Inside VA Loans Made Easy: A Tour of My Free VA Loan Community

I run a free online community called VA Loans Made Easy, and this is the tour: what is inside it, what it costs (nothing), and who actually gets something out of it.

Short version. It is a classroom full of my VA loan videos, a section of calculators, a free copy of my book, a few resources other people built that I thought were worth keeping, and a chat area where you can ask me a question and get an answer. If you are using your VA benefit and you keep running into confusing answers, that is what I built it for.

Take the 30 second mortgage quiz to see if you qualify

What is inside the classroom?

The classroom is set up as courses, so you can start at the beginning or jump straight to the part that applies to you. When I built it I organized it around the calls I actually get.

• Start Here is the getting-started guide. Eligibility, what documents you need, what the timeline looks like.
• 30 Second Qualification Quiz is the same quiz I use here on my site.
• VA Loan Guidelines is the one people spend the most time in, because most of my phone calls are guideline questions.
• VA Refinances covers the refinance programs, including the IRRRL.
• VA Property Requirements and Renovation covers what makes a property VA eligible, plus VA renovation loans.
• Mortgage Calculators is its own section, and it is bigger than most people expect.

Why do so many of the lessons come back to guidelines?

Because most of the people who call me have already been told no somewhere else, and when I ask which rule they failed, nobody can tell them. Usually it is not a VA rule at all. It is that lender's own overlay sitting on top of the VA rule.

If that sounds like your situation, the guidelines lessons in the community go through this the same way I would on the phone, and I have written it up here too in how to get a VA home loan with bad credit.

Which calculators do you get?

There is a whole calculator section, and it goes past the usual payment calculator. Bonus entitlement, mortgage payment, affordability, rent versus buy, refinance, conforming loan limits, net proceeds, temporary buydown, and a home value lookup.

Most of these also live on my site if you would rather not join anything to use them. They are on my mortgage calculators page.

Can I really get your book for free?

Yes. My book, VA Loans Made Easy, is for sale on Amazon, and members get a copy inside the community at no charge. If you want it without joining, there is also a book page here on my site.

What is in there that I did not make?

When someone else has built something genuinely useful for veterans, I add it instead of rewriting it. Two examples you will find in the Disabled Veteran Resources section: a webinar on maximizing VA disability benefits from Dr. Steven Crane, and a lesson on property tax waivers by state.

There is also a Fix Your Credit section with credit building material from My Credit Guy, who is who I refer to when a file needs credit work before it can move.

Property tax exemptions in particular are worth your time if you have a disability rating, because the rules are set state by state. I keep a state by state breakdown on this site as well.

Take the 30 second mortgage quiz to see if you qualify

Can I ask you a question directly?

That is what the chat area is for. Post your question and you will get an answer from me or from someone else in the group who has been through it. One tip: include the actual numbers and dates. "Will I qualify?" is hard to answer. "Chapter 7 discharged in March 2024, 640 score, $6,200 a month gross, one car payment" is easy to answer.

Who should join?

You will get the most out of it if you are somewhere in this list.

• You are early in the process and want to know what you are walking into.
• You were turned down somewhere else and nobody explained which rule you missed.
• You are thinking about a refinance and want to run the numbers before you talk to anyone.
• You have a disability rating and want to know what else it gets you.
• You want to read up quietly on your own before you speak to a loan officer.

If you would rather skip the reading and just find out where you stand, the VA Loan Pathfinder walks your scenario through in a couple of minutes.

What does it cost?

Nothing. The classroom, the calculators, the book copy and the chat are free. The only thing you would ever pay for is a physical copy of the book, and only if you want one.

How do I join?

Go to the community, join, then open the Start Here guide and run whichever calculators match what you are trying to do. If your situation is complicated, post it in the chat and I will look at it.

And if you would rather just talk to a person, call or text me at 937-572-3713 or take the 30 second quiz and I will follow up.