A VA loan is a benefit you earned. Veterans, active-duty service members, and eligible surviving spouses can buy a home with $0 down and no monthly mortgage insurance — and Ben’s team handles the VA paperwork, including your Certificate of Eligibility, so the benefit works the way it was designed to.
Home · Programs · Program Guide · VA Loans
If you are a veteran, an active-duty service member, a qualifying member of the Guard or Reserve, or an eligible surviving spouse, this program was built for you — and for eligible borrowers, the down payment is $0.
The VA loan exists because you served; it is an earned benefit, not a promotional offer. Because the Department of Veterans Affairs guarantees a portion of the loan, lenders can offer it with no down payment for eligible borrowers, competitive rates, and no monthly mortgage insurance — a combination no other program matches. Most buyers use it for a primary home they will live in, and the benefit can be used again on future purchases.
Not sure whether your service qualifies? That is a five-minute check, not a research project. We confirm your eligibility picture first — before you shop, before you fall for a house — so you know exactly where you stand.
No — VA loans never carry monthly mortgage insurance. Instead, most VA loans include a one-time VA funding fee that helps keep the program running for the next veteran. It can be financed into the loan, and many veterans with service-connected disabilities are exempt from it entirely.
The funding fee is set by the VA and varies with your situation; financing it means it costs nothing out of pocket at closing. The exemption matters as much as the fee itself: veterans receiving VA disability compensation, and certain eligible surviving spouses, do not pay it at all. We check your exemption status up front — nobody on our watch pays a fee they do not owe.
Skipping monthly mortgage insurance is real money every month, too. On the same home at the same price, it is one of the reasons a VA borrower’s payment often runs lower than an FHA borrower’s — even before the down payment enters the picture.
The Certificate of Eligibility (COE) is the VA’s proof that you have entitlement available for a VA loan. You do not have to chase it — Ben’s team pulls it for you, in most cases electronically, as one of the first steps in your file.
For most veterans, the request comes back quickly with nothing more than basic service information. If you have your DD-214 handy it can help; if you do not, we know how to work around it. Eligible surviving spouses have a documentation path of their own, and we will walk you through exactly what is needed.
Translation: the one document people assume will be a bureaucratic project is, on our team, a checkbox we handle while you think about houses.
Yes — two ways. The VA IRRRL (Interest Rate Reduction Refinance Loan) streamlines refinancing for borrowers who already have a VA loan, with reduced paperwork. A VA cash-out refinance can replace an existing loan — VA or not — or let you tap equity.
The IRRRL is designed to be simple: it exists to lower your rate or payment, and the documentation is streamlined compared with a fresh loan. A cash-out refinance is a full new loan and fits bigger moves — consolidating, renovating, or restructuring. Either way, the VA structure stays the same: no monthly mortgage insurance, and your entitlement picture reviewed before we start.
Past clients also get our standing refinance treatment — no lender fees on refinances for the people who have already closed with us.* If you bought with someone else, the IRRRL conversation is still free.
*Past-client offer current as of November 2026 and subject to change; ask for details.
Ben’s team participates in Homes for Heroes — a national program that gives back to the people who serve their communities: military members and veterans, first responders, teachers, and healthcare workers — when they buy, sell, or refinance a home with an affiliated local specialist.
Here is how it works in plain terms: the program routes real savings back to the hero at the center of the transaction — money back after closing and savings around the closing table, depending on whether you are buying, selling, or refinancing. There is no separate application maze and no added fee for using it; you work with a local team that participates, and the savings are part of the deal.
The amount depends on your home and your transaction, so we will not quote a generic number here — the honest move is to ask Ben what you qualify for on your purchase or refinance, and hear the real figure for your file. Stacked on top of a VA loan’s $0 down and no monthly mortgage insurance, it is one more way this team says thank you with something more useful than words.
A Minnesota veteran kept renting while saving for a down payment, assuming buying had to wait. The VA benefit from their service covered the purchase with $0 down — and because the team participates in Homes for Heroes, savings came back around closing on top of it.
Outcome: into their own home years sooner than planned, with cash reserves left intact for the move.
Stories reflect the types of files Ben's team handles regularly; details are composites with identifying information removed. Every file is different — approval depends on your full picture.
$0 for eligible borrowers with full entitlement. The VA loan benefit was designed so veterans, active-duty service members, and eligible surviving spouses can buy a primary home without saving up a down payment first.
No — VA loans have no monthly mortgage insurance. Instead, most carry a one-time VA funding fee, set by the VA, which can be financed into the loan so it costs nothing out of pocket at closing. Many veterans with service-connected disabilities — and certain eligible surviving spouses — are exempt from the funding fee.
The Certificate of Eligibility (COE) is the VA’s official proof that you have entitlement available for a VA loan. You do not have to track it down yourself — Ben’s team requests it for you, in most cases electronically, when we start your file.
Yes. VA entitlement is reusable: you can use your benefit again once a previous VA loan is paid off, and in some situations remaining entitlement can support another purchase. We check your entitlement picture before you start shopping.
Homes for Heroes is a national program that gives back to community heroes — military members and veterans, first responders, teachers, and healthcare workers — when they buy, sell, or refinance with an affiliated specialist. Ben’s team participates: savings come back to you around closing, and the amount depends on your transaction, so ask Ben what you qualify for.
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Ben Coulter · Supreme Lending Midwest5151 Edina Industrial Blvd, Suite 500, Edina, MN 55439 · (612) 384-7818 · NMLS #383046
