Could A Veterans VA Home Loan Help You Step Into a $400 per month Tiny Home Mortgage?

Affordable Living through Tiny Houses

For those interested in living affordably and purposefully, tiny houses make a lot of sense. They could even make sense for veterans who are looking for an affordable way to live, and they may even be desirable to some veterans returning after duty to build their lives again. The big question is, can a veteran apply for a VA home loan to purchase a tiny house? Well, the answer is maybe... See, currently, tiny houses are in a grey zone when it comes to real estate. Especially tiny houses on wheels which can be great to take on the go. This is why some mortgage brokers are referring to them as small mobile homes, but this doesn't mean they will qualify for a loan. The Veterans Administration or VA for short is the government organization that gives veterans and military members assistance in getting a home or a home loan. They don't actually give out the loans themselves though, that's done through a private lender that the VA contracts with. So the VA would go with a mortgage loan and could support the purchase of a tiny house on wheels.

Requirements for VA Home Loan Eligibility

There are usually some things your tiny house will need to be before it can qualify for such a loan. For example, the tiny house must be built on a foundation for it to qualify for most of these types of mortgage loans. A home that isn't tied to any land is not considered real estate by the VA, and they do say that "To be eligible for a VA loan a home must be properly affixed to a permanent foundation." So using a VA home loan might not work in this situation unless you can build the tiny house on a foundation. The tiny house also may need to be worth at least $100,000 although things are changing all the time when it comes to lenders and new lenders are coming up all the time to accommodate people who want to live in these homes. So it's worth checking in with your VA-approved mortgage lender to see if it might work for you in your situation.

Assistance Options for Tiny Home Buyers

There is also the option of getting assistance with payments or down payments on a tiny house to suit your needs. This can be done through a company called Operation Tiny Home, and you can apply no matter what your situation is as long as both the home and yourself meet specific criteria. For example, you have to be pre-qualified for financing, working with a professional tiny home builder, the tiny house will have to be your primary dwelling, you have to have a long-term place to build the tiny house and live in it, and you have to be a US citizen or permanent resident. People who can apply include Law Enforcement, Military and Veterans, Fire Fighters, Emergency Medical Personnel, Pre-K - 12th Grade Teachers and people who are struggling with hardship. This can mean that you live in an area that was affected by natural disaster, or you are affected by illness, disability, ageing out of foster care, or you're the surviving spouse of a member of the military or a public protector.

Application Process for Assistance

All applicants will provide proof of identity and proof of their illness, disability, hardship or any other circumstance that allows them this grant. So this is already another option for those who would like to have assistance with their tiny house mortgage or payments. Since many people are in need of adequate housing Operation, Tiny House has made it their mission to help those in need where VA Home Loans are not applied to tiny house mortgages. With the help of an organization like this or a lender that will accept a VA Home Loan, a veteran would be well on their way to be able to get a $400 per month tiny home mortgage.