A VA home loan is a home mortgage loan guaranteed by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs issued to qualifying U.S. veterans or active duty military members. This program is a wonderful opportunity for those who have served or are serving our country because this loan requires no down payment, no monthly mortgage insurance, and generally a lower mortgage rate.

If a veteran dies before using the benefit of a VA home loan, it may pass to his or her surviving spouse. According to Military.com, a deceased veteran’s death does not need to be duty related to pass VA loan benefits to their surviving spouse. The passed veteran must have been eligible for compensation at the time of passing and be rated one of the following:

• Continuously totally disabled for at least 10 years immediately prior to death


• Continuously totally disabled for at least 5 years from the date of discharge


• Continuously totally disabled for at least 1 year prior to death of a POW who died after September 30, 1999

Other criteria of veterans that make a surviving spouse eligible for these benefits are:

• Died in the line of duty


• Died as the result of a service-related activity


• Has been MIA or a POW for over 90 days

Surviving spouses can use this program if they:

• Have never been remarried


• Have been remarried and are now divorced from that marriage


• Have been remarried and their marriage has ended due to the death of a spouse

When obtaining a VA home loan, many veterans using the program must pay a funding fee. This is an amount of money that reduces the loan’s cost to taxpayers. Surviving spouses are exempt from the VA funding fee, causing their loan balance and payments to be lower.

If I can help provide any information about VA home loans or about purchasing a home, please don’t hesitate to call me.