#Middlebury #Veterans #Foreclosure #VASP
VETERANS POST
By Freddy Groves
At the end of May, the Department of Veterans Affairs will start a new program called VASP, Veterans Affairs Servicing Purchase, to help over 40,000 veterans stay in their homes when facing foreclosure. If you have a VA home loan, and if you’re active duty, a veteran or a surviving spouse, you could be eligible for help through VASP if you’re in serious financial trouble.
VASP will come in and buy out your loan, modify it and then handle it as a direct VA loan. One of the best parts is that you’ll get a fixed 2.5% interest rate. (As of this writing, a standard 30-fixed mortgage rate is 7.9%.)
VASP is not something you apply for. Instead, the mortgage companies will put in requests to the VA to help veterans they’ve identified as having problems with their loans. You’ll have to do your part by being in touch with your lender. If VASP is the best option, they will be responsible for submitting your name to the VA. If you have a problem with your lender, call the VA at 877-827-3702 and press 4. For the specifics of VASP, go to benefits.va.gov/WARMS/M26_4.asp and select Chapter 9, VA Purchase.
For general information about VA home loans, if you’ve never had a VA home loan, download the buyer handbook at www.benefits.va.gov/homeloans/index.asp. Start with the Eligibility section. If you’re just starting the process of buying a home, you’ll need your Certificate of Eligibility (COE), which will tell a lender that you have that benefit either for the first time or again after you’ve paid off a previous VA home loan.
Then send for your credit reports either at AnnualCreditReport.com or by calling 877-322-8228. If there are any errors in your credit history, the time to get them resolved is at the beginning of your home buying experience, not after you’ve already picked out a home and have mentally moved in. Get your ducks in a row first.
© 2024 King Features Synd., Inc.
