SD Mortgage Couple

11/02/2026

Got PCS orders? You may not have to sell your current house before buying the next one.

This is one of the VA loan scenarios we wish more military homeowners understood.

If you’re transferred to a new duty station, you may be able to:

keep the home you already own,
turn it into a rental,
and use remaining VA entitlement to buy another primary residence.

That’s where second-tier VA entitlement can come into play.

It does NOT mean every borrower can automatically buy another home with zero down. Your remaining entitlement, current VA loan, purchase price and overall qualification still matter.

But “I already used my VA loan” is not necessarily the end of the conversation.

Watch the full VA loan episode of You’re So Money with Tracy and Michael, the SD Mortgage Couple, on YouTube for more VA strategies military buyers should know.

11/01/2026

Halloween 2026 🎃🤌🏻 💀

10/30/2026

Your $4,000 monthly BAH may count like MORE than $4,000 when you’re qualifying for a mortgage.

That surprises a lot of military buyers.

BAH — Basic Allowance for Housing — is generally non-taxable income.

And because you’re not paying income taxes on that money, a lender may be able to “gross it up” when calculating your qualifying income for a VA home loan.

So in the example we’re talking about here, $4,000 of monthly BAH could potentially be treated as a higher qualifying amount.

That can matter when you’re figuring out:

How much house can I afford?
What mortgage payment can I qualify for?
How is my military income actually being calculated?

This is exactly why we tell active-duty buyers not to assume a basic online mortgage calculator is giving them the whole picture.

Military pay is different.

And knowing how to properly calculate BAH and other non-taxable income can make a meaningful difference in your VA loan qualification.

Watch the full VA loan episode of You’re So Money with Tracy and Michael, the SD Mortgage Couple, on YouTube for more VA strategies and answers to the questions military buyers are actually asking.

10/29/2026

A high debt-to-income ratio does not automatically mean your VA home loan is dead.

This is where understanding residual income becomes really important.

DTI looks at how much of your monthly income is going toward debt.

But VA underwriting can also look at how much money you have left over after your major monthly obligations are paid. That’s residual income.

And depending on the borrower and the rest of the loan file, that can make a difference.

We see people get told things like:

“You’re over our DTI limit.”

“You don’t qualify.”

“The computer denied it.”

But a lender’s internal limit and the full VA guideline analysis are not always the same thing.

So if you’re a veteran or active-duty buyer who has been turned down because of your debt-to-income ratio, ask one more question:

What does my residual income look like?

Sometimes the answer deserves a deeper look.

Watch the full VA loan episode of You’re So Money with Tracy and Michael, the SD Mortgage Couple, on YouTube for more VA loan strategies and answers to the questions military buyers are actually asking.

10/28/2026

Locked into a 2.5% VA rate but want to move? That rate may be more valuable than you think.

VA loans are assumable, which means another qualified buyer may be able to take over your existing mortgage — including that low interest rate.

The big thing to understand is what happens to your VA entitlement.

If another eligible service member assumes the loan with their own entitlement, you may be able to get the entitlement tied to that property back.

If the person assuming the loan doesn’t have VA entitlement, part of yours may remain tied to that mortgage.

That doesn’t always mean you can’t buy again, but it absolutely changes the strategy.

This is why VA homeowners need to think beyond just the rate. The loan itself can have value when you’re deciding whether to sell, move or buy your next home.

Watch the full VA loan episode of You’re So Money with Tracy and Michael, the SD Mortgage Couple, on YouTube for more VA strategies military buyers and homeowners should know.

10/27/2026

10/27/2026

A low VA appraisal does not automatically mean your deal is dead.

This is one of the biggest misconceptions we hear about VA loans.

If the appraiser believes the value may come in below the purchase price, the VA process can give the lender and agents an opportunity to provide additional comparable sales before that value is finalized.

That process is called Tidewater.

And if the appraisal still comes in low, there can be another step: a Reconsideration of Value, where the file can receive an additional level of review through the VA.

That matters because with other loan types, buyers can sometimes feel stuck with the original appraisal.

With VA, there may be another path.

The important part is having a team that understands the process, knows what evidence to submit, and knows when a value is worth challenging.

Watch the full VA loan episode of You’re So Money with the SD Mortgage Couple on YouTube for more VA strategies, real scenarios and answers to the questions military buyers are actually asking.

10/26/2026

Safe to say Halloween 🎃 is one of favorites!

10/26/2026

Can a VA home purchase actually help you pay off debt? In the right transaction, it can.

This is one of the VA strategies a lot of military buyers have never been shown.

Seller concessions can sometimes do a lot more than simply help with traditional closing costs. Depending on the transaction and VA guidelines, they may also help address certain debts that are affecting a buyer’s ability to qualify.

We recently worked on a VA purchase where the negotiated seller credits helped cover closing costs and pay off a major monthly debt obligation.

That changes the conversation completely.

Because sometimes a buyer has the income to own a home, but one large car payment, credit card payment or other debt is pushing the debt-to-income ratio too high.

That’s why we don’t just ask, “Can we approve this loan?”

We look at the entire deal and ask, “Is there a smarter way to structure it?”

The VA benefit is incredibly powerful, but knowing the guidelines is what allows you to actually use that power.

Watch the full VA loan episode of You’re So Money with the SD Mortgage Couple on YouTube for more VA strategies, real transactions and answers to the questions military buyers are actually asking.

10/24/2026

Having an insurance agent, you can count on is one of the most important relationships. A mortgage broker could have and here’s why!