VA loan requirements in Texas: what actually matters in 2026

A VA loan is made by a private lender, not the Department of Veterans Affairs. VA sets the program rules and guarantees part of the loan.

That distinction explains a lot of the confusion. You can meet VA's rules and still run into a lender's stricter rule. You can also have a debt ratio that looks high and still qualify because VA looks closely at the money your family has left after the bills are paid.

Who qualifies for a VA loan?

The first question is whether your service meets VA's minimum requirement. The answer depends on when and how you served.

The VA's eligibility page says veterans who served from August 2, 1990, to the present generally meet the minimum with at least 24 continuous months, or the full period of at least 90 days for which they were called or ordered to active duty. A currently serving service member meets the minimum active-duty requirement after 90 continuous days.

Earlier service periods use different thresholds. VA lists 90 total days for the wartime periods on its eligibility page and 181 continuous days for the covered peacetime periods. Some service between September 8, 1980, and August 1, 1990, follows a 24-month rule or the full called period of at least 181 days.

National Guard and Reserve service have separate paths.

For National Guard members, VA lists:

• At least 90 days of non-training active-duty Title 10 service.
• At least 90 days of active-duty service that includes 30 consecutive days under a qualifying Title 32 activation shown on the DD214.
• Six creditable years in the National Guard, with the service status or discharge conditions VA requires.

For Reserve members, VA lists at least 90 days of non-training active-duty service or six creditable years in the Selected Reserve, with the required continuing service, honorable discharge, or retired status.

The 30-consecutive-day Title 32 route belongs to the National Guard rules. It is not a general active-duty rule or a Reserve path.

Missing the normal day count does not always end the discussion. VA lists exceptions tied to hardship, convenience of the government, early out, involuntary reduction in force, certain medical conditions, and a service-connected disability.

You also need a Certificate of Eligibility, usually called a COE. VA says you can request it online through VA.gov, ask a lender to retrieve it through Web LGY, or apply by mail using VA Form 26-1880.

The COE proves VA recognizes your eligibility and shows your available entitlement. It does not approve the loan by itself. The lender still reviews your credit, income, debts, occupancy, and property.

What credit score do you need?

VA does not set a minimum credit score.

VA's lender handbook, Pamphlet 26-7, Chapter 4, says it directly: "VA does not have a minimum credit score requirement." The same chapter says the absence of a credit history is not generally considered an adverse factor.

Private lenders make VA loans, and they can add their own minimum score or other credit rules. Those added rules are often called lender overlays.

This is why two lenders can look at the same borrower and give different answers. One may require a score that another does not.

The useful questions are: What does VA require, and what does this lender require? VA's national minimum is none.

How much income is enough? DTI and residual income

VA does not publish one income number that qualifies every borrower. The lender compares your income with your debts, expected housing costs, family size, and the money left each month.

Debt-to-income ratio, or DTI, measures how much of your gross monthly income goes toward monthly debt. VA's handbook uses 41% as a guide, not a hard cap.

Pamphlet 26-7 says DTI is secondary to residual income and "should not automatically trigger approval or rejection of a loan." If DTI is above 41%, the file generally needs an underwriter's justification and second-level review. That extra step is not required when residual income exceeds the guideline by at least 20%.

Residual income is the money left after the obligations counted by VA are paid. VA calls its residual-income figures a guide, but the handbook also says inadequate residual income alone can be a reason to deny the loan.

Texas is in VA's South region. For a family of four with a loan amount of $80,000 or more, the South-region guideline is $1,003 per month. The figure changes by family size and by whether the loan is above or below $80,000.

This is why a family at 45% DTI may still qualify for a VA loan even when a conventional file using a stricter ratio rule would be declined. VA asks whether the family has enough money left after the bills, not only whether one percentage is above a line. Strong residual income can support approval above 41%, while weak residual income can hurt a file even when DTI looks acceptable.

Federal regulations also allow at least a 5% reduction in the residual-income guideline when an active-duty or military-retiree borrower or spouse will keep using facilities on a nearby military base. The file needs a clear indication that those benefits will continue.

How much money down?

With full entitlement, VA does not set a loan limit. VA says you do not have a limit as long as you can afford the amount and the appraisal supports the purchase price.

VA purchase financing can allow no down payment for a qualified borrower. The lender still has to approve the amount, and the property still has to appraise. When you have partial entitlement, county limits affect the calculation.

The bigger mistake is assuming nothing down means nothing due at closing.

I remember the first time I used my own VA loan. I thought zero down meant a closing would cost me nothing, and the cash-to-close number blindsided me.

Josh Poulin — on his own first VA loan

The down payment is only one part of the money needed to close. The VA funding fee may apply. Get the cash-to-close estimate early and ask what each line means.

VA loans also carry no private mortgage insurance and no monthly mortgage insurance premium. VA's purchase-loan page says there is no need for PMI or MIP.

What is the VA funding fee, and who's exempt?

The VA funding fee is a charge set by VA. It is not a lender fee.

For purchase and construction loans, the current statutory schedule is:

These percentages are not an annual "2026 table." Under 38 U.S.C. § 3729, this schedule applies to loans closed from April 7, 2023, through June 9, 2034.

VA's funding-fee page says you may be exempt if:

• You receive VA compensation for a service-connected disability.
• You are eligible for that compensation but receive retirement or active-duty pay instead.
• You receive Dependency and Indemnity Compensation as the surviving spouse of a veteran.
• You are a service member with a proposed or memorandum rating before closing that says you are eligible for compensation.
• You are on active duty and provide evidence by closing that you received a Purple Heart.

The exemption should be confirmed before closing. Do not assume it from a pending disability claim unless you fit the proposed-or-memorandum-rating rule VA lists.

