How to use the VA Mortgage Calculator
- Enter the full purchase price as the loan amount if you are using zero down.
- Enter your quoted VA rate.
- Keep the 30-year term for the lowest payment, or shorten it to cut lifetime interest.
- Set the funding fee: 2.15% for a first use with no down payment, 3.3% for subsequent use, 0% if exempt.
How the calculation works
The VA funding fee replaces mortgage insurance entirely. It is a one-time charge, normally financed, and it is waived for veterans receiving compensation for a service-connected disability — which makes the VA loan the cheapest mainstream product available to those borrowers.
Because there is no monthly insurance, a VA loan at the same rate as an FHA loan carries a materially lower total housing payment. The gap is typically $150 to $250 a month on a mid-priced home.
Entitlement can be restored and reused after a sale and payoff, and partial entitlement allows a second simultaneous VA loan in many cases. Fee percentage depends on whether this is a first or subsequent use.
Loan = price × (1 + funding fee); Payment = Loan × r ÷ [1 − (1 + r)⁻ⁿ]Source: 38 CFR 36.4313 and the VA Lender's Handbook (VA Pamphlet 26-7) funding fee tables.
Worked example
$320,000 at 6.1% over 30 years with a 2.15% funding fee.
- The fee adds $6,880, financing $326,880.
- 360 payments at 0.5083% monthly.
- Principal and interest are about $1,981.
About $1,981 with no monthly mortgage insurance at any loan-to-value.
Frequently asked questions
Is there really no down payment?+
Correct, up to the lender's county limit for full entitlement. Above that, a partial down payment applies to the excess.
Who is exempt from the funding fee?+
Veterans receiving service-connected disability compensation, eligible surviving spouses, and certain Purple Heart recipients on active duty.
Can VA loans be used for investment property?+
No. The borrower must certify intent to occupy, though multi-unit properties up to four units qualify if you live in one.
Last reviewed September 1, 2026. We review this page whenever the underlying formula, tax year, published rate or standard changes.