Tampa Bay Veteran & Military Home Insider

Tampa Bay Veteran & Military Home Insider PCSing to MacDill AFB. We are here to HELP! Contact us today & ask about our Military Discounts. Proudly serving Military and Veterans!

09/09/2026

Week one of a four-week VA home loan education series with Will Merritt at Lone Depot and Shannon Stelton at LPT Realty. There is so much misinformation out there about VA loans and these two are here to set the record straight.

Will served in the US Navy from 1989 to 1996 as an avionic technician and has done over 360 VA refinances in a single year. He knows this benefit inside and out.

Here is what they covered in episode one.

Who qualifies and how to check eligibility. It is not just the DD214. The Certificate of Eligibility is the key document and the new COE now includes funding fee exemption status, current loan information, and monthly benefit details all in one place.

Does VA really allow zero down? Yes. It is one of only two loan programs that allows 100 percent financing. Buyers should expect roughly two to three percent of the purchase price for closing costs covering appraisal, title, insurance, and tax setup.

What can the seller pay? VA guidelines allow the seller to contribute up to four percent toward closing costs plus an additional two percent that can be used to buy down the rate, pay off debt, or cover other buyer expenses. That is effectively six percent in total seller contributions available.

How does VA compare to conventional and FHA? On a $500,000 purchase the VA rate advantage is significant. Will is currently seeing VA rates around 5.75 percent compared to 6 percent for FHA and 6.75 percent for conventional with great credit. No down payment required, smaller loan amount, lower payment, and zero PMI. The difference in PMI alone between VA and conventional is roughly $260 per month. Invested over 30 years at an 8 percent return that gap becomes $823,000.

This benefit was earned. Make sure veterans know how to use it.

Week two covers pre-approval and knowing your budget.

Will Merritt, Lone Depot. 727-421-7517.
Shannon Stelton, LPT Realty. 727-390-7080.

09/07/2026

Happy Labor Day everyone.

As we celebrate this special weekend I wanted to take a moment to share what this day truly means to me beyond just a long weekend.

Labor Day is about honoring the incredible spirit of hard work, dedication, and dreams that so many families pour their lives into every single day. Every early morning. Every late night. Every extra shift. Every sacrifice made with a bigger purpose in mind.

All of it adds up to something truly meaningful.

And one of the most beautiful expressions of that hard work is building a home for yourself and your family. A place that is yours. A foundation for everything you are working toward.

If you are one of the many amazing people working hard toward homeownership right now I want you to hear this clearly.

Keep going. You are closer than you think.

Your consistency matters. Your patience matters. Your commitment to the goal matters. And the dream of owning your own home is absolutely worth every step of the journey to get there.

As your trusted mortgage advisor I would be honored to walk this path with you. Run the numbers, answer your questions, and design a real plan that gets you into your dream home on a timeline that works for your life.

Text, call, or email me anytime for a free consultation. Follow along for more tips that help you make smart moves with your money.

727-421-7517 or [email protected].

Happy Labor Day. Keep building.

09/04/2026

A message I truly believe every service member and their family needs to hear.

Life after the military can change what feels normal in ways that are hard to put into words. So many veterans live with things like chronic pain, anxiety, hypervigilance, and sleep disorders long after their service ends. And what often happens is we get used to those symptoms. We push through them. We start to see them as just part of daily life.

Family members often notice those changes first. And those changes can quietly affect relationships, work, and social life in ways that deserve real attention, not just toughing it out.

Here is the heart of this message.

Just because something has become part of your daily routine does not mean it should be ignored. Understanding how your service has shaped you and your family is one of the most powerful steps toward finding real support, real healing, and real answers.

You have already given so much. You deserve to feel supported in every chapter that comes next. Not just during service. After it too.

Text, call, or DM me anytime. Follow along for more encouragement that helps veterans and military families thrive in the next season of life.

09/04/2026

This week's housing market update is focused on something every buyer and seller is watching: inflation and what the Federal Reserve does next.

Recent economic data continues to show that inflation remains a major factor influencing the Fed's decisions. Policymakers are balancing the goal of keeping inflation under control while supporting a healthy economy. That balancing act is producing uncertainty in the rate environment and that uncertainty is trickling down directly into buyer and seller behavior.

But here is the thing about uncertainty in real estate that most people miss.

For consumers uncertainty feels like a reason to wait. For real estate professionals uncertainty is an opportunity to become the most trusted voice in the room.

Your clients do not need someone who can predict exactly what the Fed will do next or where rates will land in six months. Nobody can do that reliably. What they need is someone who can clearly explain what is happening right now and help them understand what their actual options are in this specific environment.

That is the value you can provide that no algorithm or headline can replace.

This is a great time to reconnect with your database. Check in with past clients who may be watching the news and wondering what it means for them. Educate buyers who have been waiting for the perfect moment that may never arrive exactly as they imagined it.

