What Home Loan Companies do Manual Underwriting for VA Homes?

Manual underwriting for home loans is a process by which lenders can work within regulations to approve homeowners for home loans guaranteed by a particular agency, such as the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). The VA is one of the largest guarantors of home loans in the country, and annually backs thousands of home loan applications from veterans and other eligible individuals.

Through a manual underwriting process, the lending company takes written guidelines and regulations from the VA and uses them to judge whether or not an applicant is eligible or approved for a loan. The VA has strict guidelines, and it can be difficult for some to be approved. If the initial attempt to put the applicant's information into an automated system fails, then a manual underwriting process must be used.

Finding a lender who does manual underwriting is mostly a product of asking various lending companies if they do manual underwriting at all, and whether or not they service VA loans. Many major banks, for example, do manual underwriting for VA loans. Often these banks will have the discretion to approve VA loans if they meet the written guidelines – and often they can work with an applicant to find a way to get approval.

Smaller financial organizations and lending companies may not have that capability. The best thing to do is to ask the organization itself; they will be able to tell you yes or no fairly quickly.

VA loans are popular because they offer home loans without any down payment, and a relatively cheap funding fee that may be waived in certain circumstances (i.e. if the veteran receives disability compensation from the VA).