You can get a VA loan with just about any lender anywhere, right?
Possibly. But some VA lenders are better than others. Many mortgage lenders offer VA loans but don’t specialize in the loan type.
For that reason, we’ve compiled this list of the best VA loan companies and/or lenders available in the marketplace. We’ve selected them based on their specialization in VA loans and other financial services they provide.
The list is presented in no specific order, but we have given the top three slots to lenders specializing in VA loans and/or financial services for consumers with military service backgrounds.
10 Best VA Loan Lenders in 2022
Veterans United | Best Veteran-Focused | Get Rates |
USAA | Best Total Package | Get Rates |
Navy Federal Credit Union | Largest Credit Union | Get Rates |
Rocket Mortgage | Best In-House Loan Servicing | Get Rates |
JG Wentworth | Best Refinance Reduction | Get Rates |
loanDepot | “No Steering” Bias Policy | Get Rates |
Flagstar Bank | Best Full Service | Get Rates |
Wells Fargo | Best Face-to-Face | Get Rates |
PrimeLending | Best for VA Jumbo Loans | Get Rates |
LendingTree | Best for Lender Matching | Get Rates |
1. Veterans United Home Loans
The biggest advantage of Veterans United: it’s a mortgage lender established specifically for the benefit of providing VA loans to veterans. The company was founded in 2002 in Columbia, Missouri.
Veterans United is still headquartered in Columbia, but it’s grown. Now, more than 5,200 Veterans United employees work out of over 60 offices across the country.
Veterans United works with former senior enlisted members from each branch of the armed forces. These military advisers have made it their mission to educate veterans about homeownership and the benefits of VA loans.
- Purchase and refinance
- 15-year and 30-year fixed, ARMs
- 0% down, no PMI
- 24/7 customer service
Veterans United offers in-house processing, underwriting and closing teams for both homebuyers and homeowners who are looking to refinance to a VA loan.
Currently, the lender offers fixed-rate mortgages with terms of 15 or 30 years and adjustable-rate VA mortgages. It also provides 24/7 customer service, which is unusual in the mortgage industry.
Veterans United’s website is comprehensive, featuring many resources to guide homebuyers through the entire VA mortgage process. They offer related services, such as Veterans United Realty, which represents a network of veteran-friendly real estate agents.
It also offers a free credit consulting program to help homebuyers improve their credit before beginning the homebuying process.
2. USAA
USAA is another financial services company set up with the military in mind. A group of 25 Army officers founded USAA in 1922 to provide mutual self-insurance for automobile coverage. Now USAA offers many other financial services, including conventional mortgages and VA fixed-rate mortgages with 10-to-30-year terms. They also offer the VA 5/1 adjustable-rate mortgage.
By the end of 2020, USAA had over 13 million members, according to its annual report.
New homebuyers and refinancing homeowners can take advantage of USAA’s loan programs.
- Purchase and refinance
- 10, 15, 20 and 30-year VA fixed, 5/1 VA ARM
- 0% down, no PMI
- VA and conventional mortgages
One of the major advantages to getting a VA loan through USAA is the wide variety of other financial services they provide. You can start out with a mortgage and then add services like banking, home or auto insurance when you need them.
3. Navy Federal Credit Union
Navy Federal Credit Union, founded in 1933, specifically works with members of the Navy. It has since expanded to cover all members of the military, regardless of branch, including the National Guard and reserves, delayed entry program (DEP) participants, officer candidates, ROTC cadets, veterans, retirees and annuitants.
Navy Federal is also the largest credit union in the country by asset size and membership.
Navy Federal has over 11 million members and more than $153.5 billion in assets, according to its 2022 fact sheet. The credit union offers complete banking services, IRAs, credit cards, car loans, personal loans and student loans.
Navy Federal’s VA loans come in 15 and 30-year fixed-rate terms, but it does not offer adjustable-rate loans. For current homeowners, Navy Federal offers VA Streamline Refinances, which enable you to do an interest rate reduction refinance loan (IRRRL) on an existing VA mortgage to lower your rate.
VA streamline refinancing doesn’t require a home appraisal or inspection.
The credit union has 3,500 branches across the country and nearly 30,000 ATMs. They also maintain 24/7 customer service through their call centers.
4. Rocket Companies, Inc.
Based in Detroit, Michigan, Rocket Companies, Inc., along with its Rocket Mortgage arm, is the largest retail mortgage lender in the country. Formerly known as Quicken Loans, the lender generated more than $350 billion in originations in 2021.
The company operates in all 50 states and has more than 26,000 employees across the United States and Canada, though Rocket Mortgage operates entirely online.
But that also has its advantages. You can apply online and get a loan decision issued in a matter of minutes after completing your application.
Rocket offers VA mortgages. They’ll work directly with the Veterans Administration to get your certificate of eligibility, and other paperwork needed to qualify for the loan.
Rocket Mortgage services nearly all of their loans in-house.
That means the servicing on your loan is unlikely to be sold to another company, as is usually the case with most mortgage lenders.
Rocket Mortgage offers fixed-rate 15-to-30-year loans, the 5/1 adjustable-rate VA loan and jumbo VA loans for as much as $1.5 million with a minimum 580 credit score.
