When Rudy sits down with a buyer who plans to use the VA home loan benefit, the same five questions come up almost every time. Each touches a part of the benefit that works differently from a conventional loan.
Here are straight answers, with every market number dated. This site has no affiliation with the VA, so your lender and the VA have the final word on your file.
1. How do I prove I am eligible, and where does the Certificate of Eligibility come from?
Eligibility is shown on your Certificate of Eligibility, or COE. It confirms that your service meets the VA's requirements and shows your entitlement, the amount of VA backing available to you. Eligibility generally covers veterans, active-duty service members who meet a minimum service requirement, certain National Guard and Reserve members and other categories the VA lists.
According to the VA, you can request a COE online, through a lender that uses the VA's Web LGY system, or by mail with VA Form 26-1880, which takes longer. In practice, most lenders pull it electronically within minutes once they have your basic service details. If you are on active duty, expect to provide a statement of service signed by your command.
Having the lender pull the COE before you tour homes means any question about your record can be settled early, while no contract deadline is running.
Go deeper: VA loan terms in plain English · Questions to ask a lender
2. Can I really buy a home in San Diego County with zero down?
Yes, for many buyers. With full entitlement, the VA does not require a down payment, and your income, credit and the appraisal set the real ceiling on what you can borrow. The VA notes that nearly 90% of all VA-backed home loans are made without a down payment (a figure covering all VA loans, not only purchases).
Zillow's typical home value for the San Diego metro was $926,961 as of September 2026, up 0.8% in a year. Freddie Mac's weekly survey put the 30-year fixed average at 7.32% for the week of October 22, 2026, and at that rate principal and interest on the full price is about $6,368 a month before any funding fee. With 20% down, about $185,392, it would be about $5,094. Property tax and insurance at this site's calculator defaults (about 1.1% and 0.3% of the price a year) add roughly $1,081 a month to either figure.
Zero down is not zero cash. You still bring an earnest money deposit, which is credited toward the purchase, plus closing costs such as the appraisal, title, escrow and recording fees.
Go deeper: This week's mortgage rate watch · Plan your cash to close
Want answers for your own move? The four-question Home Strategy Quiz takes about a minute, and Rudy reads every answer himself.
3. Who pays the VA funding fee, and how do I know if I am exempt?
The funding fee is a one-time charge that helps keep the VA home loan program running. VA loans do not charge monthly mortgage insurance, and the fee is the cost that comes in its place. You can roll it into the loan or pay it at closing. For a first use of the benefit with less than 5% down, VA.gov listed the fee at 2.15% of the loan amount in October 2026, and it steps down with a larger down payment.
Some buyers pay no fee at all. Whether you qualify depends on your records, so your lender and the VA confirm it, and if you have a rating or a pre-discharge claim in progress, ask specifically whether it exempts you. The VA's exemption list includes these groups:
- People who receive VA compensation for a service-connected condition
- People eligible for that compensation who receive retirement or active-duty pay instead
- Recipients of Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC)
- Service members with a proposed or memorandum rating, issued before closing, tied to a pre-discharge claim
- Active-duty members who show they received a Purple Heart on or before closing
Go deeper: VA funding fee calculator
4. What does the VA appraisal look for, and what if the home needs repairs?
A VA appraisal does two jobs. A VA-approved appraiser estimates the home's value and also checks it against the VA's Minimum Property Requirements, a baseline that asks whether the home is structurally sound, sanitary and free of hazards, with working heat, roof, water and sewer. Cosmetic wear is not the target. The VA's Lenders Handbook (VA Pamphlet 26-7) covers these requirements in chapter 12, and the VA revised its appraisal rules in 2026, so ask your lender which version applies to your loan.
The appraisal is not a home inspection and does not replace one. If the report lists an item that falls short, it has to be fixed before closing, by the seller or the buyer, and the appraiser checks it again. A bigger item can lead to a renegotiation, a credit or a different home.
With older homes especially, Rudy looks at the roof, water heater and heating system with the requirements in mind before you write an offer, and an early inspection lets repair requests and appraisal items be handled together.
Go deeper: When the appraisal happens in escrow · Printable buying checklists
5. Is there a VA loan limit in San Diego County?
For a buyer with full entitlement, the VA itself no longer caps the loan amount, and most first-time users of the benefit have full entitlement. The figure people often call the loan limit here is the 2026 conforming loan limit for San Diego County, $1,104,000, set by the FHFA. Typical values in some county ZIP codes sit above it, such as 91902 in Bonita at $1,143,759 as of September 2026, up 3.9% in a year.
Above that figure, full entitlement still means no VA-required down payment. The lender's approval, not a VA cap, decides how far the loan can go.
The answer changes if you are still carrying a VA loan, or used entitlement before without restoring it. Then you may have remaining entitlement only, and a down payment may be needed on part of the price. Ask your lender to work out, early and in writing, how much entitlement you have and whether the county limit plays a part in your numbers.
To see where typical values sit by ZIP code before you set a price range, start with the home values map.
Go deeper: Home values map by ZIP code · Check a listing's price
Have a question that is not on the list?
Every service record and every loan file is a little different, so treat these answers as a starting point rather than a ruling on your situation; nothing here is financial, legal or tax advice. If one of these questions is the one holding you up, ask Rudy. He can walk through the home-buying side with you and help you line up the right questions for your lender.
Sources: VA: How to request a VA home loan Certificate of Eligibility; VA: Funding fee and closing costs; VA: Home loan types; VA: Home loans; Zillow Research data; Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey; FHFA conforming loan limits. Market figures are dated where they appear and describe the past, not the future.
Keep exploring
- Home Strategy Quiz for San Diego — Take the Home Strategy Quiz: four quick questions about buying or selling in San Diego, answered personally by Rudy Flores, Realtor® at Coldwell...
- Selling and Moving Up With Your VA Benefit — For owners of a VA-financed home in San Diego County: selling it, getting entitlement back, the assumable loan, the next purchase and property tax...
- Home Buying and Selling Calculators — Mortgage payment, affordability, rent vs buy, closing cost, property tax, refinance, moving cost, ADU return and seller net proceeds calculators...
- Home Guides: Practical Know-How for San Diego Buyers and Sellers — Practical guides, printable checklists and market insight for people buying, selling or moving in San Diego County.
Talk to a lender. Rates, loan programs and approvals come from lenders, not from websites or real estate agents. Talk to your own mortgage broker, or use our preferred lender, Point Mortgage Corporation (NMLS #231073), at (619) 475-4095. You are always free to choose any lender you like, and you can verify any lender’s license at nmlsconsumeraccess.org.
General information, not financial, legal or tax advice. Every situation is different, so confirm the details for your own purchase.