payment, as the funding fee table above shows.
- Plan the units: landlord experience or reserves may be required to count the rent.
Full or remaining entitlement
Entitlement is full on a first use, and it is restored when an earlier VA loan is paid off and the home sold; it is partial when an earlier VA loan is still outstanding or was lost to foreclosure. An Ocean Shores buyer with full entitlement has no loan limit; with remaining entitlement, the lender may require a down payment.
The funding fee tier and the exemptions
The fee depends on whether the benefit has been used before and on the down payment, and it is waived for veterans receiving compensation for a service-connected disability, surviving spouses receiving DIC, active-duty Purple Heart recipients, and service members rated before discharge. On an Ocean Shores file the tier is confirmed from the COE.
Two- to four-unit homes and rental income
An Ocean Shores fourplex with nothing down is possible under the program; the lender documents the rents, applies VA’s rules for counting them, and checks the property against VA’s requirements unit by unit. A loan officer runs the residual-income test before the offer.
The VA appraisal and the Notice of Value
When the value comes in under the contract price on an Ocean Shores file, VA’s process gives the appraiser a chance to weigh additional sales before the Notice of Value is final, and the escape clause lets the buyer walk away with the deposit if the gap cannot be closed. Repairs the appraiser requires are usually completed before closing.
Credit, seasoning, and the prior VA loan
Each waiting period is VA’s own, and the recent housing record carries the most weight. A foreclosure on an earlier VA loan adds a second question for an Ocean Shores veteran: the entitlement used on that loan stays used until the loss is repaid, leaving remaining entitlement for the new purchase.
From an Ocean Shores Certificate of Eligibility to keys in hand.
A VA purchase runs in a fixed order: certificate and pre-approval on income and residual income, contract and VA appraisal with the Notice of Value, underwriting with the fee tier confirmed, and closing with the fee financed, paid, or waived for exempt borrowers. Here is that order for an Ocean Shores buyer.
COE and pre-approval
An Ocean Shores pre-approval is a sizing exercise: the certificate, the income, the family size, the funding fee tier, and the price. The loan officer confirms eligibility and entitlement against the program rules and puts the pre-approval in writing for the offer.
Contract and appraisal
With the contract signed, the lender requests a VA-assigned appraiser, who values the Ocean Shores home and checks it against VA’s property requirements; the Notice of Value is issued on the report. Seller concessions are checked against VA’s cap, and any condominium project approval is confirmed.
Underwriting
An automated approval still runs the residual-income test; a manual file is read against the guideline and the table. Either way, the Ocean Shores underwriter verifies the income, the assets, the credit history, and the property, and issues the approval with its conditions.
Closing
At closing the funding fee is added to the loan or paid, the escrows for taxes and insurance are set up, and there is no mortgage insurance to begin. An Ocean Shores buyer signs the note and the security instrument, certifies occupancy, and VA’s guaranty attaches to the loan.
A brokerage that puts the benefit to work.
Lendmire never lends. It reads an Ocean Shores 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
A lender with one program sells that program; a brokerage with all three can say which fits. For an Ocean Shores veteran with full entitlement the answer is almost always VA; with a large down payment it can be conventional, and the arithmetic decides.
The fee and the entitlement explained before the offer
The fee is the program’s cost and the entitlement is its reach, and Lendmire explains both first rather than last: how much the fee is, whether it is waived or refundable, and what the certificate supports for an Ocean Shores buyer at the price in hand.
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 Ocean Shores 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.
Ocean Shores VA loan FAQs
The questions below come up on nearly every Ocean Shores 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 the mortgage an eligible Ocean Shores buyer should compare first: backed by VA, offered through lenders, written with no down payment and no insurance line, and qualified on residual income rather than ratios alone.
Who is eligible for a VA loan in Ocean Shores?
Veterans and service members who meet VA’s minimum service requirements with a character of discharge VA accepts, National Guard and Reserve members with qualifying active service or six creditable years, and surviving spouses of service members who died in service or from a service-connected disability, or who are receiving Dependency and Indemnity Compensation. VA confirms it on the Certificate of Eligibility.
How do I get a Certificate of Eligibility?
Request it on VA.gov, ask the lender to pull it, or mail VA Form 26-1880. The supporting document depends on status: DD-214 for veterans, a statement of service for active duty, NGB Forms 22 and 23 for the Guard, a points statement for the Reserve, VA Form 26-1817 for surviving spouses.
What is the VA funding fee, and do I have to pay it?
The fee is the program’s only charge for the guaranty, and the snapshot shows the tiers. An Ocean Shores buyer who is receiving VA disability compensation, or who falls in one of the other exempt groups, pays nothing; everyone else pays the tier for their use and down payment, usually by financing it.
Is there a VA loan limit in Ocean Shores?
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 Ocean Shores buyer with remaining entitlement should ask a loan officer how the county figure affects the file.
Does a VA loan have mortgage insurance?
No monthly premium and no upfront premium. An Ocean Shores buyer comparing VA with FHA sees the premium line disappear from the payment; comparing with conventional, the private insurance disappears as well.
Can I use a VA loan to buy a condominium?
Yes, with one extra step: the project review against VA’s list. Approved projects close on the ordinary file; an Ocean Shores project not yet approved can be submitted, which takes time and the association’s cooperation.
Do I have to live in the home to use a VA loan?
Yes. VA loans are for principal residences: the veteran certifies an intent to occupy within a reasonable time after closing, and a loan officer can explain how that timing applies to you. A spouse can satisfy the requirement for a service member who is deployed or stationed elsewhere, and a veteran may later move out and keep the home as a rental.
What debt-to-income ratio does VA allow?
The ratio in the snapshot, with residual income as the deciding test. An Ocean Shores household above the ratio needs residual income well above the table for its size and region; a household under it still has to meet the table.
Can I buy a duplex or fourplex with a VA loan?
Up to four units with the buyer living in one, and nothing down with full entitlement, which makes the multi-unit purchase a distinctive use of the benefit in Ocean Shores.
The Ocean Shores VA file, built on VA’s rules and explained plainly.
Ask for an Ocean Shores scenario review to confirm entitlement, the fee tier, and the loan the program supports. Lendmire is a broker licensed in sixteen states for consumer mortgages and is never the lender.
This guide covers Ocean Shores — for the statewide guidelines, markets, and scenarios, see VA Loans in Washington, part of Lendmire’s VA loan program.
Nearby markets in Washington: Tumwater · Olympia · Lacey · Lakewood · Bremerton · Longview · Port Orchard · Tacoma
Related programs: Conventional Loans · FHA Loans · Jumbo Loans