- Request a Certificate of Eligibility on VA.gov. Many people can get one from their service record without a scavenger hunt.
- Talk to more than one VA-approved lender. Occupancy and residual income are VA rules — they are not optional fine print.
- This guide does not underwrite a loan and does not pull a consumer report.
- If you are a surviving spouse, read the surviving-spouse COE rules on VA.gov before you shop a house.
Housing
VA home loan: Certificate of Eligibility first
The guaranty is not a pre-approval. The COE is the first official paper.