What homes qualify? Occupancy, appraisal, and the termite rule

A VA purchase loan is for a primary residence. Pamphlet 26-7 says the borrower must certify an intent to personally occupy the property as a home.

VA normally treats occupancy within 60 days after closing as reasonable. A later date can work when you certify a specific date and identify a future event that will make occupancy possible. Occupancy beyond 12 months is generally not considered reasonable.

For a deployed service member who cannot personally move in within a reasonable time, occupancy by a spouse or dependent child can satisfy the rule. For an Interest Rate Reduction Refinance Loan, the veteran needs to certify prior occupancy rather than current occupancy.

The property must also meet VA Minimum Property Requirements. The current Chapter 12 of Pamphlet 26-7, effective after May 1, 2026, says those rules help ensure the home is safe, structurally sound, and sanitary.

A VA appraisal is not a home inspection. The appraiser estimates value and reports conditions that appear not to meet VA's property rules. The handbook says the appraiser does not perform operational checks of mechanical systems or appliances. It also tells appraisers to recommend repairs, not inspections.

Get a separate home inspection. The appraisal is not designed to tell you everything that may be wrong with the property.

Texas also has a statewide wood-destroying-insect requirement for VA loans. VA's local-requirements page lists Texas among the states where wood-destroying-insect information is required throughout the state. The handbook ties that rule to areas with very heavy or moderate-to-heavy termite probability.

A termite inspection is not required for a unit in a high-rise condominium where the units are stacked vertically. Side-by-side condominium units in covered areas can still require the report unless the homeowners association provides evidence of treatment.

Are there VA loan limits in 2026?

If you have full entitlement, VA says you do not have a VA loan limit. Approval still depends on your ability to afford the loan and on the appraisal supporting the purchase price.

The no-limit rule comes from the Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Act of 2019 and applies to qualifying loans closed after January 1, 2020.

If you have partial entitlement, county limits still matter. VA says remaining bonus entitlement is based on the county loan limit minus entitlement already used. VA loan limits follow the Federal Housing Finance Agency conforming loan limits.

FHFA set the 2026 baseline conforming loan limit for a one-unit property at $832,750. That baseline matters when partial entitlement applies. Your COE and the county where you are buying determine the actual calculation.

Using the benefit before does not automatically prevent another VA loan. VA says eligibility is reusable depending on the circumstances. Used entitlement can normally be restored after the prior VA loan is paid off and the property is sold. VA also allows a one-time restoration when the prior loan is paid in full but you still own the property.

If VA paid a claim that caused a loss, the used portion is not restored until that loss is repaid in full.

What's different about VA loans in Texas?

Most VA rules are federal. Texas adds several issues that can change the loan or the monthly housing cost.

First, Texas home-equity law blocks a true VA cash-out refinance on a homestead. Texas Attorney General Opinion KP-0183 concluded that the federal guaranty counts as additional collateral, which Article XVI, Section 50(a)(6)(H) of the Texas Constitution does not allow for that type of home-equity loan.

That restriction is specific to VA cash-out refinancing of a Texas homestead. It does not block VA purchase loans. It also does not block an IRRRL, which is a rate-and-term VA refinance rather than an equity loan.

Second, VA requires the wood-destroying-insect report statewide in Texas, as covered above.

Third, the Texas Tax Code provides separate property-tax exemptions for disabled veterans.

Tax Code Section 11.131 provides a total residence-homestead exemption for a disabled veteran who receives 100% disability compensation due to a service-connected disability and has either a 100% disability rating or individual unemployability. The Texas Comptroller describes it as an exemption from taxation of the total appraised value of the residence homestead.

Tax Code Section 11.22 is different. It provides a partial exemption on any one property owned by the disabled veteran:

• 10% to 29%: up to $5,000.
• 30% to 49%: up to $7,500.
• 50% to 69%: up to $10,000.
• 70% to 100%: up to $12,000.

Do not blend those into one benefit. Section 11.131 is a total homestead exemption for the qualifying 100% or individual-unemployability borrower. Section 11.22 is a flat amount removed from the value of one property.

For underwriting, a confirmed total homestead exemption can remove the property-tax amount from the housing expense used in the loan analysis. That can change both DTI and residual income. The exemption comes from Texas law, and the lender needs the documentation required to count it.

Common questions

Can you use a VA loan more than once?

Yes. VA says eligibility is reusable depending on the circumstances, and used entitlement can normally be restored after the prior VA loan is paid off and the property is sold. A one-time restoration may also be available when the loan is paid in full but you still own the property.

Do VA loans have PMI?

No. VA's purchase-loan page says VA loans do not require private mortgage insurance or a monthly mortgage insurance premium. The separate VA funding fee may still apply unless you are exempt.

How do you get a Certificate of Eligibility, and how long does it take?

VA gives you three ways to request a COE: online through VA.gov, through a lender using Web LGY, or by mail with VA Form 26-1880. VA doesn't promise a turnaround time on its COE page, so don't build your contract timeline around an assumed one.

Can a surviving spouse use the VA loan benefit?

An eligible surviving spouse can use the VA loan benefit. VA's funding-fee rules specifically recognize a surviving spouse receiving Dependency and Indemnity Compensation as exempt from the funding fee.

Why do lenders quote different minimum credit scores for the same VA program?

Because VA does not set a minimum credit score, but private lenders can add their own minimums. Those lender overlays can differ even though each lender is offering a loan under the same VA program.

This article is educational content only. It is not a commitment to lend, an offer of credit, or legal or tax advice. Program rules change; the facts above were verified on the date shown and linked to their official sources. Your scenario gets verified against current guidelines, on your file, before anything is promised.