The agents and lenders who consistently provide real value and help people make informed decisions will be the ones who stay top of mind when opportunities arise. And opportunities are arising right now for buyers who understand how to use the current market.

09/03/2026

Veterans, this is a big one and it is in your favor.

If collections on your credit report have had you thinking a VA loan is off the table reach out before you assume that is still true. Because the rules changed.

The VA updated how collections are handled and here is what that means for you.

Medical collections and charged-off medical accounts are no longer counted against you. Not in your qualifying ratios. Not in your residual income calculation. Gone. If medical debt has been the thing standing between you and a VA loan that barrier may no longer exist.

For non-medical collections without a set monthly payment lenders now use 5 percent of the balance in the ratios rather than the full balance. That is a significant reduction in how much those collections weigh against your qualification.

And here is the part that surprises most veterans: the VA does not require you to pay off collections to qualify. Your full credit picture is what matters. Not just the negative items.

If you were told no years ago based on collections on your credit report that answer may be completely different today. The guidelines changed and a denial under the old rules is not a denial under the current ones.

Veterans do not let an old no be your final answer. Reach out and let's find out what you actually qualify for right now.

And realtors this is one you need to know too. Share this with your veteran buyers.

08/25/2026

Most people are watching the Federal Reserve to figure out where mortgage rates are headed. But the bigger story this week is happening in the bond market and it is worth understanding.

Mortgage rates are heavily influenced by investor demand for long-term bonds. This week investors continued watching inflation, government spending, and economic uncertainty. When bond yields move higher mortgage rates can feel upward pressure. When the bond market improves rates have room to move lower. The Fed is just one piece of a much larger picture.

So what does this mean for your clients right now?

The biggest mistake buyers can make is waiting for the perfect moment. The market is constantly changing and the perfect moment rarely arrives on the schedule buyers are waiting for. The right strategy is understanding your options, knowing what your payment looks like at current rates, and making a decision based on your personal goals and your financial readiness rather than a rate prediction.

The agents who stand out in today's market are the ones who go beyond the headline. Clients are watching the news and getting confused. The agents who can explain what the bond market actually means for housing and what buyers should actually be doing right now are the ones who build real trust and real referrals.

If you have clients asking about the bond market and what it means for their home purchase I am always happy to help you have that conversation.

08/12/2026

Can you really trust AI to shop your mortgage and guide your home purchase? The newest data has some surprising answers worth paying attention to.

A brand-new survey found that 76 percent of buyers are now comfortable letting AI shop lenders for them and 89 percent would happily share their financial details to get personalized mortgage advice. Those numbers show just how powerful these tools have become and how quickly buyer attitudes toward AI in the mortgage process have shifted.

And honestly AI does some things really well. Comparing loan options across multiple lenders quickly, organizing paperwork, running payment scenarios fast, surfacing programs a buyer might not have known to ask about. For the heavy lifting of information gathering and number crunching these tools are genuinely useful.

But here is where it gets important. The buyers who win are the ones who let AI handle that heavy lifting and then bring in a great loan officer to read between the lines, catch what a screen could miss, and fight for them when it actually counts. An algorithm cannot pick up the phone and advocate for your file when an underwriter has a question. It cannot notice that your situation qualifies for a program the standard comparison missed. It cannot bring judgment and experience to a situation that does not fit neatly into a dropdown menu.

Use both and you get the best of what is available: speed and efficiency from the technology plus a real human in your corner when the stakes are highest.

Reach out and let's talk about how to put both to work for you.

08/11/2026

Thinking about making a move but feeling unsure about the headlines? Here is the good news you actually need to hear about today's housing market.

First, if you already own a home your equity is stronger than ever. Home values have recently risen in 80 percent of US markets. Your investment is safe and it is growing. The wealth you have been building through homeownership is real and it is at or near record levels for most homeowners.

Second, if you are looking to buy the news is genuinely encouraging. Inventory is finally expanding. More homes on the market means more choices for you, fewer bidding wars, and a real opportunity to negotiate better terms than buyers have had in years. The frenzy of the past few years has calmed down and the market has become one that rewards prepared buyers rather than just the fastest ones.

And finally the market is predictable again. Experts broadly agree that a crash is not on the horizon. The structural conditions that support home values, strong equity positions, low foreclosure rates, and persistent housing demand, remain intact.

Whether you want to cash in on your record-high equity or find your dream home with less competition than you have seen in years, I can help you navigate it.

Send me a message today and let's talk about your goals.

C-YA next Wednesday at the American Legion Post 7 Clearwater Florida use QR Code to RSVP
08/05/2026

C-YA next Wednesday at the American Legion Post 7 Clearwater Florida use QR Code to RSVP

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