VA Jumbo Guidelines

The Department of Veteran's Affairs offers two government insured loan types to eligible veterans purchasing a home: a standard VA loan and VA jumbo loans. Qualifying for a jumbo loan versus a traditional VA loan is a bit more difficult.

Purchase Price

• Traditional conforming VA loan limits cease at a $417,000 maximum. VA jumbo loans cater to properties over $417,000 but less than $1 million.

Credit Scoring

• Traditional VA loans are not credit score driven. In other words, buyers do not need to have a specific minimum credit score in order to qualify for the loan. According to information from Financial Web, VA jumbo loans require a minimum credit score of 680 for approval.

Down Payment

• Traditional VA loans do not require a down payment from the veteran at closing. Jumbo loans, on the other hand, require a minimum down payment of 25 percent of the sales price.

Considerations

• When financing higher priced properties, VA Jumbo loans are a viable alternative to conventional loans as they do not have monthly mortgage insurance added into the payment, and do not have a pre-payment penalty.