Rocket Mortgage also offers conventional and FHA mortgages, in case you want to save your VA loan eligibility for another property.
5. JG Wentworth
JG Wentworth has been a direct mortgage lender since 1992. The company maintains a “customer-first” policy to help borrowers feel in control throughout the lending process.
The company also offers some of the lowest interest rates in the industry. The Better Business Bureau accredited J.G. Wentworth in 1996. It currently has an A+ BBB rating.
As a full-service mortgage lender, JG Wentworth offers conventional, FHA mortgages and 15- to 30-year VA loans for both purchase and refinancing.
On the refinancing side, they offer cash-out and interest rate reduction refinance loans.
The company has more than 20 branch locations located around the country.
6. LoanDepot
LoanDepot is one of the largest mortgage lenders in the country with more than 11,000 employees working in over 200 loan offices across the country. In 2021, loanDepot had a net income of $623.1 million, according to its annual report.
As a full-service mortgage lender, LoanDepot offers a full range of mortgage products, including conventional and FHA mortgages, as well as home equity lines of credit.
VA loans include VA cash-out refinance loans, interest rate reduction refinance loans, and loans for purchases.
One disadvantage with LoanDepot is limited customer service availability. They’re available only Monday through Friday, from 5 a.m. to 7 p.m., and Saturdays, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., all times Pacific. They are not available on Sundays.
7. Flagstar Bank
Flagstar Bank is a Michigan-based bank, with branches in the Midwest, but they offer mortgages in all 50 states.
Flagstar Bank offers checking, savings, credit cards, health savings accounts, IRAs, auto loans, recreational loans and online and mobile banking.
It’s also a full-service mortgage lender, and one of the more prominent mortgage companies in the country.
Flagstar offers conventional loans, VA and FHA loans, jumbo loans, construction and renovation loans for purchase and refinance.
Fixed-rate VA home loan terms range in terms from 10 to 30 years. Adjustable-rate VA loans come with a three and five-year initial fixed-rate term (then convert to a one-year adjustable rate).
8. Wells Fargo
Wells Fargo is the third-largest bank in the United States. As of the end of 2021, they originated $205 billion in home loans.
The bank provides all of the services you would expect, including checking and savings accounts, credit cards, auto loans, student loans, mortgages and home equity lines of credit (HELOC).
Wells Fargo services conventional and FHA loans, as well as VA mortgages. On VA loans, they offer both fixed and adjustable-rate loans.
One of the significant advantages of Wells Fargo is its size. With more than 8,000 branch locations, it’s easy to initiate and complete the mortgage application process.
9. PrimeLending
PrimeLending may not be a household name, but it is one of the top mortgage lenders in the country and has an “A+” rating from the Better Business Bureau.
Based in Dallas, Texas, the company has nearly 5,000 employees located around the country.
Prime Lending is strictly a mortgage lender; it offers conventional, jumbo and FHA mortgages, as well as VA mortgages.
PrimeLending offers VA fixed-rate mortgages with 15- and 30-year terms and VA adjustable-rate mortgages. You can also apply for a VA jumbo loan, enabling you to purchase a home for as much as $1 million.
10. Lending Tree
Lending Tree is different from other lenders on this list. For starters, Lending Tree isn’t even a lender. It’s an online lending exchange that gives borrowers an opportunity to obtain financing from a wide variety of lenders.
Just fill out a series of questions on the website, then Lending Tree will connect you to various lenders who can provide for your loan needs. This will create competition between lenders, empowering you to choose the one you feel will work best for you.
Lending Tree can connect you with virtually any type of financing, including conventional, FHA and VA loans for purchase and refinance.
USAA Disclosure: Use of the term “member” or “membership” refers to membership in USAA Membership Services and does not convey any legal or ownership rights in USAA. Restrictions apply and are subject to change. To join USAA, separated military personnel must have received a discharge type of “Honorable.” Eligible former dependents of USAA members may join USAA. Bank products provided by USAA Federal Savings Bank, Member FDIC and Equal Housing Lender NMLS ID 401058.
Equal Housing Opportunity. The Department of Veterans Affairs affirmatively administers the VA Home Loan Program by assuring that all Veterans are given an equal opportunity to buy homes with VA assistance. Federal law requires all VA Home Loan Program participants – builders, brokers and lenders offering housing for sale with VA financing – must comply with Fair Housing Laws and may not discriminate based on the race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin of the Veteran.
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Paulus Ford says
Do you have any information for Veterans looking to obtain a construction loan then turn the loan into a VA mortgage?
Harold Ruiz says
I had a very bad experience with Quicken Loans. I will advise everyone to stay away from them. They are not the professional experienced team that they portray.
I was paired up with David from the fresh start program to help get my score into the appropriate zone for the loan. David did squat. I did the majority of the work. All he did was submit my info into a computer program and read me the results. I could have done that. I did though, gather the collection dates from a few of my creditors. I followed my score off Experian. I even called him, to follow up on my case, every time. You’ll accomplish much more on your own than working with Quicken Loans.